The Rams have agreed to re-sign William Hayes, Ian Rapoport of NFL.com tweets. It’s a three-year deal, per Josina Anderson of ESPN.com (on Twitter). The deal will pay him a max of $21MM over that three year stretch, Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com (on Twitter). 
A few teams were in on Hayes before he re-upped with Los Angeles, including the Dolphins, Mike Garafolo of FOX Sports tweets. Having played alongside guys like Aaron Donald and Robert Quinn on the Rams’ defensive line, Hayes was somewhat overlooked in recent seasons, but he garnered some attention for himself in his contract year. The veteran end, who turns 31 this May, has picked up between four and seven sacks in each of his four years with the Rams. Multiple teams in need of pass-rushing help were in on the bidding for Hayes, but he ultimately decided to join the Rams for their 2016 season in L.A.
We rated Hayes as the No. 9 edge defender in this year’s free agent class, behind Olivier Vernon, Bruce Irvin, Jason Pierre-Paul, Mario Williams, Charles Johnson, Greg Hardy, Tamba Hali, and Robert Ayers.
The Rams also re-signing strong safety Mark Barron and hitting Case Keenum with a first-round tender, so it’s clear that they’re making a concerted effort to hang on to their own players.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.