LOS ANGELES – One day after the Rams’ season ended with a 31-27 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, right tackle and franchise stalwart Rob Havenstein said he still has not made a decision on whether he will retire or return for a 12th year in the NFL.
“I’d be lying to you if I said I hadn’t. But you know that’s just something I gotta continue to think about and we’ll go from there,” Havenstein said, his voice breaking. “Love of the game, what’s best for my family. I’ve done a lot over these 11 years and been around some amazing people and had a lot of great memories and a lot of friends and I’m going to carry it with me forever. But love the game, love this place, love the Rams.”
If Havenstein does decide to play again in 2026, he is set to become an unrestricted free agent with only a void year left on his contract. Tight end Tyler Higbee – who, like Havenstein, is a lifelong Ram who predates head coach Sean McVay’s time with the franchise – will also be a free agent this offseason but declined through a team spokesperson to speak with reporters during Monday’s locker room cleanout.
Havenstein, 33, battled through injuries to both his ankle and knee this season. He missed the last seven games of the regular season and the entire postseason. He returned to practice for the first time since Week 11 ahead of the NFC championship game, but the Rams’ loss to Seattle ended the possibility of a comeback.
“It was very challenging,” Havenstein said. “My ankle was hurt enough to probably play, but hurt enough not to play well. And this is a performance league. So I did everything I could in my power – rest, injections, rehab, whatever it happened to be – to try to get this thing to feel a little better and kinda lost this battle. So it was definitely tough and trying to process that and what that brings.”
Despite the injuries, Havenstein was active in the offensive line room with mentoring his backup at right tackle, Warren McClendon. He found other ways to be involved on the sidelines during games, too.
“Even just being with those guys, whether I was playing or not, it was one of the better times I’ve had,” Havenstein said. “When I was young, guys would help me out, so it’s something I could return the favor and do what I can. I just wanted to win, whether that was me on the field or smacking Puka on the sidelines or handing out smelling salts, whatever I could do to help, that’s what I wanted to do.”
With all the uncertainty around his future, fellow linemen like right guard Kevin Dotson, center Coleman Shelton and tackle D.J. Humphries gave Havenstein long hugs in the locker room as they cleaned out their belongings.
“He’s like the father figure of the room. He’s been like a mentor to me since Day 1,” Dotson said. “It’s bittersweet to not know the future for him. I’ll always be grateful for how he’s always made it easy for me, even just first day coming in. … ‘Right side’ is always going to be a thing for me that I’m always going to think about. It was kind of our mantra, we always say ‘right side’ before we go out and play and I feel like I’m going to take that with me.”
Curl, Durant primed to enter free agency
As the Rams enter the offseason, two starters in the secondary are set to hit free agency in safety Kamren Curl and corner Decobie Durant.
Durant, a fourth-round pick by the Rams in 2022, said he could not talk about his future one day after the loss to Seattle. But Curl expressed a desire to be back with the Rams if the two sides can come to terms.
“I really don’t know what’s going to happen. We’re going to let it play out and I’m going to sit back and just see what happens,” Curl said. “I would love to be back here. This is a great organization, a winning organization and I would love to be back for sure.”
Curl was second on the Rams with 122 tackles this season. He added two sacks, two interceptions and two pass breakups. Durant, meanwhile, tied for the team lead with three interceptions while adding seven breakups.
Both played well in the postseason, too, with Durant intercepting three passes and breaking up seven more and Curl making a big impact in the divisional win over the Bears, not least of all with an overtime interception.
“I feel like this season, I put the league on notice,” Curl said. “Tasting the winning seasons that we had here, I want to keep winning. That’s obviously a big part that’s going to come down to it, but like I said, we’ll see what happens.”
2023 class extension-eligible
When the Rams enter the 2026 NFL year, their 2023 draft class – including receiver Puka Nacua, outside linebacker Byron Young, defensive tackle Kobie Turner, left guard Steve Avila and McClendon – will be eligible for contract extensions.
Avila was the only member of the group to speak with reporters on Monday.
“I think we have a lot of guys who are eligible for that,” Avila said. “I think it would be awesome to stay here just with the culture that we have and everything that we’ve built. Day after the game, we’ll see how those talks go. As of now, just kinda worried about getting some relaxation and putting all that stuff behind us.”