Sean McVay plays it very safe in the preseason, keeping his top players out of action until the start of the regular season. That’s typically reserved for proven starters and veterans who have gained a lot of experience in the NFL, but the Rams are giving two of their top rookies that same treatment.
First-rounder Jared Verse and second-round selection Braden Fiske are both inactive in Sunday’s game against the Cowboys, which is the Rams’ preseason opener. McVay is notoriously cautious, but even that is a surprising decision by him.
It remains to be seen if Verse and Fiske will play at all this preseason, but the Rams are taking no chances with their outstanding rookie defenders in this first exhibition game.
Even for a McVay-coached team, seeing the Rams top two draft picks in street clothes — for all the right reasons — for Preseason 1 vs DAL tells you everything you need to know about the impression Jared Verse & Braden Fiske have made and the role they'll have for this defense.
— J.B. Long (@JB_Long) August 11, 2024