Quote:For a long time I thought there was a good chance that Nick Fairley would end up signing a short term prove it type of contract. What surprised me is the St, Louis Rams showing interest in Fairley this week, before eventually signing him. In essence, Fairley would be their # 3 DT. Paying a $ 5 million base salary ( not counting the $ 2.5 million in potential incentives ) on a one year contract is quite a price when you have multiple needs on the Offensive Line. If the Rams don't substantially upgrade their O-Line, Nick Foles is going to end up like Sam Bradford.


Once the Lions traded for Haloti Ngata the other day, the chances of Fairley being re-signed were reduced substantially. The end of Fairley's time with the Lions in essence ended last night when the Lions signed former Saints DT Tyrunn Walker. If Fairley can continue to keep off the weight that plagued him much of his time with the Lions and finally remain relatively healthy, I still think he can have a good career. Yet, I understand why the Lions were reluctant to re-sign Fairley under contract terms that would stretch the team's present or future cap situation.