Russ Yeast

Craig Russell Yeast II (born May 8, 1999) is a football safety for the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League (NFL). He has also played for the Los Angeles Rams and Carolina Panthers. He played college football for the Louisville Cardinals and Kansas State Wildcats.

College career Yeast played college football at Louisville from 2017 to 2020 before transferring to Kansas State for the 2021 season.

Professional career

Los Angeles Rams Yeast was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the seventh round, 253rd overall, in the 2022 NFL draft. He played largely on special teams during his rookie season with the Rams. He earned an increased role on defense in the final month, and he made his first NFL start in the Rams' season finale against the Seattle Seahawks on January 8, 2023. Yeast left that game early with a pulmonary contusion that kept him in a hospital overnight in Seattle.

After the offseason departures of Rams safeties Taylor Rapp and Nick Scott, Yeast became the Rams' starting free safety during training camp in 2023. He lost his starting job by midseason, being replaced by veteran John Johnson.

After fighting for a roster spot in 2024, he made the final roster as a backup, but was waived on September 14, 2024.

Carolina Panthers On September 18, 2024, Yeast was signed to the Carolina Panthers' practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster a week later. Yeast was released on October 8 and re-signed to the practice squad two days later. He was promoted back to the active roster on October 26, but released two days later.

Arizona Cardinals On November 6, 2024, Yeast was signed to the Arizona Cardinals' practice squad. He was released by the Cardinals on November 11.

Houston Texans On November 27, 2024, Yeast was signed to the Houston Texans' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with Houston on January 21, 2025. On August 26, Yeast was waived by the Texans as part of final roster cuts.

Cincinnati Bengals On August 28, 2025, Yeast was signed to the Cincinnati Bengals' practice squad. He signed a reserve/future contract with Cincinnati on January 5, 2026.

On August 30, 2026, Yeast was released by the Bengals as part of final roster cuts and re-signed to the practice squad the next day.

Personal life Yeast's father, Craig, was a star receiver at the University of Kentucky before playing professionally in the NFL and the Canadian Football League. Yeast's mother, Tori Tillman Yeast, played basketball at Kentucky. His sister, Kiyah, is a sprinter on the Louisville track team.