The Green Bay Packers extended defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt to a three-year, $57 million contract on Monday, and if that news sounds irrelevant, it absolutely is not for the Los Angeles Rams. This move set a massive benchmark for what the Rams might have to pay their own defensive tackle, Kobie Turner, who many consider on par with Wyatt. The question now for L.A. is whether Turner should cost more, less, or the same as the newly minted $19 million per season for Wyatt.
Wyatt’s Roller Coaster to a Massive Payday
Let’s break down Wyatt’s path to this eye-popping deal. He was a first-round pick out of Georgia in 2022, even won a national championship before joining Green Bay’s defense. But his first three seasons were honestly a bit underwhelming, right? He started only five games and barely played 45 percent of the team’s snaps. Then 2025 came around, and he bumped up to 60 percent of snaps, which is better, but he also missed seven games with a broken fibula and a torn ankle ligament. Still, the Packers just handed him $19 million per season. Clearly, Green Bay sees Wyatt as a core piece of their defensive line, valuing him at almost $20 million AAV. If that’s the going rate for a player with that kind of injury history and snap count, then what in the world will Kobie Turner command?
Turner’s Leverage and a Looming Top-8 Contract
When you compare Wyatt and Turner, the contract leverage is wild. Wyatt was heading into his fifth-year option, already owed $12.9 million for his contract year. Turner, on the other hand, is only making $3.9 million in 2026. So, from a pure salary standpoint, Wyatt had more immediate leverage. But when you look at football accomplishments, Turner absolutely takes the cake. Since 2023, Wyatt has 14.5 sacks and 86 tackles in 41 games. Turner? A staggering 24 sacks and 167 tackles in 51 games over that exact same period. They say the best ability is availability, and Turner has delivered. Wyatt’s new deal places him as the 18th-highest paid defensive tackle by salary. Based on his production, Turner’s next contract is likely to rocket him into the top-8. He might even be looking at Detroit Lions defensive tackle Alim McNeill’s $24.5 million per season as a baseline, and McNeill doesn’t even rack up as many sacks as Turner.
The clock is ticking for the Rams. With so many other big contracts on their books, including almost the entire offensive line and Puka Nacua, figuring out Kobie Turner’s worth against that $25 million baseline is a brutal puzzle. Can they even afford to pay over $25 million for Turner? Fans have already argued his production is aided by scheme and teammates, and that skepticism won’t be getting any quieter with Myles Garrett on the team. Is Turner the guy they absolutely have to keep? This is a tough decision that could shape their defensive line for years to come, and the price tag for Turner just got a whole lot heavier.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Direct RSS.
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