With so much attention being paid to the injuries of receivers Cooper Kupp and Puka Nacua, it has been forgotten that Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay has also been without trusted tight end Tyler Higbee this season.
Higbee tore his ACL and MCL in last season’s playoff loss to the Detroit Lions and began this season on the PUP list as a result.
Of course Higbee has been hard at work trying to recover from the injury and get back on the field for the Rams this season. It is unclear whether he will be able to do so, but if McVay’s words are something to go by Higbee could be suiting up this season.
In the latest episode of The Coach McVay Show, the Rams head coach said that Higbee is ahead of schedule in his recovery and has still been a leader for this team as he works his way back:
“He’s doing great. We’ve always kind of tentatively said at some point midway through the year is when you start to really see when he’s ready. I know he’s ahead of schedule, if you will, but it was a significant injury. His presence – he’s still been leading in his own way when he’s here. He’s just got such a contagious personality and a positive way. He’s got a play energy about himself that when we do get him back, it’ll be a real bright spot.”
Higbee has been such a reliable piece for the Rams over the past couple seasons and the offense is definitely missing him. It is encouraging that he is ahead of schedule in his recovery since, as McVay pointed out, this was a very significant injury that he suffered.
In his absence, Colby Parkinson has been more than solid, leading the Rams in both targets and receptions. But getting Higbee back on the field at some point this year, not to mention the impending returns of Kupp and Nacua, would go a long way towards getting the Rams offense back on track in 2024.
Sean McVay believes bye week came at right time for the Rams
With the Rams being so hammered with injuries across the roster, their bye week came at an ideal time to help some players potentially recover and get back on the field to help this team. Head coach Sean McVay also believes it allowed for the team to really look at themselves and figure out where they can improve.
“What I think it does serve as a good time is after five games where we’re obviously not where we want to be, how can we look at ourselves critically? How can we identify some of the things that we need to do with the 12 games remaining to be able to play more quality football that’s more in alignment with what we’re capable of and what we’ve seen when we’re operating at our best here.”
