Colby Parkinson's Preseason Player Analysis

Bottom Line

Parkinson landed a surprisingly big contract from the Rams in free agency. He’s the favorite to start at least until TE Tyler Higbee is ready to return from his multi-ligament knee injury – and might even remain the lead TE when Higbee is back.

Parkinson is not an exciting player, though. And Los Angeles has not been a great spot for TE production. That figures to remain the case this year, at least as long as WRs Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp are healthy.

Parkinson is unlikely to emerge as a reliable fantasy starter on a week-to-week basis, but he makes sense as a cheap, TE3 target in best-ball drafts.

What We Learned Last Year

• Parkinson totaled 57 catches across four seasons with the Seahawks.
• 50 of those catches came in the last two years. Parkinson tallied a 25-322-2 line in 2022 and 25-247-2 line in 2023.
• He topped a 50% route rate just three times: Week 17 and 18 of the 2022 season and Week 18 of 2023. His receiving lines in those games:
  • 5-36-1 (7 targets)
  • 2-47-0 (3 targets)
  • 3-8-0 (4 targets)
• Parkinson averaged 7.9 yards per target over the last four seasons. That ranked 13th among 76 TEs with 50+ targets during that span.
• Parkinson’s ranks in yards per route run the past two years among TEs with 30+ targets:
  • 2022 - 11th out of 43
  • 2023 - 32nd out of 45
• Parkinson was a fourth-round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft. He ranked fourth on Stanford with 485 receiving yards in 2018 and then second with 589 yards in 2019. The 6’7, 252-pounder registered a mediocre 6.15 Relative Athletic Score at the Combine.

What to Expect in 2024

• The Rams gave Parkinson a three-year, $22.5 million deal with $15.5 million guaranteed in free agency.
• Parkinson now ranks 17th among TEs in both average annual salary and total guaranteed money.
• The Rams also return TEs Tyler Higbee, Davis Allen, and Hunter Long.
  • Higbee tore his right ACL and MCL in the Wild Card loss to the Lions. HC Sean McVay said in February that Higbee’s timetable for return is “unclear.” We’re not expecting him to be ready for the start of the season.
  • Allen was a fifth-round pick last year and totaled 10 catches as a rookie.
  • Long was acquired from Miami in the Jalen Ramsey trade in March of 2023. He didn’t catch a pass last year – after catching one pass across two seasons with the Dolphins.
• Parkinson’s contract makes him the heavy favorite to start at least until Higbee is ready to return – and likely to play a significant role even when Higbee is back.
• The Rams return WRs Puka Nacua and Cooper Kupp, who combined to soak up 43.7% of the team’s targets last year (despite Kupp missing five games and most of a sixth).
• HC Sean McVay is back for his eighth season with the Rams. Here’s where his top TE has ranked in PPR points per game each of the previous seven seasons:
  • 2017 - 49th
  • 2018 - 37th
  • 2019 - 11th
  • 2020 - 24th
  • 2021 - 15th
  • 2022 - 12th
  • 2023 - 26th