How Tyler Higbee's return could super charge the Rams' offense
Rams tight end Tyler Higbee celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Cardinals on Sunday in his return from an ankle injury.(Jessie Alcheh / Associated Press)Tyler Higbee has played in 12 NFL playoff games during his 10-year career, so the veteran tight end knows, better than perhaps any other Rams player, what lies ahead.
Higbee was part of two teams that advanced to the Super Bowl.
Don't listen to the outside noise," Higbee said when asked to describe the formula for a Super Bowl run. You don't look at the ifs, the what-could-be's. You just come in, work, and take it a day at time. ... Keep peaking week after week."
The Rams, seeded No. 5 in the NFC, begin the playoffs on Saturday against the No. 4 Carolina Panthers at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.
Higbee, who returned from injured reserve and starred in last Sunday's season-finale victory over the Arizona Cardinals, figures to be a key player as the Rams attempt to avenge a Week 13 loss to the Panthers.
Higbee was scheduled to play limited snaps against the Cardinals, but with rookie tight end Terrance Ferguson a late scratch because of a hamstring issue, Higbee played 48 snaps and caught five passes for 91 yards and a touchdown in a 37-20 victory.
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I was just excited the ball found me," he said. Glad I could contribute to help us get a win."
Coach Sean McVay was happy to have Higbee back.
You could just see there's a swag," McVay said, there's a confidence."
Higbee, 33, was a fourth-round draft pick in 2016 and has been an integral part of the offense ever since McVay was hired in 2017. Higbee and right tackle Rob Havenstein, an 11-year veteran who is on injured reserve, were members of McVay's first team that have been on the roster for all seven playoff appearances under the ninth-year coach. Long snapper Jake McQuaide, a 15th-year pro who was part of McVay's first four seasons, was signed at midseason.
Higbee has 386 career catches, 27 for touchdowns.
But Higbee's value to the Rams goes beyond production.
It's just the human being too," quarterback Matthew Stafford said. The human being that celebrates for everybody."
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Midway through this season, the Rams evolved from an offense that primarily utilized one tight end to a scheme that utilizes as many as three at a time.
Everybody has their own flavor," Higbee said, their own things that they're great at."
In 10 games, Higbee has 25 catches, three for touchdowns.
Colby Parkinson has 43 catches, eight for touchdowns, both career bests. Davis Allen has 24 catches, three for touchdowns, and Ferguson has 11 catches, three for touchdowns.
We're all very selfless," Parkinson said. No one is out there looking for individual success. We're out there looking for team success."
With Stafford at the controls, a receiver corps that includes stars Puka Nacua and Davante Adams, the running back duo of Kyren Williams and Blake Corum, and four productive tight ends bolstering the offensive line, the Rams averaged a league-best 30.5 points and 394.6 yards per game.
This is the deepest tight end room I've ever been a part of," Higbee said. We've got the guys to do it, and we've shown that we can do it and the offense can go while we do it.
And that will just present more opportunities."
Higbee has 31 postseason receptions for 302 yards and two touchdowns, including one against the Philadelphia Eagles in last season's divisional-round defeat.
Higbee did not play in the 31-28 loss to the Panthers on Nov. 30 because of the ankle injury suffered two weeks before against the Seattle Seahawks. So he is looking forward to making an impact any way that he can on Saturday for a team stocked with players that he said play for each other.
At this level," he said, the more you can get guys that want to play for each other rather than just their families and the name on their back, makes a tighter team and in my opinion makes for a better team."
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.