Winners & Losers From Rams Training Camp, Puka Nacua Injury Update, Trade Interest For Tutu Atwell

we've got an injury update on puka AA and horns up horns down Rams training camp Edition that's coming up next on locked on [Music] Rams you are locked on Rams your daily Los Angeles Rams podcast part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day what is up Ramy and welcome to another episode of Locked on Rams your daily podcast coming your Los Angeles Rams fre available rev get your podcast locked on Rams part of locked on podcast Network your team every day we're also available over on YouTube so if you haven't yet do us a huge favor and subscribe to lockon Rams YouTube channel hit that subscribe button hit that notification Bell hit that like button and let us know who are your big winners and losers from Rams training camp my name is Doug McCain you can follow me on X and Instagram at dmac La I've been covering LA Sports for over a decade ASI 247 Sports bleach your report the r for locked on as always I'm joined by the Rams preap and postgame show host for the Rams flagship radio station ESPN 710 La he's ENT his ninth season covering your Los Angeles Rams the people's champ Mr Travis Rogers you can follow him on X Travis Rogers and on today's show we've got an update on pukaa and winners and losers horns up horns down the first one of the season for Rams training camp but first this episode of Locked on Rams is brought to you by L LinkedIn jobs LinkedIn jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to faster post your jobs for free at linkedin.com lockon NFL that's linkedin.com lockon NFL to post your job for free terms and conditions apply all right Travis so we are amp Le days away from opening night 31 days before the Rams kick off their season against the Detroit Lions on Sunday Night Football on the road and one of the big questions is how many of these Rams players that have been banged up during training camp will be out there and we did get a very positive update on puka AA and puka is listed as week to week sha McVey said it's nothing serious he was banged up landed on his knee a little awkwardly so the good thing is in the game itself it was just ice on the knee he St his helmet on it was nothing serious but any concern at all about pukan AA because for me I think that Dodge the bullet I think he's going to be just fine I think a lot of FY SE owners Rams Fans are definitely a little worried about this but I don't think there's anything to come of this well I I'm more put it you this way I'm more worried about the Dodger three- game lead in the National League West than I am about pugan aa's uh knee right and and I'm very worried about the Dodgers in the NL West I'm still upset with wendle from the other night but I'm gonna put that aside we'll talk about puka for a second no I'm not worried I think this is the first time uh since he was hurt in that in that joint workout that I felt pretty good about it that you know usually you'll try to hedge a little bit if there's even a little bit of worry in the back of your mind but sea McVey I think was pretty definitive in what he had to say about his return about the expectations about any potential limitations which he said are zero so uh I I I do feel a lot better about puka I do feel like he's going to be at least from a health perspective ready to hit the ground running uh in week one against the Detroit Lions so yeah that that was very good news today and and news that they needed considering what we've seen going on with that offensive line absolutely I mean they cannot lose pukan noua he is right in that top tier right behind Matthew Stafford of players that are going to Define this season and you want him to really hit the ground running I think that's a big key for puka is get off to a really nice fast start you know there's going to be people out there waiting to say oh he was a one-year wonder that last year he just took advantage and he's not this Elite wide receiver I think that's one of the big storylines heading into this season I think Rams Fans don't 100% know the answer of is he Elite top five is he top 10 is he top 15 is he top 20 I think that we're going to go a long way to establishing that and learning the answer of that this season but the good news is this guy has done all the work in the off season his body type is different he's leaner he's meaner he basically was joined at the hip with Cooper cut the entire off seon threw up in his bushes he took every single bit of information and he processed that as well I think the big question is for puka is whether they gonna get out of Cooper because depending on what they get out of Cooper I think that's gonna largely dictate his production levels as well yeah no they're they're in a a symbiotic relationship they'll either both be better or they both won't be better I don't think that one pops while the other struggles I think they both either pop or they both have a a season that we're talking about like why can't they get uh untracked along the way I want to go back to to what you said at the beginning that I do think it's the question I do think that I was talking about this on my my radio show the other day that o of the Rams I think you have to put Matthew Stafford in a in in a separate category because the quarterback is always the answer to the question who can you afford to lose the least it it's the it's always if you're a good team it's always the quarterback and the Rams are a good team so well you put Stafford over here I think the question becomes who is the second most important person on your team as far as living up to expectations and I don't think that puka is a bad answer to that question I I really do think it might be him and like you said dmac I I think the question of what does the sophomore year look like is a fair one I think that's the same thing that probably people in Houston are asking about CJ stad and some other players across the league like can you continue to