He WAS a 2nd round pick after a fabulous college career.
He does have blazing speed, can now run routes in this O, has good hands, and tracks deep balls exceptionally well. All observed in camp just weeks ago.
But Rams are facing D’s that are designed to take away deep throws which was Atwell’s reason to be drafted in the 1st place.
And Rams are scrambling to enhance an anemic run game (Skow FB experiment).This requires good blocking, among other things. And Atwell is not a good blocker.
Moreover, Rams are blessed with a very deep WR corps and have hinted that they intend to sign OBJ at some point. All this makes cracking the lineup a very daunting task for Atwell (or anyone else).
For whatever reason, Powell has actually been given snaps in real games ahead of Atwell. This really surprised me but it is what it is.
Put all of the above facts in the blender and what should we conclude? I think we’re forced to conclude that McVay prefers his other options over Atwell at this time, even with VJ out.
Sorry…