Being traded from Buffalo to Los Angeles had a profound effect on receiver Sammy Watkins, who is now helping the Rams become a contender. The former first-round pick of the Bills back in 2014 spoke in depth with Tyler Dunne of Bleacher Report and opened up about how he’s changed over the course of the past couple of years.
As Dunne detailed, Watkins wasn’t happy about his role in Buffalo back in 2015.
“When I have one-on-one coverage, go to me,” he told Dunne two years ago. “I don’t care what’s going on over there. I don’t care if he’s open. When I get one-on-one, just target me. I need the ball at least 10 times — I need 10 targets.”
At the time, he even got his agent involved in his demand to see the ball head his way more often. That apparently didn’t sit well with his teammates in Buffalo. LeSean McCoy trolled him during a team meeting by handing him a manila envelope with 10 red targets inside, a player told Dunne, adding, “Sammy couldn’t have taken it any worse. He was so butt hurt.”
It’s easy to see in hindsight why Buffalo was eager to trade Watkins this year.
Things are much different now for Watkins, who has a whole new outlook. He admits he was obsessed with statistics back then but is more focused on the fun that comes with winning now.
“I was more of a statistics guy then,” he says. “That’s what I was chasing. That’s what I thought the league was about. I had to learn because when you’re losing, things tend to creep into your mind: I should be getting the ball more. If I do get the ball more, we’d be winning. But half the times I did have two touchdowns and 170 yards, we’re losing.
“I found out that, hey, the fun is in the winning.”
Los Angeles is currently 9-4 on the season, one game ahead of the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC West. The Rams are also currently the No. 3 seed in the NFC and would host a Wild Card Game if the season ended today.
Watkins is most definitely a role player this year with the Rams. He’s caught just 34 passes in 13 games. But he’s fulfilling his role beautifully, having tallied 549 yards and seven touchdowns, which is the second-highest total of his career. He’s still as dangerous in the open field as ever before but is just one cog in a well-oiled machine that is the Rams offense.
And that’s a good thing.