develop into the player that we saw at the beginning because the league does have a history of guys that showed up and balled out and then it's like hey whatever happened to that guy and they just never were able to recapture that that first season for of whether it's injury whether it's scheme whether it's coaching whe there's a million different things that could go wrong but I I really do think that that's a big question is can he do what he did a year ago I've said it a few times the every dayers have have certainly heard me say this he doesn't have to have another 14 yard or 1400 yard season to be as good as he was last year he could have an 11 or a 1200 yard season and be just as effective as he was it's not just about the numbers it's about the threat it's about what he does to the defense it's about what he gives Matthew Stafford and like you said it's about the relationship he has with Cooper cup if they can feed off of one another then it's all good it's not just a numbers thing it's an impact thing and I think it's a fair question to ask at this point of the season I agree I also think too that a 1200 yard season for him this year could look to be more impressive than the 1486 last year because he's more of a known commodity they know that he's someone that they have to Target as far as defenses and they have to game plan form I also think too that the key indicator for me that he's ready for this challenge is the way he changed his body is the work he put in this offseason I think that if you see him limit the drops and you see him stay healthy even though he plays with that physical style you are going to get another Pro bow level season potentially All Pro season from pukan nakua in year two now as far as the receivers on this team we broke down the depth chart the one two and three are essentially set in stone with Cooper with puka with Demarcus Robinson well we're going to start our first horns up horns down with a down and that down is 2 two Atwell and 2 two Atwell is someone that is the Rams wr4 he got an opportunity last season had a really nice start to his season and then he was supplanted by Demarcus Robinson by the end of the year and yes 2 two can't control the opportunities that he gets but the truth of the matter is that if he was earning those opportunities they' be giving him those opportunities and it came out yesterday that the Rams actually did receive trade calls at the deadline last year for 22 Atwell and did not decide to trade him Jordan Rodriguez wrote this is a crucial year for Atwell to make his presence more felt on the field in a consistent manner the Rams received trade calls on Atwell ahead of last year's deadline multiple League sources set at the time so looks like they want to keep him we'll see what happens yeah look I at the risk of beating a dead horse I I'm not a two two outwell guy necessarily I I don't think that uh if he was going to have an impact on the league that it would have happened by now I know that there's been some injury history but he'd been here for a minute and he's gotten enough opportunities to let you know I think what he's bringing to the table and I I I get it I I I hear it I I think it's probably true I'm in the bag for Shawn McVey I think he's terrific I think that they've got one of the best in the business if he's not seeing it the way he needs to see it I'm going to trust him if the if if the if the opportunities are not coming around because sha McVey doesn't think that the opportuni should come around I'm gonna go with that I think that the opportunity that Atwell has is in this uh the the new kickoff rule if he can somehow some way find a a a role to be a weapon to be a threat then great let let let's do that but I think the the days of of him being a a potential breakout player for them offensively as a wide receiver are probably in the rearview mirror I just there there's a play here and there but you can't make one or two plays a season I need you to make one or two plays a week and that's kind of the ratio that we've been getting yeah and that's really what it comes down to is we can have this conversation about oh was he a bust oh should they have taken Creed Humphrey oh should he be getting more opportunities the end of the day this is a performance-based business and for whatever reason he just hasn't given them the production that you need from a second round pick and that's just the truth of it with 22 Atwell so I mean you just look at last season I mean 12 games last 12 games of his season they caught 17 pass for 213 yards 213 yards in his final 12 games and for his career has 57 catches for 781 yards he was the 57 52nd overall pick in 2021 so it's to me it's not really a debate at this point that it was a pick that you went too high on a guy that hasn't given you enough production but having said that does have speed and quickness 11 personnel should get some opportunities to at least maximize some type of role for this team I don't think that they're going to go to the van Jefferson route and try to trade him barring a really explosive quality offer for him but like you said he's got to find his Niche on the kicking return team but still just hasn't worked out so far yeah and about this and and all this stuff obviously comes together football being the type of sport that it is if one part's not working none of the other parts are really going to work but what he does bring is that incredible speed that you're talking about but if the offensive line is banged up the way that it is and Matthew Stafford doesn't have the time for to wait for him to get down the field what uses it you're not going to throw it to him short you're not going to throw it to him underneath or in the middle of the field you got to get him down the field and if the line can't hold up long enough for him to get down there what are we talking about so I I I think that he's he's in a really tough spot uh you know as as far as the draft value for him they missed you know it's just