PALM BEACH, Fla. – The decision to re-sign wide receiver Tutu Atwell may have surprised some Rams fans, given his numbers through his first four seasons.
Some of those fans have also argued Atwell has been underutilized. McVay would agree with them, and indicated that will change this season.
"I think the fans are accurate in that I haven't done a good enough job of utilizing him," McVay said.
Despite that varied usage, Atwell set new career-highs in games played (17), receptions (42), receiving yards (562) and catch rate (67.7%) last season. The bulk of that came when Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua were injured early in the season: In Weeks 3-7, he posted four catches for 93 yards against the 49ers, then four catches for 82 yards against the Bears, then six catches for 58 yards against the Packers, followed by six catches for 51 yards against the Raiders. He was a starter in each of those four games.
Overall, Atwell has 99 receptions for 1,343 yards and four touchdowns through 54 career games (23 starts), with a career average of 13.6 yards per catch.
"I think when you look at his body of work, when he's been able to play, especially in some of the times that he was playing (like) when Cooper was on IR, there was a lot of production," McVay said. "And if you project that over the course of 17 games, you just watch what he was able to do. He's matured as a young man. I love the person, getting to know him, and I think that he's only getting better. He's 24 years old. I thought he really improved his route detail for a smaller guy. He's got a good catch radius, he catches the ball outside of his frame really well. He's an explosive player that people know about. He creates separation."
After signing his one-year contract with Los Angeles, Atwell said his exact role is to be determined, but he has faith in the coaching staff putting him in the best possible position to succeed. McVay wants to make sure that happens so that the Rams get the desired return on investment.
"When you look at the times when he's been able to play, whether that be because some people were out or not, he has produced and he's delivered, and we're looking forward to seeing more of that ascension," McVay said. "He's going to be on the field a lot more, particularly in a lot of those three-receiver sets where, when he's been on the field, he's done a really good job. And like I said, if you project that over the course of 17 games, and hopefully you're in the right to play afterwards, I think that's going to be something that's well worth the investment we made in him."
