Would Rams trade either Colby Parkinson or Davis Allen?
The Los Angeles Rams seem to have a long jam at tight end, at least from a numbers perspective.
Veteran Tyler Higbee is pretty much inked as the starter and is more than a full year removed from the significant knee injury that occurred in a 2023 wildcard game. When Higbee returned last season, he gave a significant boost to the offense, specially in the red zone.
Rookie Terrance Ferguson could potentially unseat Higbee as the starter at some point this season; however, it is important to remember that TE’s typically have a long growth curve when transitioning to the professional game. Few hit the ground running, although Sam LaPorta for the Detroit Lions and Brock Bowers for the Las Vegas Raiders are strong counterpoints in recent seasons.
If Ferguson is ready for a key role on offense, then Colby Parkinson and Davis Allen could become expendable for LA. It’s worth keeping one of these players around given Higbee’s lengthy injury history. You probably don’t need both.
Parkinson joined the Rams during free agency last year and signed to a three-year, $22.5M deal. At the time LA did not have a starting tight end because Higbee was unlikely to start the season healthy, so at this point we can chalk this up to desperate money chasing less than ideal solutions.
Despite playing a career-record number of snaps for the Rams last season (601), Parkinson hauled in just 30 catches for 294 receiving yards and a single touchdown over the regular season. If the Rams were expecting a breakout year from the big TE, it simply did not come to fruition.
In Allen’s second season, he increased his share of snaps from 192 to 308. In terms of receiving production, however, his sophomore campaign was a disappointment.
Allen caught 10 passes for 95 yards and a touchdown as a rookie, but in year two he caught just six passes for 39 yards.
Would Rams move either Parkinson or Allen?
You might look at the stats and say that neither player have much trade value. But I’d point out that Hunter Long—who caught seven passes for 60 yards with LA last year—signed a two-year, $5M deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars in free agency.
As Sean McVay’s coaching tree grows and teams across the NFL continue deploying adjacent schemes, there will always be demand for players with a proof of concept in McVay’s system.
Trading Parkinson at this stage would save the Rams $5.5M in 2025 and $5M in 2026, after accounting for dead money. Cutting him makes little difference this year but would clear up nearly $5M for next season.
Injuries happen in training camp and teams don’t want to see their playoff hopes dashed before they even begin. There will be opportunities to move Parkinson or Allen if this is important to the Rams.
Finding a trade partner is easier said than done
The Miami Dolphins make sense for more veteran depth after trading Jonnu Smith, but they acquired Darren Waller after he un-retired. Still, it’s a big gamble to count on a player after he spent time away from football. They could use more assurances.
Nearly every other team has an entrenched starter or has recently used draft capital to turn an eye toward the future. If those players don’t develop as expected, someone could find the idea of adding a veteran alluring.