‘His time is going to come. I don’t know when, but it will
come.’
Even after signing a $10 million contract with the Los Angeles Rams this year, Tutu Atwell hasn’t gotten much of a chance to contribute. He’s playing around 40% of the offensive snaps, but he’s been targeted just three times and has one catch for 4 yards with one interception thrown by Matthew Stafford.
Atwell was expected to have a significantly bigger role in 2025 not only because of his contract, but because the door at WR3 was wide open. His numbers are quite disappointing through three games but both Sean McVay and offensive coordinator Mike LaFleur believe his time will come.
LaFleur said Thursday that Atwell has still “been extremely valuable” despite only having one catch because of the attention his speed commands from defenses.
“Tutu’s doing everything that’s being asked within the framework of each and every single play,” LaFleur said. “For the first three weeks, I couldn’t ask for more in the way he approaches it and what he does. Now, I know the stat sheet doesn’t show it, but I do think he’s been extremely valuable in other ways right now and in the pass game because of the threat that he poses. It’s a 17-game season, hopefully more for us. There’s a long way to go. We are at the start of this marathon right now and you guys have all seen Tutu perform at a high level. His time is going to come. I don’t know when, but it will come. I believe in that guy and more importantly, his teammates do.”
Atwell has been splitting time with Jordan Whittington as the third receiver behind Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, though neither player has seen many targets thrown their way. Of Stafford’s 95 pass attempts this season, Nacua has 35 targets and Adams has 29, accounting for 67% of the Rams’ targets together.
Whittington has two more targets than Atwell, coming into Week 4 with just five passes thrown his way, but he’s turned them into four catches for 49 yards and is a much better blocker than Atwell.
The Rams will eventually find ways to get Atwell involved, but like LaFleur said, it’s unclear when that will happen.