Should Rams Bring Back John Johnson; Taylor Rapp Replacement?

The Los Angeles Rams let safety Taylor Rapp sign with the Buffalo Bills in free agency without ever replacing him.

Where do the Los Angeles Rams go from here? The offseason for the Rams has been intriguing, to say the least. General manager Les Snead has stopped short of calling them a rebuilding team, rather using the term "remodeling." Yet they've acted like a team heading into a rebuild by getting rid of key players to clear more cap space. While not making any moves in the way of free agency, they opted to acquire through the NFL Draft. 

This new philosophy is a complete 180 from the past, where they never hesitated to make a big trade or splash the cash on free agents. After adding 14 rookies through the draft to their roster "pillars" in quarterback Matthew Stafford, wide receiver Cooper Kupp, and defensive tackle Aaron Donald, no one is quite sure what the Rams are doing.  

If they were in a full-blown rebuild, they still have other valuable assets they can part with, and if they wish to contend, they still have holes to fill on their roster. So essentially, the Rams are in "no man's land." They aren't bad enough to rebuild and not good enough to contend. With that in mind, ESPN insider Bill Barnwell suggests that the Rams need to make signings to fill out their roster.

One signing suggested by Barnwell would see Los Angeles bring back a familiar face in safety, John Johnson III. 

"One name I'm surprised to still see on the market is John Johnson III, who emerged as a standout safety for the Rams before signing a big-money deal with the Browns," Barnwell writes. "Things didn't work out in Cleveland, but Johnson is known to the organization and still only 27 years old. Targeting players in their 20s who could be part of a winning team in 2024 and beyond at the right price would seem to make sense for the Rams."

After failing to re-sign Taylor Rapp, who ended up signing with the Buffalo Bills in free agency, safety still stands out as a need—seeing as the Rams did not sign a veteran in free agency or use a premium pick on the position. 

Before his move to the Cleveland Browns, Johnson was a team captain and a productive player for the Rams. Johnson started 48 of his 54 games for the Rams between 2017 and 2020, totaling 512 total tackles, eight interceptions, 41 passes defended, and four forced fumbles.

Johnson's familiarity and leadership could prove valuable to a Rams team that doesn't look ready to contend for Super Bowls in the near future.

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