After mulling retirement early in the 2023 NFL offseason, Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay decided to come back for his seventh year with the team. But as NFL free agency got underway, the organization did little to help improve the team for next season. So, while the team didn’t make any risky splash moves, the riskiest part of the Rams’ free agency signings is that they didn’t really sign many players at all.
Why a lack of Rams’ free agent signings is their riskiest move of the 2023 NFL offseason
Usually, when we talk about a team like the Rams’ free agent signings in terms of riskiest moves, there are players who might disrupt the locker room, sign big-money deals, or take time away from developing players.
However, in the Rams’ case during the 2023 NFL free agency period, the organization didn’t do any of these things. Instead, the team let a lot of players go and only signed three to replace them.
The Rams let 25 players go this offseason, including important 2022 starters such as safety Taylor Rapp, defensive tackle A’Shawn Robinson, defensive end Leonard Floyd, linebacker Bobby Wagner, cornerback Troy Hill, and even kicker Matt Gay.
To replace all these lost players, the Rams’ free agent signings included just three players. The team brought back offensive lineman Coleman Shelton and DT Marquise Copeland and inked a single free agent from another team, backup quarterback Brett Rypien.
Shelton started all 13 games he played in last season, shuttling between right guard and center on the banged-up Rams offensive line. However, the 27-year-old lineman did miss considerable time himself, sitting out Weeks 5 through 8 with a high ankle sprain.
Copeland just turned 26 and played a career-high 342 defensive snaps (36%) in 2022. He ended the year with 31 tackles, two QB hits, and 1.0 sacks. He is a solid young player, and playing next to Aaron Donald more frequently, his production should go up.
As for Rypien, he signed with the Denver Broncos as an undrafted free agent in 2020 and stuck with the team as a backup for the last three seasons. He started three games, going 2-1, and has thrown 130 NFL passes, completing 80 of them for 778 yards, four touchdowns, and eight interceptions.
These are all fine signings. But none of them move the needle for a team that went 5-12 last season.
By making just one move in 2023 NFL free agency — for a player who might get cut with Matthew Stafford and rookies Stetson Bennett and Dresser Winn also in the fold — the Rams’ NFL offseason strategy seems clear.
While Stafford and Cooper Kupp missed significant time last season, it’s easy for the franchise to say they were the victim of bad injury luck coming off their Super Bowl win in 2021. However, with the moves (or lack thereof) in the 2023 NFL offseason, it looks like the team is going into an NBA-style tank mode.
In the 2023 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions owned the Rams’ No. 6 pick from the Stafford trade. Now that trade has run its course, and LA finally has a first-round pick again. This is a crucial detail because, in the 2024 NFL Draft, there are two potential franchise QBs at the top.
Caleb Williams from USC and Drake Maye from North Carolina are both excellent NFL QB prospects. And for Sean McVay to get his hands (and offensive genius mind) on one of them next season could set the Rams up for years to come.
So, not doing much of anything as far as Rams’ free agency goes this NFL offseason isn’t a terrible idea, and it could pay off huge down the line.
That said, it is incredibly risky for several reasons.
For starters, the strategy (if executed properly) will result in an abysmal upcoming season. That could alienate Rams stars like Aaron Donald and Kupp, forcing the former into retirement and the latter off the team next NFL offseason.
And for Sean McVay, who has contemplated retirement the last two seasons himself, losing badly next season could push him over the edge. If this lack of Rams’ free agent signings costs LA its head coach, then the plan will be a failure.
In the end, not signing many free agents this NFL offseason is a risky move to make. If the franchise can weather the storm that follows, it could do huge things for the team in the future. If not, it could lead to several more offseasons of discontent, where the team falls back down to the NFL basement after reaching the highest of highs with their Super Bowl win just two seasons ago.
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