The Los Angeles Rams are slated to have multiple key starters hit free agency in the coming days, though ESPN’s Dan Graziano believes they’ll re-sign edge rusher Dante Fowler Jr:
I think they bring back Fowler, let Suh leave, look for RB support for Gurley, work on the OL after losing Saffold and Sullivan (though they did use a bunch of picks on OL last year). https://t.co/sIMrNwbU1K
— Dan Graziano (@DanGrazianoESPN) March 9, 2019
Fowler was acquired by the Rams in a midseason trade that seen a 2019 third-round pick and 2020 fifth-round pick go to the Jacksonville Jaguars in exchange for the pass rusher.
Fowler to this point in his career has been more of “potential” player as opposed to a productive one as he only has 16 career sacks since being taken third-overall in the 2015 NFL Draft. To complicate matters, Fowler also has a torn ACL (lost rookie season) and suspension on his resume.
It’s understandable why the Rams want to have Fowler return. The state of the edge rusher position on the depth chart is ugly. The current penciled-in starters are Samson Ebukam and fifth-round rookie Ogbonnia Okoronkwo, who have amassed a combined total of five sacks (Ogbo didn’t play) in their careers.
Fellow edge rushers Matt Longacre and Dominique Easley are also free agents.