INDIANAPOLIS — In order to get cornerback Jalen Ramsey what he wants, the Los Angeles Rams might have to dig into the pockets of Todd Gurley.
General manager Les Snead didn’t directly make that connection on Tuesday at the NFL Scouting Combine, but the accounting is clear for a team with four players scheduled to count more than $15 million against the 2020 salary cap. Quarterback Jared Goff checks in at a whopping $36 million.
The Rams are “working through” what a plan for Gurley could look like next season, coach Sean McVay said Tuesday.
“You want to be consistent, but I think certain guys, just understanding the workload that their specific position entails or what is the best way to have a long-term solution for getting through the entire season,” McVay said. “We’ve been consistent with that with Todd Gurley from when I first got here.
“I think it was just something that was talked about more because he missed a couple games toward the latter half of the ’18 season, but those are things that you want to be able to be specific with each player while still being consistent in the big picture, and those are things that as we get closer to those dates, we’ll discuss a little bit more.”
The Rams have already paid a steep price for Ramsey. They landed the 25-year-old All-Pro cornerback in October via trade with the Jaguars. Jacksonville received two first-round picks and a 2021 fourth-round pick.
Snead said there is no hard timeline or deadline on the Ramsey negotiations. Further spreading Goff’s new deal and juggling bonus structures could create more than $15 million in cap space for next season.
“We’d definitely like to have Jalen helping the Rams for more than just the 2020 season,” Snead said.
Gurley has a cap hit of $17.25 million in 2020, the first season of a four-year, $57 million extension signed in July 2018.
Gurley is scheduled to meet with the Rams before the two sides decide what’s next. Trading Gurley would create a $12.6 million salary-cap hit while saving the team $4.65 million overall.
–By Jeff Reynolds, Field Level Media
