Von Miller’s free agency saga was one of the biggest offseason storylines for Rams fans to follow. He expressed plenty of interest in returning to Los Angeles after getting traded by the Broncos last November, but that plan never came to fruition.
Instead, he signed a six-year, $120 million deal with the Bills, joining his third NFL team. Essentially, it’s a three-year deal worth $51.4 million guaranteed, but he said recently that he plans to play out the full length of the contract.
The Rams were certainly in the running to re-sign Miller, and the offer they had on the table was a good one. According to The Athletic, their offer would’ve paid Miller more annually on a three-year contract than the Bills’ deal, but it only came with two years guaranteed instead of three.
The Rams had a deal on the table that would have paid more per year on a three-year contract but with only two years guaranteed instead. At Miller’s age, that extra year guaranteed by the Bills meant something. He couldn’t turn it down.
He planned to call or text each of his Rams teammates to tell them he was leaving, which he knew would be difficult. The conversation with McVay was heavy and hard. He talked with Donald, Jalen Ramsey and Odell Beckham Jr. “Bro, you can still come back,” Beckham told him. “We’re family. You good.”
Miller is making $20 million per year with the Bills, so the Rams’ offer would’ve had to exceed that number. It’s surprising that they would’ve even gone that high, knowing they’d have to pay Aaron Donald more, too, but they were clearly motivated to bring him back. They just couldn’t match the Bills’ guaranteed money and their offer was for three years, not six.
Now, the Rams are left with a void at outside linebacker that they’ll attempt to fill with Terrell Lewis and Justin Hollins. It’s a sizable drop-off, but at least they still have Donald and Leonard Floyd.
