Finding Broncos: Scouting Louisville WR Tutu Atwell

Welcome to Finding Broncos, our annual prospect-by-prospect series deep-diving on the coming NFL draft class. The scouting continues with Louisville wide receiver Chatarius "Tutu" Atwell, a talented prospect but does he fit the Denver Broncos?

Measurables

Height: 5-foot-9
Weight: 165 pounds

Stats

Pros

Plenty of speed and explosion in his game to work at the NFL level.
Quick and has extra gears that he can get instant separation even with his poor route running.
Versatility he brings is with how he can be a gadget weapon on offense and have an impact on the return game.
Does well when tracking the ball downfield.
Small size doesn’t hold him back and he doesn’t act small on the field in any aspect of the game.
With his speed and wiggle, he is a threat to take it to the house anytime he gets his hands on the football.
Dangerous on a free release but has some moves to help him handle press as well.

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Cons

New to being a wide receiver and still learning the nuances of the position as well as having a limited route tree.
Small frame sees him get bullied despite his attitude to not let it hold him back.
Hands aren’t the cleanest and he has such a tiny catch radius.
If not clear of a defender to make a clean catch, he shouldn’t be targeted because he is so poor in contested catch situations.
Strong presses that land quickly stalls him at the line of scrimmage.
Limited to a slot-only gadget type of role in an offense.
Needs to be more decisive when he is running after the catch.

Overview

Atwell is a fast and explosive playmaker on offense that needs to have room to really be effective. His small size is going to limit him no matter how hard he tries to not let it.

Physical nickel corners are going to be bothersome and if you can contest the catch point, Atwell is going to struggle even more. There is a role for him as an offensive gadget weapon and returner, but he has to improve his route and ball security/hands to really make a long impact in the NFL.

There is major boom potential because of how explosive he is, but the bust potential is high as well.

Fit with Broncos

Atwell is extremely explosive, small, has some route-running issues, and has issues with his hands. You can change out Atwell’s name for K.J. Hamler, and it would still be true. They are very similar styles of players, but Hamler is just a bit more developed as a receiver than Atwell is.

If Denver wanted to get another explosive gadget type of weapon on their offense then Atwell would be a solid option who also gives them a returner option. It wouldn’t be the cleanest of fits, and receivers coach Zach Azzani would have his work cut out for him, but they could make it work.

Ideally, though, they are finding a slightly bigger receiver that has cleaner hands than Atwell after dealing with the drops they saw from Jerry Jeudy and Hamler a year ago.

Grade: Round 5

Where he goes: Round 3

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