What to make of the Rams roster moves ahead of Cardinals game

Russ Yeast cut, Cam Lampkin steps into his place and two standard practice squad elevations

One day before the Los Angeles Rams’ Week 2 tilt with the Arizona Cardinals, they announced four roster moves: Safety Russ Yeast was cut and practice squad cornerback Cam Lampkin was signed to his roster spot. L.A. also made their two weekly standard practice squad elevations, tight end Nikola Kalinic and interior offensive lineman Justin Dedich.

Turf Show Times asked readers if the designation of tight end Davis Allen would spark possible roster moves. Although the Rams decided to stand pat at wide receiver, the moves answered the other three questions posed, albeit with unexpected personnel.

The Rams decided on the undrafted rookie Lampkin over veteran corner Ahkello Witherspoon. ‘Spoon was mid-week addition to the L.A. practice squad. Tackle AJ Arcuri won’t get a chance at redemption this week. Instead, Sean McVay will go with Justin Dedich, the undrafted rookie out of USC, a player with center/guard versatility. Kalinic gets a week on the active squad, bringing his edgy, aggressive play style to special teams and possibly a few reps on offense.

The centerpiece of today’s announcement is the waiving of Russ Yeast as he began his third year of service with the Rams. Yeast leaves taking 32 games, 10 starts, and over 900 defensive snaps of service with him. In his first two season’s in L.A., he had 81 tackles, five passes defended and was a regular special teams contributor. Last week, Yeast saw only one defensive snap and appears to have fallen to S#5 on the roster. There is a possibility of his re-joining the Rams. If he clears the 24-hour waiver claim period, he could be re-signed, either to the practice squad, or the active roster. L.A. currently has 51 players on the active roster.

Did the Rams make the right moves?

L.A. did indeed have some positional holes, although all in backup, or even worst case scenario roles, and plugged them all. Were these the right moves? The right players? If not, how would you have done it differently?