Free agency is still about two months away but the Los Angeles Rams have undoubtedly started creating their list of potential targets. This is a roster that needs a lot of help on both sides of the ball, particularly in the trenches.
That doesn’t mean they’ll go out and spend wildly in free agency to fill those holes, but the Rams can’t rely solely on the draft to fix their issues. Rookies don’t always have an immediate impact like free agents do, needing time to develop and adapt to the speed of the NFL.
When it comes to free agency, Pro Football Focus named one offensive and defensive target for each team. For the Rams, Brad Spielberger of PFF is eyeing O-line and pass rush. Here’s who he suggests Los Angeles should pursue this offseason.
Offense: C Ethan Pocic
The Rams have Brian Allen under contract for another two years but after another injury-plagued season, Los Angeles might consider moving on from the undersized center. Pocic is much bigger at 6-foot-6 and he’s coming off a great season with the Browns, though he could come at a high cost following a successful year in Cleveland.
Here’s what Spielberger wrote about Pocic and his potential fit with the Rams.
Pocic had a breakout 2022 season in Cleveland, a similar offense to the Rams’ predicated on a wide-zone rushing attack. Pocic’s 79.0 grade in 2022 ranked third among centers, with his 94.2 run-blocking grade on outside zone runs placing second. Los Angeles can solidify its interior here while getting healthy at other spots.
Defense: OLB Yannick Ngakoue
Defensively, the Rams need pass-rush help. Badly. They had one of the worst groups of edge rushers in the NFL, getting consistent production only out of Leonard Floyd. Ngakoue could help solve those issues, fresh off a 9.5-sack season with the Colts. He’s a former Pro Bowler who will be 28 this season, showing he can still be impactful with 19.5 total sacks in the last two years.
Ngakoue has produced at least eight sacks in every season of his seven-year NFL career, and while he earned a career-low 56.9 pass-rush grade with a 10.8% pressure percentage in 2022 — 52nd out of 98 edge defenders with at least 200 pass-rush snaps — he could see favorable matchups playing alongside Aaron Donald. His underlying metrics indicate potential sack regression, but the Rams could find ways to creatively deploy him and keep those sacks coming.
