LA Rams past draft whiffs now present roster woes

2022 NFL Draft

The LA Rams approached the 2022 NFL Draft with an eye on restocking positions that had become thin due to the NFL Free Agency market. But this was never going to be a draft class that led to immediate starters. The reason was not simply that the Rams had to draft outside of the Top 100, but that the Rams drafted for need.

That steered the Rams toward offensive linemen, defensive backs, inside linebackers, and edge rushers. The Rams were able to fill the need in the middle by signing free-agent veteran ILB Bobby Wagner. But even as the Rams chose defensive backs and offensive linemen in the draft, their lack of experience coupled with a need to coach them up hampered their ability to contribute right away.

• OL Logan Bruss (104) DB Cobie Durant (142) RB Kyren Williams (164) DB Quentin Lake (211) DB Derion Kendrick (212) OLB Daniel Hardy (235) DB Russ Yeast (253) OT A.J. Arcuri (261)

While it’s too early to grade the Rams 2022 draft class just yet, we can track the early trends. The rookie DBs seem to be getting plenty of work already, a trend that should continue well into next season. But how has that impacted the defense’s performance?

Rookie DBs play without consistency

Young defensive backs play with inconsistency. And that is exactly what we find with the Rams’ secondary this season. But that story gets lost in the evaluation of the team this season, particularly when talking about the Rams’ secondary. How bad is it? Let’s check out how many snaps the Rams draft class of 2022 has played so far this season:

• OL Logan Bruss (0 snaps, IR) DB Cobie Durant (23 snaps) RB Kyren Williams (51 snaps) DB Quentin Lake (injured, 0 snaps) DB Derion Kendrick (360 snaps) OLB Daniel Hardy (IR, 0 snaps) DB Russ Yeast (16 snaps) OT A.J. Arcuri (PS, 0 snaps)

That’s just 10 games into the season folks. It’s clear that the Rams will be leaning on this year’s crop of defensive backs going forward. Will they continue to develop and show promise? Well, let’s hope so.

The Rams project to lose seven defensive backs due to expired contracts in 2023, including Taylor Rapp, Nick Scott, Troy Hill, and David Long Jr. With the work that Derion Kendrick, Cobie Durant, and Russ Yeast are getting already, the Rams may only need to look for secondary depth in the 2023 NFL Draft.