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Tennessee football: Vols LB Daniel Bituli signs with Rams

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - NOVEMBER 30: Daniel Bituli #35 of the Tennessee Volunteers prepares for a play against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the second quarter of the game at Neyland Stadium on November 30, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - NOVEMBER 30: Daniel Bituli #35 of the Tennessee Volunteers prepares for a play against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the second quarter of the game at Neyland Stadium on November 30, 2019 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Silas Walker/Getty Images) /
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Despite waiting four days, Tennessee football’s Daniel Bituli will get his shot. The Volunteers linebacker signed with the Los Angeles Rams.

He was initially projected as potentially being a third Tennessee football pick in the NFL Draft. Then, after the draft was over and Daniel Bituli was not taken like Darrell Taylor and Jauan Jennings, he didn’t even get a deal as an undrafted free agent the way Marquez Callaway, Dominick Wood-Anderson and Nigel Warrior did.

Sunday came and went, and he still didn’t have his name called, and then Wes Rucker of GoVols247 reported the issue late that night. Bituli was waiting to be cleared medically after dealing with an injury.

Well, it looks like he’s been cleared, and on Wednesday, Bituli became the sixth Tennessee football player to land with a team. He signed with the Los Angeles Rams as an undrafted free agent, which was confirmed by Terez A. Paylor of Yahoo Sports.

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At 6’2″ 246 pounds, Bituli is a versatile linebacker has a solid history of playing inside linebacker in a 3-4 system and edge rusher in a 4-3. LA is likely to remain in a 3-4 under Brandon Staley, and Bituli’s ability to play all four linebacker roles there is a huge benefit to him.

Los Angeles did take two linebackers, Terrell Lewis and Clay Johnston, in the draft, but Bituli will have plenty of chances to be an impact player there. It was very clear that the franchise had a major need at the position, so this is a great landing spot for Bituli.

This past year, the Vols were 0-2 when he missed the first two games, losing at home to two non-conference Group of Five schools. Their only losses the rest of the way after he returned were to Power Five schools.

When it comes to production, Bituli proved his worth against the Kentucky Wildcats. Mark Stoops had found magic in running Lynn Bowden at quarterback, but the Vols stopped him all game. Bituli then had two goal-line tackles for a goal-line stand to secure the win for UT that day.

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However, injuries were still nagging him, and he even got hurt in the Vols’ Gator Bowl win over the Indiana Hoosiers, which could explain some of the concerns that existed. What hurt him further was the delays due to coronavirus, which didn’t give him the opportunity to clear the medical check he needed to clear on time.

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