DavisAllen

Oct 13

The Rams opened the season with Parkinson as their early-down tight end in 11 personnel and Terrance Ferguson as their third-down tight end.

Both played 100% of the snaps in 12 personnel in Week 1, while Davis Allen joined them in 13 personnel. Tyler Higbee was a clear fourth on the depth chart. Since then, Ferguson has landed on injured reserve, and Parkinson missed last week's game. That prompted Los Angeles to abandon 13 personnel. Higbee and Allen split the early-down snaps in 11 personnel, while Higbee handled third-down duties. This week, Higbee led a two-man rotation with Parkinson in 11 personnel on both early and late downs. In 12 personnel, Los Angeles paired Parkinson with Allen nearly every time. The Rams also brought back 13 personnel, with all three tight ends on the field together. Higbee had a solid game, catching five passes for 83 yards. Typically, a tight end who doesn't play in 12 personnel is difficult to trust in fantasy, but the Rams' frequent use of 13 personnel makes Higbee safer than most rotational tight ends. Los Angeles faces the Arizona Cardinals and Las Vegas Raiders over the next two weeks, and both rank among the six most favorable matchups for opposing fantasy tight ends this season. Higbee's fantasy value will likely disappear once Ferguson returns, but until then, he is a solid waiver wire target.

Oct 5

The Rams placed tight end Terrance Ferguson on injured reserve on Saturday. The second-year tight end had a breakout Week 2, catching six passes for 54 yards and a touchdown, but had an early exit in Week 3 with an ankle injury. He had been playing primarily in 11 personnel on third downs and two-tight end sets, but also at times in 11 personnel on early downs. Colby Parkinson took the other 11 personnel snaps, joining him in 12 personnel, while Davis Allen accompanied them in 13 personnel. Parkinson was questionable for this game with knee and shoulder injuries. Tyler Higbee didn't see as much playing time during the first two weeks but was the primary replacement for Higbee and Parkinson last week. Parkinson was also inactive for this game due to knee and shoulder injuries. Higbee and Allen shared the field for 10 snaps in 12 personnel. The two split snaps on early downs, while Higbee dominated the third-down snaps. Los Angeles had second-round rookie Max Klare as its third tight end, but the Rams only trusted Klare for one snap in 13 personnel, showing the team isn’t ready to trust the newcomer yet. Higbee caught five passes for 67 yards. Higbee should be able to maintain fantasy value even when Parkinson is back, as Higbee largely replaced Ferguson, while Allen generally replaced Parkinson. When Parkinson is back, Higbee’s workload should be fairly similar to this game.