The Rams just lost one of their leading defensive playmakers, as safety O.J. Atogwe is now set to become a free agent. The team neglected to upgrade his tender offer to $6.976 million and now he’s free to sign with any team he wants.

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

In a surprise move just before the start of free agency in March, the Rams tendered Atogwe, then a restricted free agent, at the lowest possible level — $1,226,000. At that level, they would have had the right of first refusal had Atogwe received an offer from another club but would not have received draft-pick compensation if the Rams chose to not match that offer.

The deadline for outside offers was April 15, and Atogwe received none. After that date, the Rams were obligated to pay Atogwe the higher tender amount to retain him for another season or work out a new contract, presumably a long-team deal.

Negotiations on such an agreement continued Tuesday until the deadline arrived. Landphere did not return phone messages Tuesday, and Atogwe could not be reached to comment.

Coming off surgery for a shoulder injury that sidelined him for the last four games of the 2009 season, Atogwe did not participate in the team’s offseason conditioning program. He also has not been present during the organized team activities under way at Rams Park.

The Lions, Vikings, Dolphins, Jaguars and even Cowboys might show interest in Atogwe now that he’s a free agent. The Bears were once rumored to be interested, but after drafting Major Wright in the third round and trading for Chris Harris (Panthers), Chicago is no longer in the market for a safety.

Atogwe could still return to the Rams, but it’s clear they didn’t want to pay him close to $7 million and why would they? He’s coming off a major injury and was an average player when he was healthy. That’s not to say he’s a bad player, but teams have to weigh the risk versus the reward when signing a free agent. That’s just common practice.

It’ll be interesting to see where he winds up because more than likely, he’ll upgrade whatever secondary he goes to.