The Rams have re-signed free agent Tim Barnes, according to Jim Thomas of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via Twitter). The guard/center took a trip to Kansas City on Monday, but he quickly decided to stay put in St. Louis.
Barnes, 27 in May, has spent his entire four-year career with the Rams. His new deal will carry a maximum value of $1MM, according to Thomas (via Twitter), and he could wind up competing for a starting job this year on the offensive line. Even though the Rams did not extend a tender to Barnes when he was a restricted free agent earlier this month, they apparently wanted to retain him, just at a lower salary.
The Chiefs already fortified their interior offensive line by acquiring Ben Grubbs from the Saints, but they were looking for additional pieces, having lost a big one in center Rodney Hudson. Now that Barnes is going back to the Rams, they’ll have to look elsewhere for reinforcements.