The Los Angeles Rams have several holes to fill this offseason, particularly on defense with multiple starters set to hit free agency. Dante Fowler Jr., Ndamukong Suh and Lamarcus Joyner are the three biggest names on that side of the ball with it being uncertain the Rams can bring back any of them.
If Fowler leaves, edge rusher becomes an even greater need than it already is – and the Rams are starved for pass rushers heading into free agency. Fortunately, it’s a deep class at the position and there are immediate starters to be had.
These seven pass rushers should be targets for Los Angeles when free agency begins on March 13 as they provide potential and instant impact on defense, giving the Rams another weapon next to Aaron Donald up front.
Za’Darius Smith, Ravens
Smith has plenty of experience playing in a 3-4 defense, having done so throughout his career with the Ravens. He’s a perfect fit in Wade Phillips’ scheme and would be an immediate starter at outside linebacker if signed in free agency. Smith is also versatile enough to put his hand in the dirt and move inside to defensive end on passing situations where the Rams want to get more speed on the field.
He was mostly a part-time player prior to this past season, playing less than half the defensive snaps in 2017. Last season, he was up to 67 percent of the team’s snaps, and it was reflected in his production. He posted a career-high 8.5 sacks, 25 quarterback hits and 10 tackles for loss, breaking out with a nice season in a contract year.
The biggest concern with Smith is whether he has the track record to warrant a big contract in free agency. From 2016-17, he totaled only 4.5 sacks, 20 quarterback hits and seven tackles for loss. That could give some teams pause, but he’s still only 26 years old.
Preston Smith, Redskins
Smith has been slightly more consistent than Za’Darius Smith, recording at least four sacks and 12 quarterback hits each season he’s been a full-time starter. Last season, he posted four sacks after recording eight in 2017, but the sack numbers don’t tell the full story. He earned a respectable grade of 76.9 from Pro Football Focus in 2018, which was 19th among all edge defenders.
Just 26 years old, as well, Smith is young and just hitting his prime after four years in Washington. He hasn’t missed a single game in four seasons, either, showing remarkable durability for an edge rusher.
He should be high on the Rams’ list of possible free-agent targets, especially given his ties to Sean McVay and linebackers coach Joe Barry, who were the Redskins’ coordinators in 2015 and 2016.
Shaquil Barrett, Broncos
Speaking of ties to the coaching staff, Phillips coached Barrett for a few years when the two were both in Denver. Barrett’s merely been a part-time player for the Broncos since coming into the league in 2014, playing 25.5 percent of the snaps last season and 67 percent in 2017.
He’s already said he wants to be a starter in the NFL and that won’t happen in Denver with Von Miller and Bradley Chubb blocking him. With the Rams, he would be just that. The idea of teaming up with Phillips again, as well as the gaping hole at outside linebacker, should entice Barrett to at least consider L.A.
He has just 14 sacks in the last four seasons but has the talent to be productive pass rusher despite being slightly undersized at 6-foot-2. Phillips has a knack for getting the most out of smaller edge rushers in his 3-4 scheme, too.
Brandon Graham, Eagles
There’s no denying Graham’s ability. He’s earned a PFF grade above 80.0 in each of the last five seasons and was the eighth-best edge defender in the NFL last season, per Pro Football Focus. Despite being 30 years old, Graham can still get after the quarterback and is a great run defender, which makes him a great fit in Los Angeles.
Although he’s primarily played 4-3 defensive end and there are questions about his fit in an odd front like the Rams’, it’s a chance worth taking for L.A. The biggest concern with Graham is the price tag. Spotrac’s market value of $15.5 million per year is likely well out of the Rams’ range, but something in the area of $11-12 million would be more reasonable.
Graham had four sacks in 2018 and has 42.5 in his career.
Terrell Suggs, Ravens
Here’s a short-term option for Los Angeles, if the front office prefers to go that route. Suggs showed he still has plenty left in the tank last season by getting to the quarterback seven times, batting six passes and recording 13 tackles for loss. He now has five straight seasons of at least seven sacks – excluding 2015 when he played one game – and has 18 sacks in the last two years.
Suggs would bring veteran leadership and could mentor the Rams’ younger pass rushers like Ogbonnia Okoronkwo and John Franklin-Myers. At 36 years old, Suggs is obviously at the end of his career and may only play one more season. However, if the Rams could get him for about $4 million in 2019, it’d be a worthwhile investment for a team deprived of pass rushers.
Shane Ray, Broncos
This would be more of a flyer than a safe signing for the Rams. Ray has just two sacks in his last two seasons, has had trouble staying healthy and only has one season of productive play (eight sacks in 2016. That being said, he’s worth the risk for Los Angeles. Phillips was in Denver for Ray’s two best seasons in 2015 and ’16 when he had 12 total sacks and 28 quarterback hits. In the two years since then, Ray has two sacks and five quarterback hits in 19 games.
Like Barrett, he was blocked by better players in Denver and now wants to become a starter. He has a long way to go before he’s handed a starting job, but the potential is there. He was a former first-round pick for a reason and would’ve gone much higher than 23 if not for a failed test before the draft.
At the very least, Ray could compete for a starting gig with a one-year deal and has room to grow, being just 25 years of age.
Clay Matthews, Packers
Matthews is from California, went to USC and fits perfectly in Phillips’ defense as a pure pass rusher. He wouldn’t be asked to drop into coverage or play inside ‘backer with the Rams like he was in Green Bay at times, which makes this connection more enticing. He doesn’t come without conerns, of course.
He’ll be 33 in May, comes with durability concerns and had only 3.5 sacks last season – the worst year of his career thus far. Like Suggs, the Rams shouldn’t lean on Matthews as an every-down player if signed, but he can bring experience to the locker room – something the Rams could use if Ndamukong Suh and Michael Brockers are gone.
