Tutu Atwell barely played as a rookie last year before suffering a season-ending shoulder injury, failing to touch the ball a single time on offense. There were high hopes coming into Year 2, especially after he played well enough to get the veteran treatment during the preseason by sitting out all three games.
When the season began, Atwell barely played. He never got on the field for more than nine snaps in the first six weeks and was even a healthy scratch multiple times. In the last two games, however, Atwell has stepped up. He’s played a total of 58 snaps and caught four passes for 71 yards since Week 12, making an especially impressive one-handed grab against the Seahawks on Sunday.
After seeing the way Atwell performed the last two weeks, and even in Week 11 when he caught a 62-yard touchdown pass, Sean McVay admitted he was wrong about keeping the speedster on the sideline.
He said Monday that he should’ve gotten Atwell involved earlier because “all this guy has done is answer the bell when he’s had his chances.”
“I think last year he had the injury and I think just sometimes opportunities are presented and (he) probably should have had more opportunities this season,” McVay said. “Last year was more of a result of the injury and the depth that we ended up having at that position with guys that we already knew were ready to roll. This year probably should have gotten more opportunities earlier on in the season and that’s something that I won’t run away from because all this guy has done is answer the bell when he is had his chances.”
Atwell still isn’t a complete receiver, but he’s shown recently that he deserves opportunities on offense, whether it’s as a gadget player on jet sweeps or by running downfield routes to threaten the defense.
He did it all against the Seahawks, rushing for 23 yards on four carries and leading the team with 48 yards on two receptions.
.@tutuatwell with the one-handed snag! 👋
📺 @NFLonFOX 🔄 #ProBowlVote pic.twitter.com/MEvqnwJN5t
— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) December 4, 2022
With all the injuries the Rams have suffered at wide receiver, including Cooper Kupp and Allen Robinson, they’ve had almost no choice but to give Atwell more snaps. He still should’ve played earlier, though, especially when Kupp went down and the offense was looking for a spark.
He has a long way to go before he lives up to his billing as a second-round pick, but at least Atwell is making strides on offense.
