The Los Angeles Rams need help at secondary, but they could choose to keep Kam Curl in-house as a building block.
The Los Angeles Rams have a deep need for help in the secondary and they have several options to ensure they bolster that unit.
To start, general manager Les Snead could take a big swing at a pending free agent addition, and having two first-round picks means finding a new dynamic upstart college prospect that can potentially be a plug-and-play option. However, the Rams might have their answer in Kam Curl,
Curl played 99 percent of defensive snap counts and led all cornerbacks with a total of 1,112 snaps per PFF. In that time, he secured two interceptions, five passes defended, one forced fumble, two sacks, and 122 total tackles.
Curl also gave up a 73.4 completion percentage and 89.5 passer rating to opposing quarterbacks, while giving up one touchdown. His 45 receptions allowed rank sixth among 98 qualified safeties.
On top of his solid regular season stats, Curl came alive in the playoffs, bringing in an interception and 27 total tackles.
The issue is that the Rams signed Curl to a minimal deal of $9 million for two years. Spotrac now has him making somewhere in the range of $10 million per season, and the deal could be worth up to three years.
Snead and the front office may not want to overspend on safety when they already have Kamren Kinchens and Quentin Lake. Lake also received an extension before his return in the postseason, leaving the possibility of Curl getting a new deal potentially dubious.
Curl might also get some bigger deals in free agency from other safety-needy teams, but that does not necessarily mean that the Rams cannot afford to keep him.
Los Angeles is also potentially cutting the likes of cornerbacks Roger McCreary, Akhello Witherspoon, and Derion Kendrick. The former two suffered injuries that kept them out for multiple games.
Expect the Rams to bolster the secondary with new additions via one of their first-round picks, and they have been mocked to land Tennessee's Jermod McCoy and Colton Hood, and LSU's Mansoor Delane.
Still, the Rams defense has the kind of players that can form a strong unit, minus needing a boost at the cornerback position.
Curl is the kind of player the Rams might miss too much if he is not resigned, and he did indicate he would want to stay in Los Angeles.
"I would love to be back here," Curl said. "This is a great organization, a winning organization. I would love to be back for sure."
Curl's future with the Rams may depend on Snead evaluating the roster being able to afford upgrades while giving the safety the big extension he deserves. If the idea is to go all-out in Matthew Stafford's final season, then not letting a player like Curl walk might be high on the list of things to do for the front office.