6. Tyler Higbee, Los Angeles Rams
Tight ends face a difficult transition to the pro game, given the differences you often see between the two styles of play.
(Although, in the case of Dallas Goedert and perhaps Adam Trautman this season, tight ends that play at lower levels are asked to take on more NFL-like responsibilities, which eases their transition. But I digress…)
Higbee is another example of this in action. Higbee was considered a very intriguing prospect in the 2016 draft given the athleticism he showed at Western Kentucky, but he was arrested for assault 18 days before the draft. In that incident, Higbee assaulted a man of Middle Eastern descent while using some horrific racial language, and the assault left the victim unconscious and with a brain hemorrhage. Higbee pled guilty to the assault and avoided jail time.
During his first two seasons in the league, Higbee did not prudce at a high level. He caught 11 passes as a rookie in 2016, and 26 passes a season later. But over the past two years he has been more of a focal point for the Los Angeles Rams’ passing attack. In 2018 during their run to the Super Bowl he caught 30 of 36 targets for 347 yards and three touchdowns. Last year, he really broke out. Higbee was targeted 86 times and hauled in 69 of those throws – both career-high numbers – for three more touchdowns. He racked up 734 yards receiving (401 of those coming after the catch) and Jared Goff had a 109.0 NFL passer rating when targeting his tight end.
One of the things that stands out when watching Higbee is his body control. Watch the adjustment he makes on this throw from Goff, first to contort himself to reach the ball, and then to twist his feet into position to get both down in-bounds:
Then there is the YAC that he offers. On this play Higbee runs the “slam” route, showing a down block and then releasing to the flat. He makes the catch and is able to work away form the nearest defender using a stiff-arm, turning a short toss into a huge gain:
As the Rams look to reinvent their offense using more of an inside run approach, Higbee could play a huge role in the play-action plays that stem from those designs.