Pro Football Focus will be providing analysis for every major NFL signing and trade during the 2015 free-agency period, accounting primarily for the quality of the player and his fit with his new team, and focusing less on the financial terms of the deal.
Here is a grade for the deal between Nick Fairley and the St. Louis Rams.
Grade articles on every major deal
St. Louis Rams: A-minus
The Rams had arguably the best defensive line in the NFL in 2013. In 2014, they added defensive tackle Aaron Donald with the 13th overall pick, and he went on to become the defensive rookie of the year. Now they have added Fairley to the line, making this one of the more talented units in the league at any position.
In all four years of his career, Fairley has graded out well as a pass-rusher. While he had only two sacks in 2014, he was able to get pressure on the quarterback on over 12 percent of his rushes. That led him to posting a pass-rushing productivity of 10.0, which was the best for all defensive/nose tackles with at least 135 pass rushes. This past year he also proved to be a successful run-defender, finishing with a plus-5.7 run stop grade. He had nine run stops on 101 run snaps in 2014, which puts him among the top 20 percent of defensive tackles.
The main concern with Fairley isn't his talent, but that he has yet to play a 16-game season (there have also been rumblings about his maturity throughout his NFL career). Durability is always a concern, but should be lessened for Fairley with St. Louis. During the 2015 season the trio of Aaron Donald, Nick Fairley and Michael Brockers will rotate in and out of the two defensive tackle spots.
Throw in Robert Quinn rushing from the edge, and the Rams might have the best pass rush in the NFL.