Colby Parkinson (knee) DNP Wednesday

Whittington is WR Puka Nacua’s (hip) direct backup, so he will be out there running a decent number of routes. Whittington has, however, never managed to establish himself as a reliable contributor. He does not need to be rostered in 12-team leagues. Rams TE Colby Parkinson (knee) will be questionable.

The Rams field a deep tight end room, and Atkins expects the personnel to undergo turnover in the next year or so. Second-year TE Terrance Ferguson could function as the de facto No. 3 wide receiver while TE Colby Parkinson continues “to be a focal point on third downs and in the red zone in this three-tight end offense” this season. He adds that Klare could get involved on “some yards-after-catch designs and wrinkles this season,” but it does not sound like Klare is due for a fantasy-friendly role in 2026.

Atkins added, “The ideal outcome for him is to lead their tight ends in catches and yards.” He noted that the coaching staff was focused on bringing Ferguson along incrementally in 2025. Now they will have the chance to move him into a more prominent role for his second season. Ferguson only caught 11 passes as a rookie, but he parlayed a seam-stretching role into 231 yards and three scores despite the low reception total. Atkins sees Ferguson as a de facto No. 3 receiver for the team, with Colby Parkinson and Tyler Higbee both fulfilling the role of a traditional inline tight end. Rookie Max Klare will also be in the mix for snaps, but will likely be brought along slowly as well. With an ADP that barely even registers in early best ball drafts, Ferguson is worth a look as a high-upside TE3.

Sadiq out of Oregon is widely expected to be a first round pick after setting record at the NFL Combine. Bowen believes the hyper-athletic tight end could be a situation matchup player for Sean McVay, who used three tight end sets at the NFL’s highest rate in 2025. “With his frame and 4.39 speed, Sadiq could be a seam stretcher for quarterback Matthew Stafford. Plus, McVay could use Sadiq as a backside X receiver/power slot to draw favorable man matchups.” Sadiq, who had 80 receptions over three seasons at Oregon, could fit the LA offense “as a catch-and-run target on boot action concepts,” Bowen said. Stafford last season led the NFL with 75 pass attempts on designed rollouts. It’s a crowded tight end room in LA, with Colby Parikson, Tyler Higbee, Terrance Ferguson, and Davis Allen on the roster. Sadiq would likely function as a rotational player if he lands with the Rams, who have the 13th pick in the 2026 draft.

Parkinson’s touchdown run finally ran out of steam over the past two weeks, but he ends the year with 43/408/8 in the regular season and another score in the playoffs. He did drop a third-down pass in this one, but was otherwise what we’ve come to expect. It’s hard to imagine that the Rams will phase him out of the offense altogether in 2026, the final year of his contract, but teams will probably have better answers for Los Angeles’ 3TE sets with a year of tape to pick over and Terrance Ferguson will be a likely breakout candidate. It all adds up to Parkinson being more of a TE2 in 2026 offseason drafts.

It is, amazingly, Parkinson’s ninth touchdown in his last 10 games despite cracking 50 yards just once over that span. The Rams steered away from their 13-personnel sets in this game without Terrance Ferguson, but Parkinson continued to eat up snaps, playing a tight-end-room high 57 of the team’s 75. Can you call someone a touchdown or bust option if he almost always spits up a touchdown? That’s what you’re confronted with in the Divisional Round slate.

Tyler Higbee was back for this game and even exploded for 91 yards and a touchdown, but Parkinson led the room in targets and snaps. Parkinson had already set career-highs across the board coming into this game, and he put an exclamation point on the season with a pair of touchdowns in the second half. He is now up to eight scores on the year. Parkinson will be a touchdown-or-bust DFS play in the Wild Card Round versus Carolina.

Both of Ferguson’s receptions went for chunk gains of 27 yards, with the rookie tight end cashing in on a touchdown in the third quarter to keep the Rams in the game after taking a 21-0 deficit into the half. Ferguson’s late-season breakout continues to hint at the potential for untapped upside, although his playing time is likely tied to the team’s usage of heavy personnel while playing behind established veteran Colby Parkinson, the latter of whom caught 6-of-7 targets for 53 scoreless yards in the loss.

The Athletic’s Nate Atkins said Higbee is unlikely to be active for Thursday night’s game against the Seahawks, however. Higbee has bee on IR since mid-November following a serious ankle injury against Seattle. His absence has opened up routes and targets for Colby Parkinson, who should be treated as a legit streaming option in Week 16. Parkinson and TE Terrance Ferguson led the Rams in pass routes last week against the Lions in an LA offense that uses two and three tight end sets at the NFL’s highest rate.

One of his touchdown catches came on one of the weirdest non-overturns you’ll ever see, where even FOX’s Dean Blandino appeared confused as to why Parkinson was not ruled short of the goal line. Nevertheless! Parkinson has now caught six touchdowns in six games, a stretch that roughly coincides with Tyler Higbee heading to IR and the Rams losing one mouth to feed from what had been a four-headed TE hydra. Nothing about what Parkinson is doing on the field looks Film Room Impressive, but the way Stafford is slinging it in the red zone and the safety of the role brings up hints of early-season Jake Ferguson. Parkinson should remain on the low-end TE1 landscape against the Seahawks on short rest Thursday.