Rams Waive Cornerback Derion Kendrick

The Los Angeles Rams announced on Friday that they have waived cornerback Derion Kendrick.

The Rams drafted Kendrick in the sixth round out of Georgia in 2022 and he played 32 games for the team in his first two seasons, starting 18 of them. In those games, he recorded 92 total tackles, 14 passes defensed and one interception.

Unfortunately, Kendrick’s third season with the Rams ended before it ever started as he tore his ACL during training camp and missed the whole year.

The hope was that Kendrick would be healthy going into the 2025 season but considering the team have waived him, it’s reasonable to think his recovery process is going a little slower than expected.

Cornerback is currently a position of need for the Rams as they have veterans Darious Williams and Ahkello Witherspoon on the roster along with young guys like Cobie Durant, Emmanuel Forbes, Shaun Jolly, Josh Wallace and Charles Wood.

In recent weeks, the team has been linked to a potential reunion with Jalen Ramsey, their former All-Pro cornerback, although nothing has come to fruition just yet. With the team waiving Kendrick to open up a roster spot, perhaps a trade for Ramsey or a move to bring in another defensive back is in the works.

Sean McVay open to Rams bringing back Jalen Ramsey

Rams head coach Sean McVay also sounds open to the idea of the team bringing back Jalen Ramsey, but noted there would be a lot of moving parts to make it work.

“He’s a great player. We know him very well. We know him intimately. You would certainly never rule out the possibility of that, but like Les articulated, our focus and concentration are on this week’s upcoming draft,” McVay said.

“There are a lot of layers that would need to be worked out with a player of his magnitude and some of the different things that accompany that, but you would never eliminate the possibility of adding a total stud and a guy that can do a lot of different things, like he’s continued to do. Like he did here, like he did in Jacksonville and like he’s done over the last couple of years in Miami.”

Given how expensive Ramsey’s contract is, the Miami Dolphins would likely have to eat a portion of the salary and wouldn’t get much draft capital back in a deal, making it a desirable move for conerback-needy teams like the Rams.