Rams players and coaches like the idea of competing in flag football at L.A. Olympics
Tutu Atwell played quarterback. He played receiver, and he also played on defense.
Years before diminutive and speedy Atwell matured into an NFL prospect, the Rams receiver played flag football.
Could anybody stop him?
“Nah, nah,” Atwell said, chuckling.
So Atwell, a 2021 second-round draft pick who will earn $10 million this season, said he would be cool and fun if he got the opportunity in a few years to try out for the 2028 U.S. Olympic flag football team.
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Atwell echoed the feelings of Minnesota Vikings star receiver Justin Jefferson and other players in the league since NFL owners last week approved a resolution that would allow them to try out for flag football. The resolution limits only one player per NFL team to play for each national team in the Los Angeles Games.
NFL players would compete for spots with others already playing flag football.
“It’s great,” Rams coach Sean McVay said. “If that's something that players say they want to be able to do, then I think it's a really cool experience for them to be able to be a part of while also acknowledging that, man, there are some other guys that have been doing it.
“I'm not going to pretend to understand the nuances tactically and what that game entails, but I think it's good. I think it's great.”
Current flag football players might feel otherwise about an influx of NFL talent.
“This is a sport that we’ve played for a long time, and we feel like we are the best at it and we don’t need other guys,” Darrell Doucette III, the quarterback for U.S. men’s teams that have won five consecutive world championships, recently told the Washington Post. “But we all have one goal in mind, and that’s to represent our country.
Read more:This flag football quarterback says he's 'better than Patrick Mahomes,' best fit for L.A. Olympics
“We’re definitely open to all competition. If those guys come in and ball out and they’re better than us, hats off to them. Go win that gold medal for our country.”
Details regarding NFL players’ participation in the Olympics still must be worked out by the NFL, the NFL Players Assn., the International Federation of American Football (IFAF) and national governing bodies.
Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford, one of the top passers in NFL history, grinned broadly when asked about playing flag football in the Olympics. Stafford would be 40.
“Sure,” he said, laughing. “I mean, nobody's going to want me to, but yeah, sure. It'd be fun. I'll coach.”
Etc.
The Rams signed offensive lineman David Quessenberry to a one-year contract, the team announced Thursday. Quessenberry appeared in 84 games with the Houston Texas (2017), Tennessee Titans (2018-21), Buffalo Bills (2022) and Minnesota Vikings (2023-24). The Encinitas, Calif., native was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma after being drafted in 2014 but underwent his last cancer treatment in 2017. He was the 2017 recipient of the George Halas Award, given by the Pro Football Writers of America to an NFL player, coach or staff member who succeeds in the face of adversity.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.