McCutcheon makes his mark with the Rams

(News4usonline) — Lance McCutcheon had the odds stacked against him when he made it to training camp for the Los Angeles Rams. McCutcheon stepped into training camp as an undrafted free agent rookie out of Montana State University.

On top of that, he had to try to earn a spot on a team that just won the Super Bowl (Super Bowl LVI). Throw in the fact that the Rams were loaded at the wide receiver position, didn’t help his chances of trying to make the team.

Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Lance McCutcheon (82) is an undrafted rookie out of Montana State University. Photo by Mark Hammond/News4usonline

McCutcheon was not deterred by any of those factors. He just went out and played football and made the most of the opportunities he was given on the football field. Through the team’s three preseason games, McCutcheon did more than line up and run up and down the field. He put his stamp on every single game. McCutcheon made such an impression on the Rams coaches that the team made him a part of the 53-man roster.

In the three games he played, McCutcheon tallied 15 catches for 259 yards. His play, though, exceeded the numbers he produced. Whenever the Rams needed a big play, McCutcheon gave it to them. Rams general manager Les Snead said McCutcheon was leaving a good impression on the team long before training camp arrived.

“Well, it’s all y’all have been tweeting about since his first catch of the preseason,” Snead said during a Zoom call with reporters. “I can tell you this with (WR) Lance (McCutcheon)…During OTAs we probably did some moderated version of walkthroughs with our contributors, probably the guys that didn’t dress in the preseason, and we did some competitive drills with our younger, less experienced group and Lance started making plays during those periods, the only live periods that we were doing in OTAs. His march to make our team probably began there and continued into the preseason games. We felt like with all that he had shown he was definitely worthy of making our 53.”

Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Lance McCutcheon (82) caught 15 passes for 259 yards in three preseason games, including this 60-yard touchdown against the Los Angeles Chargers on Aug. 13, 2022. Photo by Mark Hammond/News4usonline

Because of his outstanding play during the preseason, McCutcheon was able to bump fellow wide receiver Jacob Harris from the active roster. Snead, though, left open the possibility that the team would try to bring Harris back in some capacity.

“I think probably at the end of the day, Lance McCutcheon had a big part in maybe knocking Jacob off the roster and in terms of just having a better preseason at wide receiver,” Snead said. “We will definitely try to get Jacob back and he’s definitely someone who, speaking of special teams, (Special Teams Coordinator) Joe DeCamillis would activate on game day and play for. So I think that’s the reason for that.”