Oilers Offer Pop Quiz for Lyght : Rams: Top draft choice has had three days of drills to prepare for Houston’s run-and-shoot offense.

Defensive back Todd Lyght will get a baptism of run-and-shoot tonight when the Rams play the Houston Oilers in their final exhibition game.

Lyght, the No. 1 pick whose 30-day holdout forced him to miss the Rams’ first three exhibitions, will be playing in passing situations, which for the Oilers and quarterback Warren Moon is almost always.

How Lyght plays against the Oilers’ stable of accomplished receivers is the most obvious of a series of questions facing the Rams nine days away from the regular season.

Last week, the offense was able to score only a fourth-quarter touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks, and the offensive line is still a jumble.

On defense, the team appears to be adapting to its new, aggressive style, but the Oilers present the stiffest test yet and the Rams’ pass rush has been no better than up and down.

Houston plays four wide receivers on almost every down, giving Lyght ample time to show the Rams why he is worth $1.1 million a year.

Lyght signed his five-year contract last Friday, skipped the team’s third exhibition game the next day and began practicing Monday with special sessions before and after regular practices. So after only three days of practice, he will be challenged by Ernest Givins, Drew Hill and company.

“I don’t see anything wrong with throwing a guy in like that, because I’ve done it before in the past with No. 1 guys,” said Ram secondary coach Tom Bettis. “We want to get him into the swing of things as soon as possible.

“The longer you hold him back, the longer it’s going to be before he starts to progress. I think it’ll be a good breaking-in point for him.”

Bettis is hoping to work Lyght into a major defensive role by the first two weeks of the regular season, either as the starting right cornerback or a nickel back.

Lyght will play the right cornerback tonight.

“I think it’s going to be a good situation because I’m going to be thrown right into the fire,” he said. “Warren Moon is one of the best quarterbacks in the league. They’ve got a lot of top-flight receivers, Givins and the rest of the crew.

“They all have a lot of speed. Basically, I’m just going to be thrown in against great talent, and that will be a great introduction for me to the NFL.”

Bettis said playing against the run-and-shoot gives the Rams a lot of chances to look at Lyght.

“Granted, he’s only been in camp for a couple days and he’s got a short time for the practice, so that’s got to be allowed a little bit, too,” Bettis said. “But I’d like to get him into the picture as soon as possible so he starts to feel comfortable with what he’s doing.”

The Rams’ other key defensive newcomer, linebacker Fred Strickland, will have only rare chances tonight to settle into the system.

Because linebackers aren’t used very much against a four-receiver set, Strickland, who is penciled in at left outside linebacker, probably will play as a defensive end in this game, simply to get in some time. Strickland missed 28 days of camp and played only the end of the game last Saturday night.