After Sean McVay hinted at a Robert Woods extension Thursday, the Rams have agreed to a deal with their dependable wide receiver.
Woods agreed to terms on a four-year extension Friday, Lindsey Thiry of ESPN.com reports. The pact includes $32M guaranteed, per Thiry, and can max out at $68M. It is a four-year, $65M deal, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com.
The Rams have tweaked their receiving corps this offseason but determined they want Woods and Cooper Kupp to form a long-term duo. Teammates since 2017, Woods and Kupp are now signed at $16.25M per year and $15.75M per year, respectively.
Kupp agreed on a new deal earlier this month and is now signed through 2023. Woods’ new contract is stacked on top of his previous through-2021 pact, per Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic. That means the elder of the Rams’ starting wideouts is signed through 2025.
These deals emerged months after the Rams ate a sizable chunk of dead money to get off Brandin Cooks‘ $16.2M-AAV contract. The Rams traded Cooks to the Texans this offseason, shipping out their nominal No. 1 wideout after two seasons. Woods and Kupp each surpassed 1,100 yards last season, however, while Cooks’ concussion concerns worsened. The current Rams starters are now the NFL’s highest-paid receiver tandem.
Woods, 28, broke out after signing with the Rams in 2017 — to the point his deal quickly became a bargain for the recently relocated franchise. A moderately productive Bills receiver, Woods has topped 1,100 yards in back-to-back seasons. His 176 receptions in that span rank sixth in the NFL. While Woods scored only eight touchdowns in those seasons, he has been essential in McVay’s attack. The Rams gave Woods two modest pay bumps for his work but now have renewed their commitment to the former second-round pick.
More must-reads: