The Los Angeles Rams were busy solidifying their offensive line with three signings on the first day of the legal tampering period on Monday, but with limited cap space, L.A. also lost a few players.
The two biggest losses were interior offensive lineman Austin Corbett, who signed with the Carolina Panthers, and defensive lineman Sebastian Joseph-Day, who signed with the L.A. Chargers.
In addition, the team cut longtime punter Johnny Hekker, who was the NFL’s 2010’s All-Decade punter.
Now, the team has also lost backup outside linebacker Ogbonnia Okoronkwo as he agreed to a deal with the Houston Texans, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network:
The #Texans agreed to terms with former #Rams OLB Ogbo Okoronkwo, per source.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) March 15, 2022
The Super Bowl LVI champion appeared in 13 games for the Rams during the 2021 season and totaled seven tackles, one tackle for loss, four quarterback hits and 1.5 sacks.
In his career, the 26-year-old has played in 33 games, with no starts, and has 34 tackles, five tackles for loss, 13 quarterback hits, and 4.5 sacks.
Okoronkwo has also appeared in six playoff games, with four of them coming during the Super Bowl run this past season. He has registered six tackles, one pass deflection and three quarterback hits.
The former Oklahoma Sooner was originally a fifth-round selection, 160th overall, by the Rams in the 2018 NFL Draft.
With the Sooners, Okoronkwo was named a first-team All-American and Big 12 Co-Defensive Player of the Year in 2017.
Andrew Whitworth officially retires from the NFL
Rams left tackle Andrew Whitworth officially announced on his Instagram his retirement from the NFL on Tuesday after 16 seasons in the league.
This marks the end of an incredible career for Whitworth, who retires a four-time Pro Bowler, two-time First-Team All-Pro, 2021 Walter Payton Man of the Year and 2021 Super Bowl Champion.
In 2021, Whitworth became the first left tackle to start an NFL game at age 40, and he did so while continuing to play at an extremely high level despite making 235 career starts.
With Whitworth no longer in the fold though, it will be Joseph Noteboom’s time to shine as the Rams’ starting left tackle.
Now that Whitworth’s playing days are over, it will be interesting to see what he does next. He has talked about wanting to remain involved in football and with the Rams, so maybe he will join the front office in some type of role moving forward.
