Eric Kendricks signed with the Rams on Tuesday on a practice squad deal, bringing a 34-year-old veteran linebacker into the fold as the team keeps sorting out its defense. The move keeps Kendricks in his home state for Year 12 in the NFL.
That is why the signing drew attention right away: Kendricks has 158 regular-season and postseason games on his resume, and he spent most of his career as a full-time starter with the Vikings. The Rams are getting a player who has already logged heavy NFL mileage, not a developmental project.
He also arrives after a short stop with the 49ers last season, when he joined San Francisco in November and made only three regular-season appearances. Even in that limited stretch, he worked on both defense and special teams, then started both playoff games and finished with 19 tackles. For a team that already ranks second in yards allowed and ninth in points surrendered, that kind of experience is part of the appeal.
The wrinkle is that Kendricks did not go straight onto the active roster. The Rams chose a practice squad deal instead, which gives the club flexibility while leaving room for a quicker move if the need becomes immediate. In simple terms, it lets the team keep him close without committing an active roster spot before it has to.
That makes the next step the real question now, not whether Kendricks can still help, but how soon the Rams decide they need him. Given his track record, the move looks less like a tryout than a staging point.
