Tyler Higbee

Tyler Higbee (born January 1, 1993) is an American football tight end for the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League (NFL).

He was the 27th player selected in the NFL Draft in Western Kentucky's school history and the highest selection since Joseph Jefferson in 2002.

On December 14, 2015, it was announced that Higbee had accepted his invitation to play in the 2016 Senior Bowl.

He played college football at Western Kentucky and was drafted by the Rams in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft.

Higbee was born in Clearwater, Florida.

He attended East Lake High School in Tarpon Springs, Florida, where he was a two-sport athlete, in football and baseball.

A standout in football, he was named MVP of his team, playing as a wide receiver for the Eagles.

Considered a two-star recruit by Rivals.com, Higbee attended Western Kentucky University to play college football for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers.

He caught 15 passes for 230 yards and four touchdowns his junior year.

He caught 38 passes for 563 yards and eight touchdowns his senior year.

He was considered one of the best tight end prospects in college football.

On January 23, 2016, Higbee's representatives from Select Sports Group announced they had pulled Higbee from the Senior Bowl due to the knee sprain he suffered during the season.

Higbee was one of 15 collegiate tight ends to attend the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana.

He was unable to perform any drills due to his knee injury, but met with teams and had measurements taken.

On March 29, 2016, Higbee attended Western Kentucky's pro day, along with Brandon Doughty, Prince Charles Iworah, George Fant, and 11 other prospects.

Although he was unable to physically perform, Higbee met with scouts and team representatives and scouts, including St. Louis Rams general manager Les Snead.

During the draft process, he had private meetings with the Denver Broncos and New Orleans Saints.

At the conclusion of the pre-draft process, Higbee was projected to be a fourth or fifth round pick by NFL draft experts and scouts.

He was ranked as the fourth best tight end prospect in the draft by Sports Illustrated and the fifth best tight end by NFLDraftScout.com.

Higbee was drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the fourth round (110th overall) of the 2016 NFL Draft.

He also was the first player selected from Western Kentucky in 2016 and along with Brandon Doughty, and Prince Charles Iworah, made up the largest draft class in the school's history.

On June 9, 2016, the Rams signed him to a four-year, $2.92 million rookie contract that included a signing bonus of $580,860.

Throughout training camp, he competed for the job as starting tight end against Lance Kendricks, Cory Harkey, Justice Cunningham, and Temarrick Hemingway.

Head coach Jeff Fisher named Higbee the third tight end on the Rams' depth chart, behind veterans Kendricks and Harkey.

Higbee made his first NFL start and NFL debut in the Rams' season-opener at the San Francisco 49ers and caught one pass for two yards during their 28–0 loss.

His first NFL reception came on the first pass of the game of a two-yard throw by quarterback Case Keenum, before he was tackled by Tank Carradine and Eric Reid.

In Week 9, Higbee caught one pass for a season-high 31 yards during a 13–10 loss to the Carolina Panthers.

On December 24, 2016, he caught a touchdown as the Rams lost 22–21 to the 49ers.

His first NFL touchdown came on a two-yard pass by rookie quarterback Jared Goff in the fourth quarter to put the Rams up 21–7.

Higbee completed his rookie season with 11 receptions for 85 receiving yards and a touchdown in 16 games, with seven starts.

Higbee entered training camp competing for the starting tight end job left vacant by the departure of Lance Kendricks to the Green Bay Packers in free agency.

He competed against rookie second round pick Gerald Everett, Cory Harkey, and Temarrick Hemingway.

New head coach Sean McVay named him the starting tight end to begin the 2017 season.

In Week 5, Higbee caught a season-high four passes for 98 yards in a 16–10 loss to the Seattle Seahawks.

During a Week 9 matchup at the New York Giants, Higbee caught an 8-yard touchdown as the Rams won 51–17.

In his first season under McVay, Higbee caught 25 receptions for 298 yards and a touchdown in 16 games and 16 starts.

The Rams finished the 2017 season atop the National Football Conference (NFC) West with an 11–5 record and received a playoff berth.

Higbee again started all 16 games for the Rams and his receptions (24) and receiving yards (292) came close to matching his 2017 totals, while he had a career-high two touchdown receptions.

He caught touchdown passes from Jared Goff in the Rams' victories over the Arizona Cardinals (34–0) and Seahawks (36–31), and he had a career-high six receptions (for 63 yards) in the Rams' 54–51 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs.

On January 6, 2018, Higbee started his first NFL playoff game and had an 11-yard reception as the Rams lost to the Atlanta Falcons in the Wild Card Round by a score of 26–13.