Re-Sign Akhello?

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JBRam77

JBRam77

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Joined
Oct 29, 2023
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263
I don't understand why the Rams don’t re-sign Witherspoon? He was clearly our best CB last season. He played really good the first half of the season. Yes he struggled as the season wore on but a big part of that was that our pass rush was not getting home. I would take him over burnt toasters Kendrick or Durant. He shouldn’t cost too much and provides experience. Is there an off the field issue ? Surprised no one has signed him
 
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I would love to see Witherspoon back. I guess at this point there is no urgency to sign. Surprised he’s sill out there.
 
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I’d sign him for insurance but he may not play a lot so maybe he’s waiting to see if another team ends up needing a starter.

The Rams signed Kamron Curl and they are also testing out other players like Kendrick at the Star position. This role has evolved a bit from slot to star to what Kyle Hamilton does for the Ravens where he’s all over, like a roving Safety/linebacker. I’m guessing that’s what the Rams are trying to change to, which means three safeties on the field most of the time, and then only two corners. So Darius Williams will start at corner and once healthy, so will Tre White. They’ve got depth with Durant and Kendricks. I think Witherspoon is better than them both but you know the Rams like to roll with young guys and Akhello may want to start or wait and see if he can start.

I also worry that they signed JJ late because Curl and Kendrick’s weren’t working out in that expanded Star role and they want to try JJ there. One thing that’s important in that role is being smart and reliable.
 
I'm still holding out hope Durant can improve. He showed some nice potential his rookie year. Kendrick is who he is by now. They cannot leave him on a island against a WR1. Even WR2 for some teams. I think he's a decent tackler. I wonder if he'd better as a slot corner? I've seen him making nice tackles after giving up the 30 yard pass.
 
Didn't we bring Witherspoon in after OTAs last year? At the time they realized they needed a veteran guy. No moves after OTAs says to me that they're ready to roll with their guys and just like @Jacobarch said, only probably bringing someone in if there's an injury.
 
I know Witherspoon was basically out of the league when Rams signed him last year. He was very heavily looking into going back to school for a doctorate.
 
A.J. Hicks said:
I know Witherspoon was basically out of the league when Rams signed him last year. He was very heavily looking into going back to school for a doctorate.
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I saw his interview with Jake Bog & he really wanted to be a Ram. He is predicting he will be a Ram,but at this point I don’t see it.

Tomlinson seems to be getting overlooked by a lot of Ram Fans since OTA’s. Sort of surprising his name hasn’t come up more ?
 
At this point, if he's brought back it'll be due to an injury or possibly after week 1 when contracts aren't guaranteed anymore. Would be nice if he stays free though in case we need him.
 
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My guess is they figured a team would throw more money at him than they were/are willing to match due to his performance. I think the only way he may be able to come back is if White is nowhere near where he needs to be and Tomlinson still has the temper of a toddler.
 
Psycho_X said:
At this point, if he's brought back it'll be due to an injury or possibly after week 1 when contracts aren't guaranteed anymore. Would be nice if he stays free though in case we need him.
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He can sign today and it does.t have to have guaranteed money.
 
OldSchool said:
He can sign today and it does.t have to have guaranteed money.
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Sure, if that's their intention to sign him then cut him before week 1 and then resign him in week 2 then you could say that. I'm guessing Witherspoon's camp isn't signing with anyone right now due to that being a possibility so they might as well wait and see if a team incurs injury issues in camp so they can sign with someone that'll need them week 1 for the guarantee.
 
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I imagine the Rams had a number in mind with him and it wasn't good enough. So my guess is there is still a chance he returns at their number, given that nobody has inked him yet.

But even if he returns on the cheap the plan will be to get some of these kids rolling back there. It's time for Durant to put the fuck up and win a job. And Tomlinson had some time on the sideline to consider the hows and whys he's not playing, maybe he'll recapture that form he put on film during some big games in college. Getting them going in meaningful roles would be very good for us.

Good thing is one spot should be locked down by Williams. And if we're lucky the other is locked down by White, which if it happens will result in a very good defense. So idk. At this point I'm going to not make assumptions with White but just keep my fingers crossed.
 
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Psycho_X said:
Sure, if that's their intention to sign him then cut him before week 1 and then resign him in week 2 then you could say that. I'm guessing Witherspoon's camp isn't signing with anyone right now due to that being a possibility so they might as well wait and see if a team incurs injury issues in camp so they can sign with someone that'll need them week 1 for the guarantee.
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Why does playing week 1 have anything to do with us being forced to guarantee a 1 year contract? Sorry but there's no logic to this thought.
 
OldSchool said:
Why does playing week 1 have anything to do with us being forced to guarantee a 1 year contract? Sorry but there's no logic to this thought.
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I'm assuming the vested veteran tag is still a thing? Idk, haven't kept up with every little rule detail the last couple years so could be wrong.


And while that benefit is important for career control, the vested veteran tag can also be a bit of an inconvenience. Vested veterans receive the benefit of fully guaranteed salaries if they are on the Week 1 roster on game day. While that’s a terrific incentive for long-term service, players on the bubble can be put at a disadvantage because of the guaranteed timeline.

For example, if a player is set to make $4 million in base salary but is being outperformed by a second-year player, even by a smidge, a team is likely to cut the experienced player to avoid guaranteeing his $4 million salary. That’s partially why some teams try to beat the system by releasing vested veterans during final cuts only to bring them back in Week 2 without guaranteeing their salaries.
 
Psycho_X said:
I'm assuming the vested veteran tag is still a thing? Idk, haven't kept up with every little rule detail the last couple years so could be wrong.


And while that benefit is important for career control, the vested veteran tag can also be a bit of an inconvenience. Vested veterans receive the benefit of fully guaranteed salaries if they are on the Week 1 roster on game day. While that’s a terrific incentive for long-term service, players on the bubble can be put at a disadvantage because of the guaranteed timeline.

For example, if a player is set to make $4 million in base salary but is being outperformed by a second-year player, even by a smidge, a team is likely to cut the experienced player to avoid guaranteeing his $4 million salary. That’s partially why some teams try to beat the system by releasing vested veterans during final cuts only to bring them back in Week 2 without guaranteeing their salaries.
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Verteran minimum contracts are not guaranteed.
 
OldSchool said:
Verteran minimum contracts are not guaranteed.
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Kinda loops back to my original point of Witherspoon possibly wanting to wait and see so that he can get in a situation that's likely to be guaranteed.
 
Psycho_X said:
Kinda loops back to my original point of Witherspoon possibly wanting to wait and see so that he can get in a situation that's likely to be guaranteed.
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Your article misses one key factor.
www.behindthesteelcurtain.com

Explaining how the NFL works, Part 9: Veteran Salary Benefit contracts

Let’s examine the process of some of the inner workings in the NFL and how teams manage the situations.
www.behindthesteelcurtain.com www.behindthesteelcurtain.com

The qualifications for this contract are more stringent than what was covered above. In this case, a player must have played the previous four seasons with the same franchise with which they are signing their deal. The player had to be on the roster, or the Reserve/Injured List, for every game over those four seasons. In other words, if a player bounced on and off the practice squad they do not qualify.
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