Sports

In March, the Rams signed linebacker Nate Landman to a one-year contract for the minimum salary of $1.1 million, and it was no guarantee that he was even going to make the roster. He made it, and did a whole lot more than that.

Landman earned a starting job and has played extremely well this season, and now the Rams have rewarded him with a new contract. According to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network, the extension is a three-year, $22.5 million contract with $15.5 million guaranteed.

That's far more money than Landman has made to this point in his career. Landman originally entered the NFL as an undrafted rookie out of Colorado when he signed with the Falcons in 2022. He made the roster in Atlanta but was always a minimum-salary player there.

The NFL’s only player who was born in Zimbabwe, Landman is now making a major impact on the Rams' defense, and the Rams weren't going to risk losing him in free agency. He's in Los Angeles to stay.

As the Colts prepare to face the Chiefs on Sunday, the Colts are getting a former Chiefs player back in time for a critical Week 12 game.

Indianapolis has activated cornerback Charvarius Ward Sr. from injured reserve. In a corresponding move, the Colts waived cornerback Cameron Mitchell.

Ward suffered a concussion during pre-game warmups before the Week 6 game against the Cardinals, in a collision with tight end David Ogletree. Ward, a Pro Bowler and second-team All-Pro in 2023, has not played since then.

“I was throwing up, getting dizzy. I was getting dizzy for like a month,” Ward said this week, via James Boyd of TheAthletic.com. “That wasn’t normal, so that was like a real-deal traumatic injury for me. A lot of emotions and everything like that, so it was pretty tough, but I’m feeling good now.”

When he wasn't feeling good, it was bad enough to get him to consider retiring.

“I was kind of doubting if I was gonna play football again because it was that scary,” Ward said. “Because I was thinking about my life outside of football, too.”

He's now back, and he'll be facing the team that gave him a shot in 2018 as an undrafted free agent, following a release by the Cowboys. He spent four years with the Chiefs and three with the 49ers.

Since Ward's last game, the Colts traded for cornerback Sauce Gardner. Having both in the lineup will help the Colts in their latest test to prove they belong in the upper echelon of AFC teams — at a time when the Chiefs are struggling to emerge from the middle of the pack.