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An ESPN radio host had a little fun at Byron Young’s expense this week.
Not the second-year linebacker Byron Young out of Tennessee who is wreaking havoc right now with the Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs. The other Byron Young, the defensive tackle out of Alabama who was drafted by the Las Vegas Raiders in the 3rd round with the 70th overall pick — exactly 7 picks before the Rams grabbed their Byron Young that same spring night in 2023.
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The Rams’ Byron Young racked up 62 total tackles, 34 solo, and 7.5 sacks during the regular season. Then he was unleashed during their wild-card playoff victory over the Minnesota Vikings on Monday night, posting 4 tackles, 3 solo, and 1.5 sacks as Los Angeles advanced to the divisional round against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Meanwhile, the other Byron Young was waived by the Raiders before this season started before being claimed by the Eagles, of all teams. Young was placed on injured reserve on Oct. 25 with a hamstring injury.
ESPN radio host Q Myers suspects the Raiders accidentally took the wrong Byron Young back on draft day in 2023.
“I definitely believe they selected the wrong one,” Myers said on ESPN radio this week. “I think unintentionally. I think it was just an attention to detail … He’s no longer with the Raiders, I’m just saying.”
Here’s a clip from the segment:
There is still a chance the 2 players with the same name from the same conference could meet in Sunday’s playoff game, as the Eagles’ Byron Young was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice, according to Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio.
Both players are still very young, for lack of a better word, so perhaps the Alabama version of Byron Young can get going and catch up to the one from rival Tennessee.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.