Tutu Atwell trade may be insurance for scenario Rams hoped to avoid

Raise your hand if you thought receiver Tutu Atwell would be back on the Los Angeles Rams' roster this season. Because now he is, with the Rams flipping running back Jarquez Hunter to the Dolphins in exchange for Atwell on Thursday afternoon. The former second-round pick had signed a one-year contract with Miami this offseason. 

Now why would the Rams do that? Other than providing a way to offload Hunter, it gives them a potential seventh receiver on the 53-man roster. One obvious explanation is that they have doubts about whether star wideout Puka Nacua will be available in Week 1. 

Look, we knew it was a possibility. Nacua left a joint practice against the Cowboys on August 11 and hasn't been healthy since, although it seemed like holding him out of activities could only be precautionary. Maybe he won't be ready to go in time.

Or maybe he's suspended. After Nacua spent the offseason making suboptimal headlines, NFL insider Adam Schefter believes the league is considering a suspension. In that case, Atwell would at least restore the receiver room to its full six-man body count.

While nothing has been announced, perhaps the Rams know something about Nacua's status that the rest of us don't.

Tutu Atwell may be insurance if Puka Nacua is injured/suspended

Adding Atwell as a Nacua insurance policy is not the preferred explanation for Rams fans. And to be clear, there are other possibilities. Perhaps Atwell was simply the best value the team could find for Hunter. Maybe the Rams really valued his experience in the organization. 

Maybe someone else on the depth chart is dealing with a nagging issue we don't know about. It could have come up recently, in the interval since head coach Sean McVay had his last media session Tuesday.

Or maybe the Rams have reversed course on receiver/punt returner Xavier Smith, deciding to replace him with the more experienced Atwell, who plays a very similar role and is similarly undersized. It doesn't make a ton of sense to roster them both. 

But the easiest, and indeed, what feels like the most plausible explanation is that the Rams have questions about Nacua's Week 1 availability, perhaps beyond. A multi-game suspension isn't impossible. Neither is a delayed recovery or setback in his return from the groin issue. 

Of course, even if there are questions, that doesn't guarantee Nacua will miss time. Hunter wasn't going to make the team; the trade all but confirms it.

Rather than leave themselves vulnerable to Nacua's uncertain status in a critical game, perhaps the Rams added Atwell as a no-risk insurance flyer, with the worst-case outcome that he ends up being waived like Hunter likely would have been, anyway. 

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