Random Ramsdom: What kind of impact will Tyler Higbee have when he returns?

Los Angeles Rams News and Links for 11/30/24

What kind of impact might the return of Tyler Higbee have for the Rams? Is Higbee the missing piece that can help to unlock LA’s offense? Will he be eased back in the offense or can we expect Higbee to be a difference maker right away?

How much longer with the veteran tight end be playing for the Rams?

My hope is you are having a great week. Thanks for checking out Turf Show Times and please comment on whatever you’d like!

Rams Designate Tight End Tyler Higbee To Return To Practice (ramswire)

“The Los Angeles Rams have designated tight end Tyler Higbee to return to practice from the reserve/PUP list. Higbee has not played this season after suffering a torn ACL and MCL in the Rams’ Wildcard playoff loss to the Detroit Lions last season.

This is the first step to be taken in order for Higbee to eventually return to the field, though head coach Sean McVay said earlier this week that he doesn’t expect Higbee to be activated in time for the Rams’ game on Sunday against the New Orleans Saints.”

Interview with the Enemy: Los Angeles Rams (canalstreetchronicles)

“This week, the New Orleans Saints will face the Los Angeles Rams in Week 13 of the 2024 regular season. Evan Craig of Turf Show Times joins us to preview Sunday afternoon’s matchup.

NJ: Much like the Saints, the Rams have battled numerous injuries to their offensive line this season. How has Los Angeles managed these vital absences, and how do you expect them to perform against New Orleans after conceding five sacks to Philadelphia on Sunday Night Football?

EC: While the Rams’ offensive line is not quite as bad as it was during the hellish 2022 season, it hasn’t been great this year and injuries are the main culprit as you mentioned. At right tackle, Rob Havenstein has been in and out of the lineup and replaced by a rotation of Joe Noteboom and Warren McClendon. Noteboom has moved all over the place and also helped fill in for second-year starter Steve Avila. High-priced free agent pickup Jonah Jackson has played just three games this season due to a shoulder injury and performed so poorly when on the field that he was replaced by rookie Beaux Limmer. The injury bug has not been kind to the offense whatsoever in 2024.”

Rams’ Sean McVay Gets Honest on Struggling Pro Bowler (ktla.com)

“Last season, Los Angeles Rams running back Kyren Williams appeared to be on his way to establishing himself as one of the best ball carriers in the NFL.

He racked up 1,144 yards and 12 touchdowns while averaging a robust five yards per carry in just 12 games. Additionally, he caught 32 passes for 206 yards and three scores.

However, a rather concerning issue did surface at one point during the 2023 campaign: ball security. Williams fumbled twice during a Week 15 win over the Washington Commanders, which had some wondering if head coach Sean McVay would curb his touches.

Well, the same thing is happening this season, but on a larger scale.”

Assessing The Rams’ Playoff Hopes (lafbnetwork)

“There is a lot to like about the Los Angeles Rams, should they make it to the postseason. They have a Super Bowl-winning quarterback who can go toe-to-toe with the league’s top passers in any game. With Puka Nacua, Cooper Kupp, and Kyren Williams, they have the weapons on offense to win a shootout.

The biggest issue with the Rams is that they don’t have the front seven to stop opposing rushing attacks. We saw this on full display in Week 12, as Saquon Barkley racked up more than 300 yards from scrimmage on Monday Night Football.”

Random Ramsdom Fandom: Time to move on from Kupp? (By CDNGolfer on Nov 29, 2024)

“Much being posted this year about the need to move on from Cooper Kupp. It isn’t.

For one thing it would make little financial sense as we’d be eating millions of his salary cap next year but the real reason is that he’s producing. Not at his record setting pace from the Super Bowl year but doing pretty well, just quietly. We don’t have Al Michaels going crazy with every catch (That’s reserved for Puka now) but Kupp is there when Stafford needs him.

Here are his numbers for this year over 7 games;

55 comp 77 targets 72% 548 yds 10 yd avg. 5TD 21 first downs

Projected final numbers;

99 comp 143 targets 988 yds 10 avg 9 TD 40 first downs

It’s obviously difficult to justify his salary for what is, arguably, good WR2 numbers but that deal is done. It’s also difficult to compare his performance against the league with him having played only 7 games so I looked at average yards per game. Would it surprise you that he’s 8th in the league? 7 yards per game less than Justin Jefferson? Ahead of Metcalfe, Nabers, Lamb and St Brown? Surprised me for sure. By the way, Puka is 6th on that list.

There will be guys out there that will throw around letters representing metrics based on expectations and computer driven models that paint the picture of a star slowing down but the bottom line will always be “how is he performing?”

Is he slowing down? Yes, probably but while speed is important in the game, being on the same page as your QB is even more important. Stafford being able to trust Kupp to zig and not zag on an option route allows him to make that throw, you know the throw, the one where he throws it to a window that’s only open for a fraction of a second. It’s that element of Kupp’s game that will be very hard to replace.”