Rams G Steve Avila Hoping For Extension

“I feel like everybody that’s up for extension is hoping to get one,” Avila said (via Nate Atkins of The Athletic). “That’s definitely something I wish could happen. I try my best to stay the same every single year. I know for me, I’ve always improved every single year I’ve played football. I feel like I owe it all to the team to be the best version of myself.”

The Rams spent the 36th overall pick in the 2023 draft on Avila, a former TCU standout who primarily played center in his first couple of college seasons. He shifted to left guard in 2022, a 15-start campaign in which he earned consensus All-America honors. Avila carried his effectiveness into the NFL, where he started all 17 games as a rookie left guard and was the lone member of the Rams’ offense to play every snap (1,148 in total).

To this point, Avila’s first season has been the only full one of his career. After missing seven games with a sprained MCL in his second year, he suffered a high ankle sprain in Week 1 last season. The injury sidelined him for two games, though it may as well have been four. Avila was active in Weeks 4 and 5, but the Rams deployed Justin Dedich as their starter in those games. They permanently turned back to Avila the next week. He took just one penalty and yielded only one sack over 13 starts, according to Pro Football Focus, which rated his performance 10th among 79 qualified guards.

Back in February, head coach Sean McVay specifically named Avila as one of the “guys we have strong interest in continuing our journey with” (via Stu Jackson of the team’s website). That suggests an extension could come together with Avila, who is a legitimate starter with age on his side. The team also has a decision to make on Dotson as he enters the last season of a three-year, $48MM pact, but he will turn 31 in September 2027.

If the Rams are only going to pay one member of their guard tandem, Avila’s relative youth could tip the scale in his favor. The average annual value of Avila’s second contract should at least end up in the neighborhood of Dotson’s current deal. Dotson is one of four guards raking in between $14MM and $17MM per season on a multiyear arrangement. There are a dozen other guards making between $17.5MM and $24.5MM per annum. With the cap continuing to rise, perhaps Avila’s camp will push to join that group.