Rams tight end Tyler Higbee going back to his WR ways

Rams tight end Tyler Higbee going back to his WR ways
By Alden Gonzalez

[www.espn.com]

IRVINE, Calif. -- Rookie tight end Tyler Higbee lined up on the outside for 11 of the Los Angeles Rams' snaps in Denver on Saturday. He was isolated on five of those. On two others, he was part of a trips formation. And on four others, he was stationed between two receivers spread out wide.

"I did that a little bit in college," Higbee said, "so it’s cool getting out there and being able to kind of create some mismatches, get a linebacker out of the box or something like that."

Higbee was a wide receiver through high school and during his freshman year at Western Kentucky, before outgrowing the position and transitioning to tight end. He averaged 14.6 yards per reception as a sophomore, junior and senior, compiling 13 touchdowns over a span of 22 games. When he slipped to the fourth round of the 2016 draft -- a product of being arrested for second-degree assault, public intoxication and evading police 18 days earlier -- the Rams took him with hopes that he would contribute immediately.

"We’re putting him in some situations that he wasn’t asked to do in college," Rams coach Jeff Fisher said, "and he's handling it very well."

Higbee caught five passes for 49 yards in the preseason opener, then missed Week 2. He was targeted a team-best six times in Week 3, which ended in a 17-9 loss to the Broncos. Lance Kendricks, who has racked up 1,633 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns over the past five years, remains the primary pass-catching tight end. But the Rams will no doubt utilize the 6-foot-4, 243-pound Higbee, a freakish athlete who can rack up yards after the catch.

Rams running back Todd Gurley previously nicknamed Higbee "Little Baby Gronk," a reference to the Patriots' superstar tight end, Rob Gronkowski.

Higbee, 23, has watched Gronkowski closely in his four years as a tight end. But he's gone back further, pulling up YouTube highlights of Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe, who basically re-defined the position.

"He dominated," Higbee said. "I’ve looked him up, watched some of his highlights, some of the things he used to do back in the day. He's a man."

Some additional notes from Monday's practice ...
Jared Goff, who suffered a bruised tailbone on a vicious tackle from linebacker Vontarrius Dora, and Case Keenum, banged up on a late hit by Aqib Talib, both went through practice unrestricted. Fisher still hasn't mapped out playing time for his top two quarterbacks leading up to the final preseason game in Minnesota on Thursday.
Offensive lineman Rob Havenstein, who has been rehabilitating a foot injury, practiced with the team for the first time in training camp, though he was admittedly rusty. Havenstein started 13 games at right tackle as a rookie last season. Fisher hasn't ruled him out for Thursday's preseason game, but it seems unlikely that he will play.
The Rams will have Thursdays off in a typical week during the regular season. They used to be off on Tuesdays, like most teams, but have found that players get more out of Thursday off days, because they've had two full practices installing the game plan.