The Los Angeles Rams have never been a team that’s afraid to sign a player earlier rather than later. They gave Jared Goff a massive extension despite him still having two years left on his rookie deal. They signed Todd Gurley to a new deal when he had two years remaining, too.
And just this week, they signed both Aaron Donald and Cooper Kupp to multi-year deals, rewarding them with substantial raises despite still being under contract for at least two more years.
The Goff and Gurley deals didn’t work out, but the point remains: The Rams will take care of players they believe in. That’s the message Kupp received after he signed his three-year, $80 million deal, feeling confident in the organization that drafted him in 2017.
“All the stuff on the business side, we can trust the organization to be a place that’s going to take care of you,” Kupp said Thursday, via ESPN. “They’re going to be able to step in. There’s going to be a respect there and understanding that that stuff’s going to work itself out. So we’ve got a lot of guys who take the right approach mentally to be the best versions of themselves first and let the business side of things kind of work themselves out.”
This doesn’t mean the Rams are going to simply sign every player they draft or anyone who plays well. They’re still selective, often letting homegrown defensive backs walk in free agency.
But when they see value in a quality starter, they’re going to invest in them, just as they did with Joe Noteboom and Brian Allen this offseason.
It’s just part of the reason the Rams have become a destination for free agents. Players want to come to L.A. and play for Sean McVay and the Rams. And it’s rare for a player to leave the Rams and go on to have a more productive career elsewhere.
Kupp and Donald love the security they’ve received from the organization, and others feel the same way.
