Rams sign Otis Anderson Jr.

Slow news so figured any kind of news is worth a thread even if it's practice squad depth. Competition for the return job though so you never know he might make it on special teams.

Rams sign former UCF standout Otis Anderson Jr.

The Rams have signed undrafted free agent Otis Anderson Jr., he and his representation announced on social media Wednesday. Anderson, who is not related to Super Bowl XXV MVP Ottis “O.J.” Anderson, played running back and receiver at the University of Central Florida. He also was a kick returner...

sports.yahoo.com

Charean Williams
Wed, June 23, 2021, 3:43 PM·1 min read


The Rams have signed undrafted free agent Otis Anderson Jr., he and his representation announced on social media Wednesday.
Anderson, who is not related to Super Bowl XXV MVP Ottis “O.J.” Anderson, played running back and receiver at the University of Central Florida. He also was a kick returner in his sophomore and junior seasons.
He finished his college career with 358 carries for 2,182 yards and 17 touchdowns, while adding 91 catches for 1,025 yards and nine touchdowns. Anderson also returned a kickoff for a touchdown.
His 6.1 yards per carry ranks second all-time at UCF and his 3,708 all-purpose yards and 27 total touchdowns both rank eighth in school annals.
Anderson earned second-team all-conference honors last season when he rushed for 687 yards and scored four touchdowns in nine games. He made five starts at running back.

 

[RamFan503]

Only returned kicks, short at 5-9 is more quick than fast, top end speed only 4.52, however, very good catching the football. IMO, I like others on the roster over him, but it's June.

There were two punt returns shown in the highlights.

 

[blackbart]

Shifty, good vision, user blockers well seems like a good low risk high ceiling guy.

He looks better than anyone we have had returning punts for years but it is just highlights.

Go get em, Otis!

 

[Jacobarch]

One thing I've never understood about Running Backs is if you have a decent to good Oline you'll have a good RB. take this guy for example. Good speed, Great Vision, and soft hands. Seems to understand protections and the passing game. I dunno, seems like a lot of these guys miss their opportunity because RB is a such a deep position in the draft every year.

 

[dang]

So it’s Otis A and the Knights

 

[blackbart]

So it’s Otis A and the Knights

You make me wanna shout!

 

[Ramrasta]

I watched Otis his whole college career at UCF. He is not particularly exceptional at anything but he is good at everything. The reason McVay likes him is versatility. He can play RB, WR, PR, and KR. He was Mr. Reliable for the Knights.

 

[Rams4life]

Signing this late I would have to temper my excitement until we see what he has. He'll be lucky to make the practice squad imo.

 

[So Ram]

Otis…my main man!!

You better get your fix in. He won’t be around to long.Unless Triston is a guy your done with already? Even then it will be tough to see him sticking around long.

 

[So Ram]

Shifty, good vision, user blockers well seems like a good low risk high ceiling guy.

He looks better than anyone we have had returning punts for years but it is just highlights.

Go get em, Otis!

Basically I’m a Nsimba Webster Fan,so F” him. Good luck!!! Oh yeah -Jackson is 187. Dude weighs more than Tutu though. Funk that idea.
Then again the PR group is looking a little blanco. At RB though ? Who knows what Funk brings.

 

[Selassie I]

We offered him a pretty damn good contract for an UDFA. Now, he still has to make the team, but the contract we offered him is better than what most 6th and 7th round drafted players get.

The guy who is The Voice Of UCF on TV and radio was talking about this on our local sports talk show this morning. Apparently there were a number of teams trying to sign Otis. That's part of the reason we had to make a good offer like we did. Otis ultimately signed with us because he feels like he can win the Return jobs on the Rams. He knows that his pathway to making it onto the 53 with any team is going to be through Special Teams.

So I'm not gonna be surprised to see him returning kicks for us this season. He was a force doing that for UCF.

 

[PhillyRam]

We offered him a pretty damn good contract for an UDFA. Now, he still has to make the team, but the contract we offered him is better than what most 6th and 7th round drafted players get.

The guy who is The Voice Of UCF on TV and radio was talking about this on our local sports talk show this morning. Apparently there were a number of teams trying to sign Otis. That's part of the reason we had to make a good offer like we did. Otis ultimately signed with us because he feels like he can win the Return jobs on the Rams. He knows that his pathway to making it onto the 53 with any team is going to be through Special Teams.

So I'm not gonna be surprised to see him returning kicks for us this season. He was a force doing that for UCF.

Why did he sign so late and miss a chance to attend a team's OTA's....if he was highly sought after?

 

[Psycho_X]

We offered him a pretty damn good contract for an UDFA. Now, he still has to make the team, but the contract we offered him is better than what most 6th and 7th round drafted players get.

The guy who is The Voice Of UCF on TV and radio was talking about this on our local sports talk show this morning. Apparently there were a number of teams trying to sign Otis. That's part of the reason we had to make a good offer like we did. Otis ultimately signed with us because he feels like he can win the Return jobs on the Rams. He knows that his pathway to making it onto the 53 with any team is going to be through Special Teams.

So I'm not gonna be surprised to see him returning kicks for us this season. He was a force doing that for UCF.

Whether it's him or not I hope we have a good to great return man for both punts and kicks this year. I don't want to see any integral offensive or defensive players out there returning kicks. And having someone who has the instincts to return kicks is such a huge weapon that is underrated even after the NFL gutted the importance with their kick coverage changes. More so on punt returns so I'm hoping he can do that too.

 

[Selassie I]

Why did he sign so late and miss a chance to attend a team's OTA's....if he was highly sought after?

Maybe because he had a bidding war going on between teams? That's just a guess though cause I don't know.

 

[PhillyRam]

Maybe because he had a bidding war going on between teams? That's just a guess though cause I don't know.

If so then he is awfully indecisive... You cant afford to miss mini camps & OTA's as a college free agent.

 

[Selassie I]

If so then he is awfully indecisive... You cant afford to miss mini camps & OTA's as a college free agent.

Maybe... but if he makes our 53 he will be making more money than if he was drafted in the 6th or 7th round from what I heard this morning. Hopefully he doesn't miss out on the opportunity... cause we definitely need help in the return department.

The kid can definitely play. I watch all the UCF games.

 

[Psycho_X]

If so then he is awfully indecisive... You cant afford to miss mini camps & OTA's as a college free agent.

That's true but returning kicks isn't exactly a huge learning process. You can either catch a wobbler and follow blockers or you can't. Obviously a little more to it than that but I doubt they are expecting him to contribute more than returning kicks... at least to start.

 

[blackbart]

Basically I’m a Nsimba Webster Fan,so F” him. Good luck!!! Oh yeah -Jackson is 187. Dude weighs more than Tutu though. Funk that idea.
Then again the PR group is looking a little blanco. At RB though ? Who knows what Funk brings.

Tired of watching Webster and expecting a fumble every time he touches the ball.

Plus he lets WAY too many punts hit the ground. And gets a couple of decent returns in a year.