The Los Angeles Rams started their night with a pick from the Big 12 by taking Steve Avila, but with their second selection, they went to the SEC and the Tennessee Volunteers. They selected edge rusher Byron Young at No. 77 overall, bolstering a pass rush that badly needed some help.
Young is an exciting prospect who has a high ceiling thanks to his rare athleticism, but he’s also 25 years old already and still needs some refinement as a pass rusher and run defender. His path to the NFL wasn’t an easy one, with a stint at the JUCO level and 18 months as an assistant manager of a Dollar General store.
Get to know the Rams’ new pass rusher with 5 facts about Young.
1
He was an assistant manager at Dollar General and worked at Circle K
Young didn’t have the easiest path to the FBS level and eventually the NFL. In his first year of college in 2017, he enrolled at Gulf Coast Sports Academy but only played two games before the program started to disband, according to Dane Brugler of The Athletic. He then took a year off and worked as an assistant manager at Dollar General to help support himself off the football field.
“Honestly, I love the fact that I worked at Dollar General,” he told Justin Melo of The Draft Network. “It gave me an understanding of how to live a regular life. A football life isn’t necessarily a regular life. I learned about what most people in America experience. It taught me never to take anything for granted.”
Young also worked at Circle K in 2019 while attending Georgia Military College, a JUCO program that helped get him back on track on the football field. He spent two years there but played just one season after the 2020 campaign was canceled due to COVID-19.
2
Received offers from SEC powerhouses after dominating JUCO level
Tennessee wasn’t the only Power 5 program to give Young a look after he had seven sacks and 11 tackles for a loss in one year at the JUCO level. According to Brugler, he had offers from Georgia, LSU, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Texas. He ultimately picked Tennessee and went on to have a successful two-year stint with the Volunteers.
3
He had the 2nd-fastest 40 time, longest broad jump of DEs at the combine
Young is a terrific athlete, which is what helped him get drafted in the third round despite his winding path to the NFL. He ran a 4.43 in the 40-yard dash at the combine, the second-fastest time of any edge rusher. He also jumped 11 feet in the broad, which was tops at his position.
There wasn’t a single drill Young tested poorly in, ranking fourth in the three-cone and second in the vertical jump. He’s going to bring a ton of speed and agility to the edge for the Rams, using that athleticism to disrupt opposing passing games.
4
He’s already 25 years old and played just two seasons at Tennessee
As previously mentioned, Young didn’t take a straight-line path to the NFL. After graduating high school in 2017, he didn’t make it to Tennessee until 2021. Because of that longer timeline, he’s already 25 years old, which is not young by draft prospect standards.
That probably deterred some teams from selecting him, but the Rams aren’t afraid of his advanced age as he gets going in the NFL.
5
Had 12.5 sacks, 23.5 TFL in two seasons at Tennessee
Young played 23 games at Tennessee and he averaged one tackle for a loss per game in his two seasons. He also had 12.5 total sacks and 39 hurries, according to Pro Football Focus, consistently generating pressure for the Volunteers defense.
Young may not be the best run defender yet, but the Rams are drafting him for his pass-rush ability.
