LA has the worst cap situation in the league—how will that impact them at the Nov. 5 deadline?
The Los Angeles Rams have some tough decisions to make with the Nov. 5 trade deadline less than two weeks away. General manager Les Snead has a major predicament on his hands as the Rams have the worst cap situation in the league.
Currently, LA has just $2 million in cap space, which is $1.5 million less than the next-worst team—the Buffalo Bills. There have been several rumors floating around as to what Snead should do to fix the cap situation. Mainly, those rumors have involved Cooper Kupp, who is at the forefront of trade speculation. Matthew Stafford’s name has also been floated but let’s ignore that noise for now as it’s a nothingburger. Talk to me when it’s the offseason.
ESPN Rams reporter Sarah Barshop explains how the team’s cap situation has gotten so bad:
“The Rams have little salary cap space because they have three players accounting for at least $23 million each, and that includes $23.8 million in dead money for the retired Aaron Donald. They do have several contracts they could restructure to free up space and make a move at the deadline, but that would be surprising given their losing record. Los Angeles also used its upcoming second-round pick to trade up for defensive lineman Braden Fiske in April.”
Kupp accounts for a $29.8 million cap hit, second on the team behind Stafford. The Rams have at least expressed some willingness to trade Kupp, but there are a couple different factors that could affect a potential move there, and how active LA chooses to be at the deadline.
For starters, if the Rams win on Thursday night against the Vikings, that’ll move their record to 3-4, putting them back into the thick of the NFC playoff picture. Plus, with the 49ers severely hurting and the NFC West not appearing as strong as it has been in recent years, would LA elect to move on from a franchise cornerstone if they still have a chance in the division chase?
Also, some teams might be hesitant to trade for a 31-year-old who has missed several games in each of the last two years since winning Super Bowl MVP. Parting with significant trade capital to acquire an aging, yet effective star (when healthy) is not a move most teams are willing to take. That is partly the reason for why the Chiefs traded for DeAndre Hopkins instead of Kupp.
The Rams and the the Chiefs discussed Cooper Kupp, but the Super Bowl champs needed to trade with a team that was willing to take on a large chunk of the salary and didn’t want to give up high picks. Tennessee is the team willing to play ball.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) October 23, 2024
Thursday’s game against Minnesota and this weekend’s slate of games will prove significant as to what direction the Rams will go at the deadline. God forbid, if other star wideouts go down like the Buccaneers saw with Chris Godwin and Mike Evans on Monday for instance, teams will be calling Snead to quickly patch up that hole.
A Cooper Kupp trade appears the most likely at the deadline, but there could always be another surprise on the way—and no of course it doesn’t involve Matthew Stafford you sillies. LA has a lot riding on their primetime matchup with the Vikings than realized. Whatever happens is anyone’s guess, so Rams fans should prepare themselves for a potentially bumpy ride ahead.
