Marcell

Ateman

Williams will work out with the Bills on Thursday, as they become the second team to host the veteran receiver in the last week. Williams’ career has been marred with injuries. He suffered a torn ACL in his 2019 rookie season and was sidelined for eight games by a foot injury in 2020. The last two seasons have been all but lost for Williams, who appeared in just nine games over that span, catching six passes for 71 yards. In addition to Williams, the Bills are also working out veteran receiver Marcell Ateman, who last caught an NFL pass in 2019.

Ateman had a big preseason but was buried behind Amari Cooper, Jordy Nelson, Martavis Bryant, and Seth Roberts. The Raiders will try to sneak Ateman on their practice squad.

Ateman caught 15-of-30 targets for 154 yards and one touchdown after the Amari Cooper trade and Martavis Bryant suspension last season. He caught 8-of-11 targets for 101 yards in the 2019 preseason. Still, Ateman’s plus size (6'5/216) ultimately wasn’t enough to make up for a lack of separation ability stemming from his below-average speed (4.62 forty) and athleticism (38th-percentile SPARQ-x athlete).

Meet Marcell Ateman, the Raiders’ new No. 1 receiver. The seventh-round rookie saw an exhausting 10 targets in Sunday’s defeat, though obviously he wasn’t able to take advantage of his monster usage. Ateman played three fewer snaps than teammate Jordy Nelson, but out-targeted him by a commanding 10-1 margin. His fantasy appeal is still limited by Oakland’s stagnant offense, but at least he’s getting volume. We’ll see what kind of workload Ateman sees when the Raiders return home to face the Chiefs in Week 13.

A seventh-round, 24-year-old rookie out of Oklahoma State, Ateman was promoted from the practice squad ahead of this week’s game. With Martavis Bryant (knee) and Jordy Nelson (knee) both on the shelf, Ateman was pressed into heavy duty after Brandon LaFell went down midway through the third quarter with an Achilles’ injury. Even if all three players miss Week 12 against the Ravens, Ateman will not be on the fantasy radar.

It was the first score of the seventh-round rookie’s career. Ateman nearly had a 32-yarder early in the third quarter but could not hook up with Derek Carr. Although he is playing heavy snaps, Ateman is not producing enough to gain WR5 consideration in re-draft leagues.

Ateman did nothing most of this game, but he came up with a big catch when it mattered. With the Raiders down by four in the fourth quarter, Ateman caught a beautiful pass from Derek Carr for a 28-yard gain which helped spark a touchdown drive to give the Raiders the lead late in the game. He also converted a third down on that drive. After the Steelers took back the lead, Ateman made a diving catch for a first down just before the two-minute warning to help what ended up being the game-winning drive. Ateman clearly is not going away, but he has yet to top 50 yards this season. He will not be a strong fantasy option even in a great matchup against the Bengals next week.

Ateman didn’t play a single snap Weeks 1-10 last season but took over as a full-time starter in Week 11 after the Amari Cooper trade and Martavis Bryant suspension. He managed to catch 15-of-30 targets for 154 yards and one touchdown the final month-and-a-half. The 24-year-old was a seventh-round pick out of Oklahoma State last year and has good size at 6'4/216. He filled the stat sheet as a college senior but had pedestrian athletic testing numbers at the Combine. Wideout is a top need -- among other positions -- for the Raiders.

Ateman (6’5/216) rebounded from a 2016 foot fracture to explode for a 59/1,156/19.6/8 receiving line as a redshirt senior, leading the nation in yards per route run (3.52) and earning second-team All-Big 12 opposite James Washington. Although Ateman is plus sized with advanced ball skills, he showed limited twitch and speed against Big 12 corners and is old for a rookie, turning 24 in September. Ateman managed a 4.62 forty and pedestrian vertical (34") and broad (10’1") jumps at the Combine. Ateman’s likely ceiling is a No. 3 possession-type wideout.

All of Tyrell Williams, Josh Jacobs and Trent Brown will take the field in Week 8. With Zay Jones additionally active for the first time all year, the Raiders are well prepped to exploit Houston’s mix-and-match secondary sans Johnathan Joseph (shoulder, hamstring), Bradley Roby (hamstring) and S Tashaun Gipson.