Booms, Busts and Breakouts: Los Angeles Rams

As the mercury rises and we inch closer to training camp opens, our resident fantasy football aficionados, Brad Evans and Jeff Ratcliffe, profile their favorite booms, busts and breakouts for every NFL team. Today’s topic: The Dashing Sean McVays.

Booms

Robert Woods, WR

After a group of hackers temporarily seized the Twitter accounts of Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Barack Obama and others and demanded Bitcoin payments, the social media platform caged blue checkmarks, leaving typically overactive thumbs idle. This holder of a verified account, who experienced cold shakes from the withdrawal, couldn’t tweet for three hours. 

Fantasy investors who sank a pretty penny into Woods last season felt a similar frustration. Despite enticing 21.9% of the L.A. target share, the multidimensional receiver underwhelmed in arguably the most influential category in the virtual game — touchdowns. Garnering just 13.2% of the red-zone looks, he scored twice. Yippee friggin’ doo. In NFL history, only Art Monk (1985) and Keyshawn Johnson (2001) registered more yards in a season with 1-2 touchdowns scored. That’s how rare Woods’ scoring drought was. 

Weighing his sure hands (69.8% catch percentage in ‘19), workload (129 targets) and tough-to-tackle persona (WR4 in yards after the catch per reception), Woods won’t experience a numbers decline in many key areas. If the positive TD regression kicks in, a borderline top-12 campaign is in the cards. Recall last year, despite the limited end-zone spikes, he finished WR17 in 0.5 PPR. — Brad Evans

Tyler Higbee, TE

Good things come to those who wait. In the case of Higbee’s dynasty owners, that wait was essentially three and a half years, as the former fourth-rounder did a whole lot of nothing for fantasy purposes until Gerald Everett got hurt in Week 12 last season. From that point on, Higbee was a revelation, rattling off five straight top-10 fantasy weeks to close out the season.

Over that span, Higbee racked up 43 catches for 522 yards and two scores. That’s an entire season’s worth of production for most tight ends. While some fantasy players have concerns about Everett’s presence on the Rams’ depth chart, the genie is out of the bottle with Higbee. Better yet, the Rams are also thin at wide receiver beyond Robert Woods and Cooper Kupp, so expect them to lean heavily on Higbee. He presents excellent value in 2020 fantasy drafts. — Jeff Ratcliffe

Busts

Tyler Higbee, TE

“Hogwild for Higbee” is a popular motto many have subscribed to in fantasy drafts. The attraction is understandable. Over the final five games of 2019, the plus-sized target registered four 100-yard games. Overall, he caught 81.3% of his intended looks, ranked No. 3 in fantasy points per route among TEs and was TE10 in YAC per reception. On the surface, he’s a player moving in a fruitful direction. 

However, Higbee’s late-season production is likely a mirage. Sean McVay has made it clear he wants to feature more 12-personnel formations this season, a scheme they ran 21% of the time in ‘19. If the case, Gerald Everett will prove to be a prickly thorn. In 10 games with Everett on the field last season, Higbee averaged a useless 3.5 receptions per game and 31.6 yards per game, scoring once. 

His exciting finish raised arousal levels, but at his TE7 (86.3) ADP, you’re buying Amazon stock on a bull market. Hayden Hurst (103.4 ADP), Hunter Henry (98.2) and Mike Gesicki (116.9) are cheaper and better TE options. — Brad Evans

Darrell Henderson, RB

The fantasy world was abuzz with Henderson SZN hype following Todd Gurley being cut, but the Rams didn’t seem to be drinking the same flavor of Kool Aid as they drafted Cam Akers in the third round of April’s draft. Akers’ presence on that depth chart essentially relegates Henderson to a change-of-pace role, which isn’t exactly harvest season for fantasy purposes.

While an optimist might see some handcuff value in Henderson if Akers got hurt, we can’t overlook Malcolm Brown’s presence on this roster. Brown would likely slide into Akers’ early-down work if injury struck. Unfortunately, that positions Henderson as a low-ceiling option who isn’t likely to provide better than RB4 fantasy production this season. — Jeff Ratcliffe

Breakouts

Cam Akers, RB

The infatuation toward Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Jonathan Taylor among fantasy drafters is unwavering. It’s why both backs are being selected as firm RB2s in 12-team exercises. However, the true rookie rusher fantasy lovers should swipe right for is Akers. 

Don’t let the COVID-impacted times and McVay’s RBBC mutterings sway you. The Florida State product has palpable odds of emerging as the first-year RB to roster. Last season working behind a translucent Seminoles offensive line, the 5-foot-10, 217-pound punisher ranked RB12 in total YAC and RB7 in missed tackles forced, notching a 48% success rate on zone attempts. His rapid acceleration, patience, cut-back vision, lateral explosion and useful hands are laudable attributes. 

The cream typically rises to the top. In this case, it’s only a matter of time before Akers leapfrogs Darrell Henderson and Malcolm Brown on the depth chart. If he does so quickly and secures the red-zone role, he’s capable of a top-20 or even a top-15 season. Remember, Todd Gurley rolled up 120 red-zone rush attempts with L.A. over the past two seasons. Akers, at his 53.4 (RB27) ADP, is a steal. — Brad Evans

Cam Akers, RB

With the Todd Gurley era officially over in Los Angeles, the Rams will now look to Akers to carry the load on early downs with Darrell Henderson mixing in on passing downs. The No. 6 rusher in Florida State history, Akers flashed a three-down skillset at the college level and impressed in the pre-draft process. At the combine in February, the young back blazed a 4.47 40-yard dash time, which was impressive at his size (5-10, 217 pounds).

Of course, detractors will point out the Rams ugly offensive line as a reason to not get behind Akers for fantasy purposes. The good news is that he’s used to running behind poor offensive lines at Florida State and is more than capable of creating yards after contact. He may not be the biggest rookie name in this year’s class, but Akers could end up making one of the biggest impacts in Year 1. — Jeff Ratcliffe