The Los Angeles Rams agreed to terms with Jaylen Watson on Monday and the contract details show that the team only incurs a $7 million cap hit in 2026. That number does take a significant jump in 2027, going up to $22 million for the former seventh round pick who spent four seasons with the Kansas City Chiefs and now joins teammate Trent McDuffie in Los Angeles with the Rams.
If the Rams feel the contract is a letdown, the contract essentially becomes a two-year, $34 million deal, the amount Watson is guaranteed on the agreement.
Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula is obviously hoping that with McDuffie and Watson, L.A. now goes from having a weak secondary to it becoming a strength.
The team has re-signed Kam Curl to a three-year contract, traded for McDuffie, and signed Watson. Additionally, it’s less than a year since the Rams extended Quentin Lake. With Kam Kinchens also in the fold, that’s five defensive backs who L.A. can reasonably rely on next season and beyond.
The Scouting Academy highlighted Watson’s strengths in zone coverage this month on X:
Despite being a seventh round pick, Watson was actually a plus athlete coming out of Washington State in 2022. He’s a big player with a relatively decent 4.51 40-yard dash.
SB Nation’s Doug Farrar also praised the Watson signing as a great move for the Rams, showing his strengths in press coverage in a post on X this week:
For more on Watson’s unlikely rise to being a highly-paid NFL cornerback, look at this 2022 clip by Peter Schrager for NFL Network, noting that he was working at a Wendy’s not long before he was in the league:
In just a week, the Rams have done immense work to change the narrative about their secondary. Is it now worth calling the Rams as one of the best defenses in the NFL or must they next address the second line of defense at linebacker?
Free agency is only just getting started and then the draft is next. As Watson can attest to, you just never know where in the draft you’ll find your next star.
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