Les Snead and Sean McVay found a way to squeeze out some much-needed breathing room as the Rams head into the stretch run.
Los Angeles had been living right on the edge financially, with the roster sitting under $10,000 in usable cap space at one point. Before the latest moves, the Rams were roughly $600,000 over the cap, according to Over The Cap. That left the front office with a simple assignment: create room, and do it now.
On Wednesday, ESPN’s Field Yates and Spotrac reported that the Rams cleared $3 million in cap space by restructuring the contracts of running back Kyren Williams and safety Kamren Curl. It was a classic NFL cap maneuver, the kind that keeps a team afloat when the season starts squeezing every dollar.
The Rams converted $2 million of Williams’ base salary into a signing bonus and added two void years, which opened up $1.7 million immediately. They followed the same path with Curl, converting $1.7 million of his base salary into a signing bonus with two void years attached, creating another $1.3 million in space. Put together, the two restructures gave the Rams $3 million to work with.
That kind of move comes straight out of Article 13 of the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement. Signing bonus money gets paid up front, but the cap hit is spread across the life of the deal, with a five-year maximum. Void years - those “dummy years” that exist only on paper - let teams stretch that bonus proration as far as the rules allow.
Williams originally signed a three-year, $33 million deal with $23 million guaranteed through the 2028 season. By shifting $2 million into a bonus and attaching two void years, the Rams pushed the cap charges tied to his contract out through 2030. Curl’s three-year, $36 million contract through 2028 now carries the same kind of extended cap footprint after his restructure.
The tradeoff is dead money later. The payoff is immediate flexibility now, and that matters with the Rams entering a critical part of the schedule.
They head into a Week 10 divisional matchup with the Arizona Cardinals, who plan to throw quarterback Carson Beck at the Los Angeles defense. The timing is especially important because the Rams’ offense is banged up. Puka Nacua is still out with MCL and PCL sprains, and Davante Adams is on injured reserve after rupturing his hamstring in Week 6.
That leaves Williams carrying even more of the load. And he’s already been working through one of the toughest assignments in football.
Downtown Rams host Jake Oliver Ellenbogen pointed out on X that Williams has faced stacked boxes at a 34.6% clip, the highest rate in the league among running backs. He also noted that Williams is still averaging 4.7 yards per carry despite seeing eight or more defenders in the box nearly 35% of the time.
The cap room also helps the Rams keep their options open for the final eight games of the regular season. Curl now joins Quentin Lake and Kamren Kinchens as part of a secondary that has to hold up while the offense works through injuries and lineup shuffling.
On offense, the conversation is turning toward a bigger role for the backfield. Ellenbogen said, “If Puka is out and the #Rams don’t trade for anyone or pick up anyone there’s zero excuse not to have your two best weapons Kyren Williams and Blake Corum on the field together.”
After nine games, the Rams are 5-4.
In Other News...
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For the Rams, the fit is easy to understand. Los Angeles has been mentioned among the clubs that could have interest, alongside the Chiefs and Steelers, and the appeal is obvious for a team always looking to keep its pass-catching room flexible. What happens next will depend on how the market develops, but Browns availability gives the Rams another unexpected option to consider as they weigh their wide receiver depth. [Read more 🡒]
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Scott, who was waived during August roster cutdowns, gives the Rams another experienced option while they sort through the damage in the receiver room. He has bounced around the NFL before and brings some value as both a receiver and return specialist, the kind of versatile depth piece teams often need when the injuries start piling up. [Read more 🡒]
Rams Suddenly Face A Brutal Puka Nacua Problem
Puka Nacuas latest setback leaves the Rams trying to recalibrate at a point in the season when every offensive piece matters. The second-year receiver was placed on injured reserve after suffering an MCL injury near the end of the teams Week 9 game, and Sean McVay said he is expected to be out for an extended period. For a Rams offense that has leaned on Nacuas reliability and versatility, the timing is especially rough.
The encouraging part, at least, is that the MRI did not reveal a torn ACL, only sprains to the PCL and MCL. Even so, the absence creates a real challenge for Los Angeles as it tries to keep its passing game on schedule without one of its most important targets. The Rams now have to sort out how long they can withstand that loss before it starts changing the shape of the offense. [Read more 🡒]