The Los Angeles Rams have renewed their playoff hopes with a dominant win over the Seattle Seahawks in Week 14. The 28-12 victory saw the Rams looking like the 2018 version of themselves, attacking on the ground and in the air to jump out to an early lead.
While the Rams wide receivers have been tried and true through the last few years, it was tight end Tyler Higbee who stepped up in order to earn the win. Higbee’s big game comes off the cusp of his career-high in single-game receiving yards just one week earlier against the Arizona Cardinals.
According to TheRams.com, Higbee has been getting good looks thanks to his chemistry with Jared Goff:
“Just doing what I can, trying to get open for 16,” said Higbee, referring to the uniform number of Rams quarterback Jared Goff. “He throws great balls, and he fits them into tight windows. I’m just trying to make a play whenever it comes to me.”
After putting up 107 yards last week, Higbee ended up finishing with a new career-high 116 yards on just seven receptions this time around. Although he did not record a touchdown against the Seahawks, he was partially responsible for the success on a number of scoring drives.
Higbee recorded a 32-yard reception to start the Rams final scoring drive in the fourth quarter. Robert Woods also had a number of big catches on the same drive, which was finally culminated with a Todd Gurley touchdown.
Goff believes Higbee’s success over the last few games is just a result of him being on the field more often:
“We’ve been in a lot more heavy sets, so he’s been playing a lot more. That’s part of it,” Goff said. “I think just a lot of it is just by circumstance. Just where he’s been, he’s been playing well. He looks great, he looks fast, he looks healthy. He’s just been on the field a lot more. It’s been great.”
While Higbee may be getting more looks, he has always been a consistent part of the Rams offense. While fellow tight end Gerald Everett is healthy, Higbee typically operates more in run situations because of his superior blocking skills.
He has proven to be more than a capable receiver in the two games that Everett has missed with a knee injury though, so it will be interesting to see if he can continue that when both players are healthy.
