Week 9 at Tampa Bay Buccaneers
After an extremely hot start to begin the year, Tyler Higbee has cooled off a bit as of late. A lot of this has to do with the struggles of the Rams’ offensive line as Higbee has been asked to block more in recent weeks. This is clearly represented in his route participation as he has only run a route on a 35 of 70 (50%) Matthew Stafford drop-backs over the last two games. Prior to this role change, Higbee ran a route on 184 of 217 (85%) Stafford drop-backs. This drastic dip in routes has led to very poor receiving lines of (1-7) and (2-15).
Heading into Week 9, Higbee’s matchup isn’t terrible vs. the Buccaneers. Back in 2021, Higbee put up solid performances vs. Tampa Bay going for (5-40-1) and (5-51). This season Buccaneers have allowed big games to Isaiah Likely (6-77-1), Travis Kelce (9-92-1), and Dalton Schultz (7-62). However, due to his change in role, it will be tough to trust Higbee as anything more than a high-end TE2. Until we see improvements in the Rams’ offensive line to allow Higbee to run more routes, it might be best to fade him for the time being.