Will Rams attempt to fill roster with any of the top remaining NFL free agents?

The Los Angeles Rams drafted 14 players in the 2023 NFL Draft but that obviously won’t help them get more experienced on defense and I don’t care how old Byron Young is! The Rams certainly targeted prospects who spent their fair share of time on a college football field, including Stetson Bennett, Kobie Turner, and Steve Avila, but will general manager Les Snead attempt to fill out the roster with some veterans once he knows it won’t cut into L.A.’s probable four compensatory picks in 2024?

The Rams depth charts show clear opportunities to add players with experience, including some who have played for L.A. already.

A list of 40 notable free agents was posted on Twitter on Sunday:

Defensive Players

OLB Leonard Floyd

OLB Jadeveon Clowney

EDGE Frank Clark

DT Poona Ford

EDGE Yannick Ngakoue

OLB Kyle Van Noy

OLB Trey Flowers

DE Shelby Harris

OLB Melvin Ingram

DE Carlos Dunlap

OLB Justin Houston

LB Jaylon Smith

LB Kwon Alexander

EDGE Robert Quinn

OLB Anthony Barr

CB Shaquill Griffin

CB Marcus Peters

CB Rock Ya-Sin

CB Ronald Darby

S Adrian Amos

S John Johnson

CB Byron Jones

CB Casey Hayward

CB Eli Apple

DB Logan Ryan

Rams interest?

Floyd, Quinn, and Johnson have played for the Rams before, Floyd over the last three seasons. Any of the linebacker spots could use help. Kwon Alexander played in 17 games for the Jets last season but is of course a free agent for a reason. Jaylon Smith played 13 games for the New York Giants and made 88 tackles but will never be the player he was at Notre Dame prior to a devastating knee injury and the first few years of his career with the Dallas Cowboys.

Perhaps Shaquill Griffin, Byron Jones, or Rock Ya-Sin could be interesting additions to the cornerbacks unit, although there’s really nowhere else to go but up with regards to experience at that position. The Rams are handing duties over to Derion Kendrick and Cobie Durant, fourth and sixth round rookies last season, as well as 2021 first rounder Robert Rochell and perhaps a couple of rookies on the team this year, including Tre’Vius Hodges-Tomlinson.

Offensive Players

OT Isaiah Wynn

LT Donavan Smith

OT Cameron Fleming

LT Taylor Lewan

G Dalton Riser

RB Kareem Hunt

RB Ezekiel Elliott

RB Leonard Fournette

WR Jarvis Landry

WR Kenny Golladay

WR Sammy Watkins

WR Julio Jones

QB Carson Wentz

QB Teddy Bridgewater

QB Matt Ryan

Rams interest?

The Rams might be able to field an offensive line with the players they have now, but that’s what we thought a year ago and then L.A. set a modern record with 14 different starters on the unit in 2022. Joe Noteboom has missed a lot of time in his career, as has Brian Allen, and guards Logan Bruss, Steve Avila have never played an NFL game before. There was some hope of signing Risner in the past, it is not too late.

Believe it or not, Landry, Golladay, Watkins, and Jones all played last season, but to contribute at a high level at this point would be surprising. The Rams may be best served to give this opportunities to Van Jefferson, Tutu Atwell, and Lance McCutcheon, to see if there’s anything there.