Turf Show Times
The argument for paying Tutu Atwell a guaranteed $10 million salary has taken its hardest hit yet and it’s not because of what the Rams are doing with him, but what they’re doing without him. Since Atwell tweaked his hamstring in Week 7 practice, the Rams have improved from ranking 16th in scoring at 23.3 points per game to 2nd in scoring at 37 points per game.
You read that right: The L.A. Rams have scored 111 points in three games without the guy who “stretches the defense” for an eight figure salary. They have scored 35, 34, and 42 points since Week 7 with the only team scoring more than L.A. being the Cincinnati Bengals (113 points) and that’s because the Bengals had no other choice after giving up 117 points in that span. (The Rams have given up 43 points in that time.)
It turns out that Sean McVay actually was supposed to be using his tight ends and not the player who Les Snead will end up paying about $2.5 million per catch this season.
As was also the case when I wrote about Atwell two weeks ago as possibly “the worst one-year contract in team history”, this is not to just rag on a good person who got overpaid. The contract was not his fault. Any of us would have taken a $10 million offer knowing that no other GM or owner was even going to come close to that number after the four seasons that Atwell had to start his career.
It looked like an absurd deal in March, it looked like an absurd deal in September, and it still looks like an absurd deal with Atwell on IR.
Atwell was only targeted nine times in six appearances and only caught four passes with more than 50% of his 164 yards coming on a single play, which was against a 10-man Colts defense, but nine men if we count the cornerback-covering-Tutu falling down.
Was Tutu Atwell “stretching” the defense? Were the Rams smart to turn down opportunities to trade for a speedy receiver who could replace him, such as Rashid Shaheed?
Well, maybe in a month or two we will see it differently, but without any notable speed on offense the L.A. Rams have become the most unstoppable force in the league over their past three games:
Without Tutu Atwell, Stafford has made NFL history by throwing 4+ TD and 0 INT in three straight games.
Without Atwell, Davante Adams has caught six touchdowns in three games.
I mean geez louise Rams, yes some of us were trying to make a point that the offense could be functional, if not better, without Tutu Atwell…but did you have to rub it in his face?
According to Next Gen Stats, the Rams had an **EPA...
