Rams 2022 Draft Prospect Profile: Tyreke Smith (Edge, Ohio State)

[theramswire.usatoday.com] Rams 2022 Draft Prospect Profile: Tyreke Smith (Edge, Ohio State)

Skyler Carlin
April 18, 2022 5:20 am PT

The Los Angeles Rams were able to put together a lethal pass-rushing unit in 2021 when they acquired Von Miller from the Denver Broncos. Miller would aid the Rams in securing their first Super Bowl win since 1999, recording four sacks in the postseason (two in the Super Bowl).

Following the team’s Super Bowl victory, they turned their attention to retaining Miller. However, the veteran edge rusher would elect to sign with the Buffalo Bills instead of returning to the Rams in 2022, leaving Los Angeles thin off of the edge.

Outside of Leonard Floyd, Los Angeles lacks a consistent edge-rushing presence on their defense. With a glaring need for an edge rusher, I’ll be taking a look at a handful of edge rushers the Rams could target in the 2022 NFL draft, beginning with Tyreke Smith out of Ohio State.

Background
Smith spent four seasons at Ohio State, appearing in 30 games for the Buckeyes. For those that look at box scores or game logs, Smith doesn’t look like he had a productive collegiate career at Ohio State, but his stats are a bit deceiving.

In his four years in college, Smith totaled only seven sacks and 11 tackles for loss. While his sack numbers weren’t overly impressive, he was able to create plenty of pressure off of the edge.

At the NFL scouting combine, Smith would run a 4.86 (16th among edge rushers) and would record a 34-inch vertical jump (14th among edge rushers).


How he fits the Rams
Smith is a versatile edge defender that could play in multiple spots on defense. Once again, despite his lack of production in college in the sack department, Smith still was effective in getting after the quarterback and forcing pressure.

It’s cliche to say for edge defenders, but Smith has a high motor and his effort level on every play is through the roof. Smith would benefit from being able to develop alongside Floyd, Aaron Donald, and Greg Gaines on the defensive line.

We’ve seen players that struggle to get sacks in college translate their game to the NFL and develop into gifted sack artists. I believe Smith could be the next edge defender that fits that mold as the Rams should be on the list of teams expressing interest in him in the 2022 NFL draft.


Draft projection
With mock drafts flooding the internet right now, most of them have Smith going in the third round. There likely aren’t many scenarios where Smith goes in the second round, so the Rams should have an opportunity to select the Ohio State product.

Los Angeles won’t make their first selection — at the earliest — until the 104th overall pick. And given Smith’s draft projection, the Rams will have to take him with their third-round pick if they want to add him to their roster.

The Rams’ second pick of the 2022 NFL draft won’t happen until pick No. 142, so unless they trade up to get Smith, they’ll likely have only one chance to select him. If he somehow slips into the fourth round, Los Angeles should jump on the opportunity to add him to their pass-rushing unit.