While the Los Angeles Rams are strapped for cash this offseason, one clear priority of theirs has been re-signing edge rusher Leonard Floyd.
The Rams signed Floyd to a one-year contract last offseason and he made the most of the opportunity by having a career year, helping L.A. finish with the No. 1 ranked defense in the NFL.
In 15 games, Floyd had 55 total tackles, 10.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss, all of which marked career-highs for the 28-year-old. In recent days, the Rams have been optimistic about their chances of re-signing Floyd, and it now appears they have gotten a deal done.
The Rams announced on Monday afternoon that they agreed to terms of a four-year contract extension with Floyd. According to Adam Schefter of ESPN, Floyd’s bet on himself last offseason paid off as his new contract is worth $64 million:
Rams are giving LB Leonard Floyd a four-year, $64 million deal, per source.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) March 15, 2021
Even at that steep of a price, the Rams bringing back Floyd is huge for their defense, especially with John Johnson III and Samson Ebukam already being among those to depart in free agency.
As it currently stands, the Rams are around $30 million over the salary cap, so they will have to make some other significant moves in order for the Floyd signing to become official.
General manager Les Snead has said the hope is to get that number down by restructuring contracts as opposed to cutting players, so he has some work to do to make that happen.
While the exact terms of Floyd’s contract have not been released, there is a good chance it is backloaded in order to save cap room now. The cap is projected to go up significantly in the years to come.
