Moments after the Los Angeles Rams upset the Seattle Seahawks last Sunday, one team official texted, "Think the NFL forgot our head coach is pretty damn special."
The Rams, however, did not. With coach Sean McVay leading the way and a Week 1 win on the ledger, Los Angeles is feeling comfortable and confident in its position for Sunday's game against NFC West rival San Francisco -- and for months to come.
Los Angeles is absorbing salary cap punishment this season and clearing the decks for next season. According to league sources, the Rams are carrying $75 million of dead money against their salary cap in 2023 but have no significant dead money -- just $700,000 -- counting against their 2024 salary cap.
Along with the upcoming cap room, the Rams are younger and have future draft picks in hand.
For the first time in a long time, the Rams have one of the NFL's youngest rosters, with their players averaging just under 26 years of age. In Week 1, Puka Nacua and Tutu Atwell became the first pair of wide receivers age 23 or under to each have over 100 receiving yards in the same game since Del Shofner and Lamar Lundy in 1958.
And the Rams finally are slated to have a first-round pick next year, their first since they used the No. 1 overall pick on quarterback Jared Goff in 2016. They also have all their own picks and four compensatory picks, currently putting them at 11 draft selections in April.
So after this season, in which the youth movement already is underway, the Rams will have a surplus of draft picks and cap space, allowing them to approach this year and their future differently.