Throughout the Sean McVay and Les Snead era, the Los Angeles Rams have done well finding late-round safeties and developing them into strong role players and starters. They selected Quentin Lake in the sixth round and the team just signed him to an extension. Jaylen McCollough was an undrafted free agent and has found a role as the dime linebacker and situational box safety.
Over the last two years, defensive coordinator Chris Shula has gotten very creative with multiple safety looks. Not many teams have used three safeties on the field at the same time more than Shula and a big reason for that is because the Rams have practically lived in dime defense.
While the Rams signed Lake to an extension and re-signed Kam Curl, it wouldn’t be surprising if they continued the pipeline at safety. They have players like Nate Valcarcel and Tanner Ingle on the practice squad, but they could look to continue adding competition at that spot.
One player that the Rams could look at is Arizona State’s Myles “Ghost” Rowser. Since coming out of high school, Rowser has been overlooked and had a bit of a chip on his shoulder. He started his career at Campbell before transferring to New Mexico State and then finally Arizona State. Speaking to TurfShow Times on Monday, Rowser said that he took pride in having the responsibility of playing everywhere in the Sun Devils defense. It should be no surprise that some of Rowser’s favorite safeties that he’s watched are Tyrann Mathieu, Jalen Pitre, and Jalen Ramsey.
Nicknamed “Ghost” for his quiet personality, Rowser has been anything but quiet on the field. At Arizona State, Rowser was a high-intensity player and a big hitter in the secondary who consistently brought a lot of energy. With the Sun Devils, he finished each of the last two seasons with at least 80 tackles and always found himself around the ball. This past season he was named third-team All-Big 12.
Rowser met with all 32 teams at the Shrine Bowl earlier this spring and mentioned that the Rams liked his aggressiveness. At the Shrine Bowl, Rowser practiced everywhere from free safety and strong safety to playing down in the box. With many players leaving before the game as they continued their draft prep, Rowser stepped in and started at free safety as the most experienced player at that spot. He finished with five combined tackles during the game. It’s also worth noting that despite already declaring for the draft, he also competed for Arizona State during the Sun Bowl.
While Rowser was overlooked for the NFL Combine, he was able to compete last Friday at Arizona State’s Pro Day, work out for teams, and continue to prove himself throughout the draft process.
Another Arizona State player that the Rams could look at closely during the draft is wide receiver Jordyn Tyson. Playing with Tyson over the last two years, Rowser highlighted the wide receiver as a person, but also talked about his preparation and how he pays attention to detail.
As well as his work on the field, Rowser takes a lot of pride in giving back and helping youth off the field. He is the co-founder of C.A.N. (College Athlete Network) which is a youth mentoring initiative, connecting student-athletes with youth football programs and helping them with academics, discipline, and mental health.
Given the depth at the position and only six draft picks, the Rams may not be in a position to select a safety. However, the Rams always seem to take chances on undrafted free agents at safety. If they take a chance late or Rowser is available after the draft, the Arizona State safety could be worth a look.
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