The Los Angeles Rams waived their seventh-round pick out of Baylor yesterday Clay Johnston as part of an attempt to make room for a waiver claim which ended up being Justin Hollins. According to Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic, Johnston cleared waivers but decided to sign with the Panthers practice squad.
Well holy fudging fudge – linebacker Clay Johnston is set to join the Carolina Panthers practice squad, whose staff include many of his former Baylor coaches and also his father, who runs the new strength program.
— Jourdan Rodrigue (@JourdanRodrigue) September 6, 2020
It’s certainly a bittersweet story as someone who was dubbed a fan favorite after a reactionary video came out about him being drafted by the Rams. On top of that his Hard Knocks feature had fans clamoring for Johnston to remain on the roster. In the end, Johnston had an opportunity to play on the same team as his father and a bunch of former Baylor coaches which include Head coach Matt Rhule and so he chose to be a part of that organization. Clay did express to Downtown Rams that he was looking forward to a practice squad opportunity with the Rams so that means the Rams likely just watched a spot open up on their practice squad they initially thought they may have filled.