It’s still early, but the Los Angeles Rams don’t yet know who their No. 3 receiver will be. It’s not because they don’t have one on the roster, but rather because they have so many options that they haven’t yet settled on someone.
That’s a good thing in Sean McVay’s mind.
When discussing the Rams’ wideouts after practice on Wednesday, McVay couldn’t help but rattle off five different players who he feels optimistic about behind Cooper Kupp and Van Jefferson – beginning with Tutu Atwell.
“I think it’s really early, like you mentioned, but Tutu Atwell is a guy that’s really done an excellent job,” McVay said. “He’s super smart. Obviously he’s well known for his speed, but he’s really done a great job in this offseason and it showed up today of really establishing himself, playing with aggressive hands, understanding the nuances of how we want to work edges and separate where he fits within the concepts.”
The other players mentioned by McVay were rookie Puka Nacua, Ben Skowronek, Demarcus Robinson and Tyler Johnson. Nacua stood out in a positive way during OTAs and minicamp, making a strong first impression that has seemed to carry over to training camp. Skowronek has two years of experience in the Rams’ system, while Robinson and Johnson have both been starters in the NFL.
“And then Puka Nacua is another guy, Ben Skowronek’s played football for us, you saw DeMarcus Robinson and Tyler Johnson make plays,” he continued. “So the beauty of this team in general, for the people that you guys have covered us for the last handful of years, there truly is competition and that’s something for us to really evaluate and be good about finding who are the best 11 guys on offense, defense, special teams, and what are the different rotations that we can come up with as we navigate training camp? But I was encouraged, I was ready to just answer a couple guys and then I start thinking about practice and a lot of guys really made plays and are worthy of being mentioned and so that’s certainly a good problem for us to have right now.”
Eventually, the Rams will settle on a No. 3 receiver – probably. Or they might just keep rotating players at that spot depending on the situation in the game or McVay’s play call. Atwell seems to be trending in the right direction, and if he’s becoming a more well-rounded receiver rather than just a speed guy, he could be in for a bigger role.
The third receiver spot is one of the most fascinating position battles to watch this summer as the Rams try to figure out their best 11 players on offense.