it happens you're not you're not going to hit it every single time they missed on that one and you know thankfully they've hit on others like puka and and and and other players along the way but uh you know that one you missed it oh well totally I mean h on puka totally makes up for anything that you didn't get out of two well no doubt about that but coming up next more winners and loses from the training camp and this rookie for the Rams that really could have himself a hell of a season in year one that's coming up next on lock on Rams when you're hiring for your small business you want to find quality professionals that are right for the role not just a body but the right somebody right that's why you got to check out LinkedIn jobs because LinkedIn jobs has the tools to help find the right Pro Professionals for your team faster and for free we talk about it all the time we talk about sports right fit it's not just I need somebody to take this spot I need somebody that can thrive in this spot and that's where LinkedIn comes in because it's not just a job board LinkedIn helps you hire professionals that you can't find anywhere else even those who might not not might not necessarily uh be searching for a new job but might be open to that perfect spot that you have in your organization so in a given month over 70% of LinkedIn users they don't visit other job sit so if you're not looking on LinkedIn you're probably looking in the wrong place on LinkedIn 86% % of small businesses get a qualified candidate within 24 hours so hire professionals like a professional on Linkin so post your job for free at linkedin.com lockon NFL that's linkedin.com lockon NFL to post your job for free terms and conditions apply and we are off and running here on lockon Rams thank you for making lockon Rams your first listen every single week day freed to available reev get your podcast locked on Rams part of locked on podcast Network your team every day also Travis yesterday was at the Dodger game covering the game and I ran to Nando a fan of lock on RAM so shout out to Nando it's funny we got these Dodgers fans they're draped in Dodgers gear all they want to do is talk about the Rams So Good Times nice to meet you Mr Nando yesterday and uh yeah for all you guys out there we can't tell how much we appreciate the everyday listeners out there watching listening to every single episode the season is getting so close you want to lock in be sure to subscribe listen every episode and you won't miss a thing about your Los Angeles Sans all right so a big positive to talk about a big winner so far in training camp Travis is Braden Fisk and couple of months ago a lot of people were freaking out because it did turn out that this was one of the biggest o day two overpays that we've ever seen the history of the draft and everything proves that having said that this was the right move for a Rams team that's trying to completely rebuild their defense after the retirement of Aaron Donald and no one's comparing him to Aaron Donald no one saying he has to fill Aaron Donald's shoes because that's an impossible task but so far in otaa so far in training camp every single thing that Braden Fisk has done along the way he's impressed his coach he's impress his teammates he's going to be a day one starter he was already going to be a day one starter but he solidified his role in training camp I I don't want to contradict myself too much but I but you know I've said so often that when you evaluate a draft I think you got to give it a few seasons you know two at least if not three or more uh before you can decide whether or not a pick was worth it or not worth it or whether you should have taken someone else you overpaid for this that or the next thing and and I truly believe that this guy looks terrific and it's when Braden Fisk like you said it just feels you know there's some guys that when they come in from the draft it feels like okay you know if everything goes right he's going to be an NFL player at some point in his career like a high leverage NFL player at some point in this care there are not a lot of guys that just show up and look like they've been in the league already before they've played a single play I'll use this as an example last year when Steve H Aila was was here you're like has that guy been in the league seven years like there was nothing weird it just felt like he' grown up in the NFL he felt like a long-term NFL guy and then there's some other guys that had a little bit more of a steep learning curve whether it was Kobe Turner or Byron young just a little bit more of okay those guys need to polish their craft hone their technique get a little of experience Fisk feels more like the first group right just somebody that kind of knows how to do it and there'll be rough patches and there'll be some stuff where you know just his inexperience gets the better of him but I'm with you DM Horn's way up on Braden Fisk because he just has he just has that thing that pops out at you when you watch him he just looks even by NFL standards he looks different than a lot of other guys he plays different than some other guys I'm I'm incredibly excited to watch him and we know we both speak fluent sha McVey and literally throughout all training camp the very first player the very first player's name that came out of sham MC Bay's mouth was Braden Fisk and that says a lot and the impact that he's had and Jordan rodri she said that he had the very best training camp of anyone on the field for the defense and that's no slight at Jared verse because Jared verse also had a strong training camp but the fact that you trade up for this guy and he's had success early on makes you feel really good about that and I know there are people freaking out about the time like oh my goodness this is the worst trade up since the Vikings and Hershel Walker and The Big fleece job there and this and that but look it turns out that if he's your guy and you had the rare opportunity to complement your