Los Angeles Rams: Ndamukong Suh a luxury, not necessity
Free agent Ndamukong Suh will visit the Los Angeles Rams on his tour of the market, but the team doesn’t need him to be relevant or contend.
Since being released by the Miami Dolphins, defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh has made it pretty clear that he’s about the money. The word going around throughout the league is that the 31-year old defensive tackle is ready to lend his services to the “highest bidder” and that team and situation aren’t wholly relevant to him. If it were, his latest visit, the Los Angeles Rams (per ESPN’s Jordan Schultz), would have to be considered.
In his first season as head coach of the Rams, Sean McVay led the team to winning the NFC West and a subsequent playoff berth. Sure, they were ousted in their first game at the hands of the Atlanta Falcons. However, with a young team, they appeared to be on the rise with no signs of stopping.
Rather than stopping, they’ve expedited the process in the 2018 offseason. The Rams have been aggressive on the trade market, landing a dynamic pair of cornerbacks in Marcus Peters and Aqib Talib. While also placing the franchise tag on Lamarcus Joyner, it’s clear that the Rams are looking to make their defense even more formidable, which would be even more threatening if they can lock up Aaron Donald to a long-term deal.
Given the improvements that they’ve already made to their defense this offseason, landing Suh would be an absolute coup. Placing the veteran lineman next to Donald would create a front two that could terrorize quite literally any team in the league. Heck, Donald does that himself most of the time, so pairing him with Suh would be near unfair.
However, the fact that the defense has already improved really speaks to the situation that this team is in as it pertains to meeting with Suh. The former Dolphin would be a huge addition to the front of the defense, but he’s not a necessary addition. Donald and the success of the Rams defense don’t hinge upon Suh getting signed. They can be great with or without him, even if they’d be better with him.
Really, though, it all comes back to the notion of the highest bidder. The Rams currently have $28.9 million in cap space, per Over The Cap. What’s more, they could back-load a deal with Suh to pay him more next year and beyond when they have even more space. Subsequently, they could be both the best fit and the highest bidder.
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But because landing Suh isn’t necessity for Los Angeles, what it really boils down to is if they feel he’s worth that type of substantial financial commitment. If there’s even any hesitancy, they should walk away from the table with no intention of signing him. They are in a position to win the NFC West again whether Suh is there or not. As such, they shouldn’t potentially bind themselves in terms of the salary cap moving forward to add someone who is nothing more than a luxury piece.