LA Rams 2022 NFL Draft Big Board for punters? Yes, punters

When the LA Rams released veteran punter Johnny Hekker, it was clear that the team needed to free up some of the fairly high compensation that he was due to make in 2022. But the team has known about his salary situation for some time. In fact, the team held an open competition between Hekker and veteran P Corey Bojorquez last year.

While it appeared that Bojorquez won the competition, the team used that to their advantage to leverage $2 million in concessions from Hekker over two years and subsequently traded Bojorquez to the Green Bay Packers for next to nothing.

While Hekker did not do well in his gross punt ranking in the NFL for 2021, he did much better when ranked by net punting. After all of the activity in 2021 that resulted in Hekker returning for one more season, why didn’t the LA Rams negotiate a bit more aggressively last season to free up enough cap space over 2021 and 2022 that would have allowed the team to stick with Hekker this year?

Drafting a punter? Just for kicks

Perhaps it was more than just a salary cap issue?  While punters have up years and down years, Hekker’s 2021 average at yards per punt was the lowest of his ten-year career. And it is the third season of decline in that number. Whatever else the LA Rams seem to do well, the team seems to know (within a year or two) when it is time to part ways with an NFL player.

While I cringe whenever the team uses a draft pick for a kicker, punter, long snapper, and sometimes even for a late-round quarterback, this year I see no way around it. The LA Rams only have late-round draft picks, and currently do not have a punter.  Nor do the actions of the team suggest that they will try to sign a priority free agent punter after the draft.

Rather, the team will likely draft their punter, and the 2022 Draft class is as good as any when it comes to doing so. In fact, the LA Rams likely have options in Rounds 5, 6, and 7 this year. Of course, if they fail to draft one, there should be a solid handful of options to sign after the draft as well. Who are they? Let’s begin:

Option I: Punter Matt Araiza

With the 175th pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, the LA Rams select punter Matt Araiza out of San Diego State

The NFL is infatuated with San Diego State punter Matt Ariaza this year, and for good reason. Anyone who has earned the nickname of ‘Punt God’ deserves to be on the radar of every NFL team, and Matt Araiza very likely is.  While he is certainly one of the players who the LA Rams will be targeting for their punting duties, you have to wonder if other teams that have a dozen or so picks will burn one for a punter long before the LA Rams have the option to do so in the fifth round?

Araiza could persuade some team to do so.

He can zing ’em folks. In 2021, he punted twice over 80 yards. He punted 18 times over 60 yards. If the returner does not field it cleanly and leaves it to bounce, chances are that it will roll downfield (in the Rams’ favor) another 20 yards or so. He also gives the LA Rams an emergency option at kickoffs as well. He is a true weapon at the position and has the aura of a game-changer. And yes, you can bet that ST Joe DeCamillis is already salivating over the chance of drafting him.

Option II: Punter Jordan Stout

With the 212th pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, the LA Rams select punter Jordan Stout out of Penn State University.

The Penn State Nittany Lions may not be the first school you think of when shopping for a punter, but this is a good year to do so. He is more of the ‘hang time’ variety punter, whose punts arc high into the air and gives coverage plenty of time to arrive before or as the ball reaches the hands of the receiver. He is a solid option if the LA Rams are looking for that ‘coffin corner’ guy, as he rarely punts the ball into or through the end zone.

He is also fast with the football, opting for either a two-step or three-step punt that gets rid of the football almost instantly.  As far as power? He punts 50+ yards nearly a third of the time.

Jordan Stout is the blue-collar version of a punter. He is consistent, quick, and gives lots of opportunities for teammates to make incredible plays. If some team leaps to draft Araiza before the Rams have the opportunity to do so, Stout makes an excellent Plan B option for the team.

Option III: Punter Jake Camarda

With the 239th pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, the LA Rams select punter Jake Camarda out of the University of Georgia

If the LA Rams fail to draft either of their first two options, then ST Coordinator Joe DeCamillis sees something that many do not. Now don’t get me wrong. Jake Camarda has all of the leg strength needed to succeed at the NFL level. As far as mechanics, he is spot-on as a textbook punter. He simply does not have the ‘touch’ of the previous two prospects.

The result is an errant touchback when Camarda is aiming to pin the opponent within their 20-yard line. But that can be coached. He does offer a solid complement of punts, even the two-step approach needed to get the ball out of there quickly. His regimen is everything any ST Coordinator could ask for. But he is the basic package, without many of the bells or whistles that would excite a new team about a punter.

Option IV: Punter Blake Hayes

After the 2022 NFL Draft, the LA Rams have signed punter Blake Hayes out of the University of Illinois

The punter from the Fighting Illini, Blake Hayes, originally hails from Melbourne, Australia. That also just so happens to be one of several new International markets designated for the LA Rams going forward.

Hayes is a huge fella’, standing 6-foot-4 and weighing 226-pounds. While you may think all that leverage translates into booming 100-yard punts, the actual matter is that he is insanely effective at directional punting.  His punts., unfortunately, are less arc and more line drives, allowing opponents to field and return effectively. Another drawback to the low-arc trajectory off his foot is the risk of blocked punts, something that had happened three times in his college career.

While he seldom punts into the endzone, his punts are white knuckles. He can pin the opponent at their one-yard line one time but have one returned for 40 yards on the next punt. He has the potential to be good but is not the plug-n-play version of punter that the LA Rams are likely seeking this year.

Option V: Punter Trenton Gill

After the 2022 NFL Draft, the LA Rams have signed punter Trenton Gill out of N.C. State

While we are now in that undrafted rookie free agent signing territory, Trenton Gill is one of those raw prospects that appear to be on the road to a serviceable, if not stellar, NFL career. He is another behemoth, standing 6-foot-4 and weighing 220-pounds. He has enough leg to work out in the NFL, but his ability to place his punts where he wants them to go is a work-in-progress.

He has good hang time, and his placement improved noticeably as he increased the volumes of his punts. Is that a trend that the Rams organization is willing to bet upon? Well, he needs to continue to improve and the only way that happens is to sign on with an NFL team and work hard and often.

He does have a risk of shagging his punts to the left and out of bounds. That will need to be addressed quickly if he is to have any chance of earning a role on the LA Rams roster.

Option VI: Ryan Stonehouse

After the 2022 NFL Draft, the LA Rams have signed punter Ryan Stonehouse out of Colorado State

Ryan Stonehouse out of Colorado State is a very intriguing prospect. He was not invited to the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine, but he has put up some very impressive numbers so far.

Perhaps the challenge for his candidacy is that he cannot escape from the shadow of San Diego State’s Matt Araiza?  It was clearly an incredible year for Stonehouse, who ended the 2021 season averaging 50.9 yards per punt.

Whatever the case, Stonehouse has the makings of an NFL punter, and could end up with the LA Rams if the team fails to select one in the 2022 NFL Draft. Stonehouse has plenty of leg strength, but as we’d cited with other prospects, his punts do not always hit that high arching trajectory.  That sometimes translates into significant punt returns.

Just for fun, you should know that Stonehouse is one for one on passing with fake punts for 11 yards. So there’s that too.

The LA Rams do not have a punter on the roster today. That means that drafting one is the likely resolution. Do you see any punters worth drafting in this list? Did we leave any punters out who you believe the LA Rams could have an interest in? Let us know in the comments section.