first pick and Jared verse with someone that you can tandem him with a guy he had success with in college for a really good team well that's the best way to really accelerate the development of a defense so yeah I could have be more excited I think Braden Fisk is could be that dude no doubt about it now another horns down we really haven't talked about this guy in a long time but it's Zack Evans and Zack Evans speaking of trade-ups was a player that the Rams trade up for in the 2023 draft he had the potential former five star out of Old Miss and he's been buried in the de chart you go out there and you draft a Blake km you bring back Ronnie Rivers you bring on Boston Scott He Could Be the odd man out I think it's almost certain that he will be you know and this is what happens you said it earlier in the Pod and and and it's something that is you know this is the truth once you get past kind of high school or maybe some college stuff along the way it's either play well or don't play right the the NFL the rosters are small man that you you only get so many guys 53 roster spots you only dress 40 some guys for on a Sunday and if you put that uniform on you have to be able to step in and make an impact in those games it's there there's no just well we'll keep you around in case something happens it really doesn't work like that and like you said the way they did their draft the way that they worked in the offseason acquiring some other players uh the the way that happened last year I think this is Meaningful too dmac that you know all of a sudden the Rams had a real problem at running back kyen Willam was hurt cam Acres was in the dogghouse and you just there was there just weren't enough bodies to go around and they still didn't use him so I I think that tells you uh kind of where he is you know maybe he'll land somewhere else and get an opportunity and and maybe that'll will work out a little better for him but uh yeah I I I think that the writing is on the wall as far as his future here in La it's amazing to me yeah exactly you pointed out Travis the month that kyen Williams was out he had just a single carry one carry in that stretch for zero yards think about that you need something you just need a let's go to it right the Dodger Bullpen right they just need somebody to come out and get somebody out you don't even have to be great you just have to be out there and they didn't use him right like right now he would be the guy in the bullpen when everybody's giving up home runs and he's just sitting there watching it happen and they're not letting him come near it that's what it was last year for him uh it just it didn't work you know again this is just life in the NFL it might work somewhere else it might work on a different team with a different coach different you know players and different opportunities but it just it didn't work here and okay next man up yeah I trade up in the six rounds not going to kill you but 19 yards on nine attempts at 211 average he's not going to make this roster that's clear at this point but coming up next we got a couple more winners and losers and a seconde edge rusher I think is going to take a big leap in 2024 that's coming up next I'll locked on Rams all right uh going to a baseball game in the summer is always great with the exception of when the Umpire ruins it for everyone nothing happened to Dodger Stadium last night clearly but that uh that's a whole another story good night out at the Ballpark is always good and what's the first thing you need when you go to the ballpark you need a ticket to get into the ballpark and this is where game time uh comes in because game time is an authorized ticket Marketplace of Major League Baseball which makes getting tickets faster and easier and especially now kind of in the dog days of summer when maybe the playoffs are a little bit down the road you can wait a little bit to get those tickets right and on the game time app the prices actually go down the closer you get to first pitch so if you love baseball the way that I do if you love a nice summer night out at the Ballpark why not put the game time app on your phone and go check out a game and here's my favorite part about the game time app you get all the stuff that you would think you get views from your tickets killer deals all of that I love the Allin pricing how many times have you bought a ticket somewhere and you're like okay cool cool cool cool and then you get to the check out you're like wait that's not even close to the price that we were talking about not with the game time app all in pricing toggle that feature up front before you get to check out you know exactly what you're going to pay so take the guesswork out of buying your baseball tickets with Game Time download the game time app create an account use the code locked on NFL for $20 off your first purchase terms Supply again create that account redeem the code locked on NFL l c k d o n NFL for $20 off download game time today last minute tickets lowest prices guaranteed and welcome back to lock on Rams thank you for making lockon Rams your first listen every single weekday free and available revgear podcast locked on Rams part of locked on podcast Network your team every day I will say Travis Jerome Boger is basically the hunter wendle stat of the NFL as far as worst referees my favorite thing about Boger is when he reveals a penalty it's like he takes that personally like he's so mad about it like I mean there's literally montages of his awful calls man I I feel like Jer there are like 11 Jerome bogers I feel like he he referees every game in the NFL and like you can watch a 10 a.m game like oh Jerome boger's on this one and then you turn around you watch the Rams you have like how did Jerome Boger get from since Cincinnati to LA in 10 minutes to referee both of these games I don't get me started dmac I'm still a little hot from uh what I saw at Dodger Stadium last night but uh what are you gonna do no he's awful hun wers that's awful I mean