One of the first things Joe DeCamillis told reporters when he was introduced as the Rams’ new special teams coordinator this offseason was that the team wants to find a return specialist who can “drop the ball over the goal line.” The Rams haven’t returned a punt or kickoff for a touchdown since Pharoh Cooper took back a kick 103 yards in 2017, so that phase of special teams has lagged behind.
Nsimba Webster has been inconsistent in the last couple of years, which could lead to a change on punt returns. Tutu Atwell said at OTAs that he’s “going to play punt return” as a rookie, but Sean McVay isn’t committing to him as the team’s primary returner.
McVay sees a lot of candidates for the job and a long time to decide on the best option, so Atwell will certainly have some competition.
“He’s done a good job so far. You can see a lot of the things we liked looking at his film throughout the course of his career at Louisville,” McVay said last week. “He’s come out here and done a good job trying to pick things up. There’s a lot of information that we’re throwing at him in a short amount of time, but could definitely feel that speed. We’ve got a lot of guys that are potential candidates to be punt returners for us and we’ve got a long time to figure that out, but been pleased with Tutu so far, for sure.”
In addition to Atwell and Webster, the Rams also have a few other candidates. DeSean Jackson has a good track record as a punt returner, though the team might rather not put him at further risk of injury.
Landen Akers and Jeremiah Haydel were both return specialists in college and signed with the Rams as undrafted free agents this year. Jake Funk and Raymond Calais fit better as kickoff returners, but they could also compete for the punt return job.
The position likely won’t be decided until training camp and the preseason, so as McVay said, they have a long time to sort it out. But Atwell has the speed and elusiveness to potentially succeed in that role.