2019 Los Angeles Rams roster preview: CB Dont’e Deayon ready to cover down

Role matters.

Some athletes in the NFL are big enough or fast enough or strong enough to play football at various spots. To contend at different positions and maintain different responsibilities. Some players are good enough that you add them to your team and figure out the details later.

Some aren’t.

Los Angeles Rams CB Dont’e Deayon is 5’9”, 159 lbs. He is one of just five Rams listed under 5’10”. But he’s listed one inch taller than CB Nickell Robey-Coleman.

So there’s simply not a ton to ask of Deayon. Like his smaller peers, he’s limited in responsibility.

So after two-plus seasons with the New York Giants, Deayon was scooped up by the Rams in mid-December and stashed on the practice squad. He now gets an offseason to face the ask from the Rams’ coaching staff and see if his response is good enough to stick on the 53-man roster moving forward for whatever role he’s slotted to.

Role matters.

Roster Battle

I’m not sure there is one.

Deayon is essentially locked into the slot cornerback depth chart which might consist only of himself and NRC. And since he’s not actually threatening NRC’s starting job and his special teams contributions are going to be limited because of his size, I think this might be one of the few places among the depth of the roster where we’re not looking at a battle in training camp.

Expectations

This is getting scant, but I think this is another empty section.

Deayon arrived late in the season last year, so there’s neither any long-term weight here nor any major investment.

Chances of making the final roster (4/10)

I’m a bit bullish here given the low expectations if only because of his role.

Consider a roster without Deayon. If NRC misses time, who plays in his absence? He missed one game in 2017 with a thigh injury; in that game, his action went to DB Blake Countess who the Rams waived in May this year.

I suppose there’s an argument to put DB Dominique Hatfield in this group, but he’s played some outside and certainly would want to continue there.

So I’ll give DD a near 50/50 shot to make the roster as a NRC backup.