come on now this guy's just bring back Angel Hernandez does Angel Hernandez want to work an NFL game I mean hey look I will say what I said about Angel Hernandez when announced his retirement that was the one good call that he made in his career okay so I think hund wet needs to join Angel Hernandez but next horns up we've been high on this guy pretty much his entire run I think a lot of it has to do with his story and he plays from goes Joo goes to Tennessee a manager at the Dollar Tree worked at Burger King but Byron young continues to develop in a year two Shawn McVey has said a lot of great things about him during training camp he's going to be one of the Rams to starting Edge rushers you're going to see him paired with Jared verse he's going to build on that eight sack rookie season also so this is a dude we already talked about it like it's not a tattoo he's like branded horseshoe popping out 3D stuff that dude already yolked intimidating branded situation gained 10 pounds of muscle so really excited to see what we see from byon Young in year two yeah so uh my pal DeMarco far Super Bowl champion DeMarco far can't can't not throw that in there uh he has he has the whole first off the bus list right like the guy that when you're you're playing this team and who's the fre and for years and years and years it was Aaron right first oh God he's here look look at that guy Byron young is going to be one of the first guys off the bus right he's he's got that unbelievably intimidating physique he's he's just he's just an unbelievable athlete uh I think maybe he and and Steve Aila might be battling to see who can get off the bus fast those are incred jerse is is another one Fisk is another one but yeah I I'm a fan of Byron Young's I think he was much and this is this is one of my favorite things this is one of the things I love about sports but about individuals Inside Sports in particular were you better at the end of the year than you were at the beginning did did did did you look like a different player at the beginning of the year than you did at the beginning and I think Byron young unequivocally checked that box that week one was what it was week four it's like hey that's better than week one week 10 was better than week four and week 17 was better than week 10 and I think that's the best thing that you can ask from a young player and Byron young did that I'm very excited to watch him continue to develop I think he's terrific exactly that was really the theme last season I mean puka he exploded early but Kobe Turner Byron young it was a little bit more of a gradual ramp up throughout the season and I think when you look at Byron young during training camp and a lot of the videos he still has the speed in the Raw athleticism but you just added 10 pounds of muscle that's why I'm so excited to see what he does in year two and we know the Rams they need all the help they can get on defense and all the stars they can find on I think Byron young is going to be that guy really excited about him now next down really kind of one of the anomalies kind of one of the players that we think that really should find a way to step up because of how good he was in college literally the the best quarterback at the college level Darion kendri goes down with the injury you had playing time up for grabs and Trey Tomlinson just has not seized that opportunity so far and you still have a preseason left to go he's going to get some opportunities but so far Trey Tomlinson really just hasn't taken advantage of Darion Kendrick's absence yeah and it's a position where the Rams for the last couple of years have been searching where they're looking for for players to kind of Step Up and fill some of those uh those holes they seiz those opportunities and so far that hasn't happened I I I think you're right I think both uh you and I were were really interested in him and intrigued by his ability coming into this season and or excuse me last season um and it really never happened again this is a little bit like the Atwell situation in the Moss situation or Evans excuse me um and you just if the opportunities aren't coming you got to trust that Sean McVey knows what he's doing you got to trust that Raheem Morris knew what he was doing you got to trust that maybe Chris schula knows what he's doing because you know these guys all want to put the best players in the best possible position to have success and if they just feel that that's not where that is then you got to kind of defer to their expertise they they see it more they're they're more involved in this than any fan or or or reporter could possibly be and if those opport ities aren't coming along they're just not coming along for a reason exactly the difference between Tomlinson and Zack Evans is that with Darion Kendrick's injury Trey Thomson is going to have a spot on this roster where Zack Evans isn't it's just a matter of saying hey hey you're on the roster might as well continue to impress coaches trying to find a way on the field any way you can I think the talent is there it just really makes you wonder how he's being utilized I mean I think he's kind of in between positions as well I mean because he's played mainly out side at the college level but he's undersized at the NFL level so I think it's a little tricky with Trey Tomlinson but he's another guy that can increase his stock with his play I think there's certain players that are kind of in-game players there's practice players he's kind of one of those guys that really struck me as an in-game player last year for the Rams but uh that's going to do it for this episode of winners and losers we got a whole batch tomorrow we're going to look at the Sunday's preseason game we're going to look at the depth chart once again so be sure to lock in here on lockon Rams my name is Doug McCain you can follow me on exit Instagram at dmac corla and you can follow the people's champ Mr Travis Rogers Travis Rogers until next time whose house it's locked on Rams house