LA Rams quick reaction NFL Draft grades 2022: Russ Yeast

The LA Rams wanted to lock down their secondary for the 2022 NFL season. And so, to do that, they selected defensive backs. Multiple defensive backs, to be honest.

With the 253rd selection of the 2022 NFL Draft, the LA Rams selected S Russ Yeast from Kansas State. Let’s dive into the pick a little bit and try to think like the Rams front office.

The 2022 NFL Draft has been a stellar adventure for fans across the NFL, full of high-action trades and surprise picks from start to finish. It’s been a riveting experience, lasting a total of fifteen hours of teams picking on the clock. With one of their seventh-round picks, the Rams selected their fourth defensive back of the class, which has left some Rams fans scratching their head.

The Rams had already selected three players for their secondary earlier in the draft. Those players are:

CB Decobie Durant Jr, South Carolina State
S Quentin Lake, UCLA
CB Derion Kendrick, Georgia

So why would the Rams elect to take yet another secondary player?

Why had the Rams elected to go with another secondary selection?

Russ Yeast is listed as a safety, but that’s not really a good description of what he brings to the field. In reality, he’s what we call a “ROVER” or a “STAR.”

A ROVER is a safety-type athlete who plays out of the slot and is a mix between a linebacker and a cornerback. If you want to think of a ROVER at the NFL level, think of Terrell Burgess or Jordan Fuller. When they are playing closer to the line of scrimmage, because the Rams’ secondary moves all over the field, they are in a ROVER role.

Yeast has that versatility to be used as a blitz key out of the slot can play zone coverage underneath, and is a decent tackler. All of those things he is still learning to get better at, which is why he was picked in the seventh round. That being said, he’s a great athlete and offers a lot of potential and upside for good things in the future.

None of the other players that the Rams took quite fit that ROVER role.

The Seventh Round is when teams take high-risk prospects

The seventh-round is typically players who have very high ceilings, in terms of talent that can be realized and refined, but players have a lot of work to get to that point. Russ Yeast is not at all a finished product and will have to battle for a roster spot.

I don’t believe that the Rams are very comfortable with their secondary right now, especially with Robert Rochelle projected as a starter. They want to bring in as many guys as they can to compete and really push this unit to think outside of the box on how they can utilize them.

Pick 253: S Russ Yeast

As a Rams fan, you have got to be excited.