Former Colorado Buffaloes linebacker Nate Landman’s resilience has been rewarded with a well-earned contract extension with the Los Angeles Rams.
As announced Saturday, Landman signed a three-year, $22.5 million contract extension to stay in Los Angeles. The fourth-year NFL linebacker began the season on a veteran minimum one-year deal, but has since rewarded the Rams with 91 total tackles, 1.5 sacks, four forced fumbles and four passes defended through 10 games.
“He has great emotional intelligence,” Rams coach Sean McVay said of Landman on Friday, per ESPN. “He’s a great competitor. I think our guys immediately earned the respect and just the way that he moves… I’ve really enjoyed continuing to get to know him and everything that he’s about. It epitomizes what we want to be about.”
Nov 16, 2025; Inglewood, California, USA; Los Angeles Rams linebacker Nate Landman (53) celebrates after the Seattle Seahawks missed a field goal with one second left in the game at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Landman spent his entire five-year college career in Boulder, leaving Colorado as the program’s all-time leader in third-down stops (53). He also became the first-ever Buff to earn all-conference honors four times, and his 409 career tackles rank seventh in program history.
Still, Landman went undrafted in 2022 before signing an undrafted deal with the Atlanta Falcons. In three seasons there, he totaled 192 tackles, including seven for a loss, two sacks and six forced fumbles.
Colorado fans, of course, were thrilled to see Landman pick up a three-year deal on Saturday.
Oct 16, 2021; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes linebacker Nate Landman (53) reacts to a play in the second quarter against the Arizona Wildcats at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Colorado alum and TXSports Reporter Taylor Sadusky shared her admiration for Landman on social media, praising his dedication through a challenging past few years.
“A great forever Buff who battled adversity and turned performance into profit, so inspiring for both his collegiate and professional journey,” Sadusky wrote on X.
A great forever Buff who battled adversity and turned performance into profit, so inspiring for both his collegiate and professional journey https://t.co/wjkCeyyXA4
— Taylor Sadusky (@taylorjsadusky) November 22, 2025
Another Colorado fan wrote, “Nate Landman deserves this as much as anyone… Always been a dog.”
Nate Landman deserves this as much as anyone… Always been a dog. https://t.co/fR6IqlXzDd
— roll tad (@Desmond_burner) November 22, 2025
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Sep 18, 2021; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Colorado Buffaloes linebacker Nate Landman (53) tackles Minnesota Golden Gophers running back Mar’Keise Irving (4) in the second half at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images / Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
DNVR’s Ryan Koenigsberg shared an emotional story about an interaction he had with Landman following his Senior Day at Colorado in 2021. Early in the NIL (name, image and likeness) era, Landman signed a deal with DNVR.
“On his Senior Day, at the end of another tough season in which he was severely banged up, I went down to the sideline to thank him for pouring everything he had into being a Colorado Buffalo,” Koenigsber wrote on X. “His eyes welled up, he gave me a hug and he said ‘I’m sorry I couldn’t do more.’
“Anyone who watched him play at Colorado knows he gave us all he had but that attitude of ‘what more could I have done’ while the program around him was the problem is a big part of why I always believed if he could be healthy and get a real opportunity, he would be in the position he is in now. Congratulations @_Nate_Landman, you deserve it all.”
Landman and the Rams will host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday.