Rams TE Terrance Ferguson left Sunday night’s game against the Broncos twice in the first half before being ruled OUT due to an ankle injury. Ferguson hauled in 1-of-2 targets for 9 yards before officially exiting for good with 9:36 remaining in the second quarter. The severity of the ankle sprain is still uncertain, but is “more high than low” according to Rams HC Sean McVay.
Fantasy football managers will want to monitor Ferguson closely, as he is expected to miss time. Fellow TE Colby Parkinson also suffered an AC sprain in the contest, thrusting veteran Tyler Higbee into a feature role. Higbee exploded for 8 catches, 62 yards, and a touchdown on 11 targets. Higbee is now a high-priority waiver wire addition, especially in TE-premium formats, as the Rams have run over 44% of their offensive plays out of 13 personnel. ~Jason Diaz
Los Angeles Rams second-year tight end Terrance Ferguson ...
Los Angeles Rams tight end Terrance Ferguson (ankle) was ...
Los Angeles Rams tight end Terrance Ferguson (ankle) went ...
The hip injury that caused Puka Nacua to miss Week 2 against the Giants has not improved enough for him to practice, forcing him to miss his second consecutive session of the week. While head coach Sean McVay stressed that the team doesn’t view this as a long-term issue, the lack of practice points heavily toward Nacua missing Sunday night’s showdown against the Broncos.
Given the late kickoff, fantasy football managers will need to monitor his Friday status closely and have a backup plan heading into Sunday night. Assuming he sits, expect Davante Adams (10 targets in Week 2) and Terrance Ferguson (9 targets in week 2) to once again shoulder the load, as no other Rams receiver saw more than two targets last week.
Rams superstar WR Puka Nacua will officially be inactive for Monday Night Football vs. the Giants in the Week 2 contest, per Adam Schefter. He reported yesterday on ESPN Gameday that Nacua was “trending in the wrong direction” and he will now officially be inactive.
This likely means Matthew Stafford takes a hit with a shift to more of a run-first offense, lead by the duo of Kyren Williams and Blake Corum, as the Rams have a shallow WR room. It will elevate Davante Adams to the WR1 role for the night and may provide a chance for 2nd-year TE Terrance Ferguson to have his breakout game. Tutu Atwell, Konata Mumpfield and Xavier Smith are the only other active WR’s besides Adams.
If Puka Nacua—who commanded a 22.9% target share and put up 1,715 yards last year—misses this game due to his psoas injury, Sean McVay will assuredly shift the playcalling toward Williams and Corum on the ground. Williams already handles heavy volume with a 46.7% opportunity share, and will absorb the highest-value touches in this offense.
Meanwhile, Davante Adams ceiling will reach new heights and Terrance Ferguson will have an improved second chance at a sophomore breakout after running routes on just 41 percent of Stafford’s dropbacks in Week 1.
Rams superstar WR Puka Nacua will miss practice again today due to a hip injury, and also reportedly has groin soreness. Puka will have an extra day to hopefully get healthy enough to play, as the Rams play on Monday night vs. the Giants.
His direct backup Jordan Whittington (quad) will be listed as doubtful, so 2nd-year WR Konata Mumpfield could draw the start if Puka does miss the game. This could also be an opportunity for popular preseason sleeper TE Terrance Ferguson to get an opportunity to breakout. Puka is a top 3 WR when healthy and the Rams depth at WR is scant, so Matthew Stafford might take a hit if they end up relying more on the running game behind Kyren Williams and Blake Corum.
The Rams are expanding Terrance Ferguson’s route tree and doubling down on three tight end sets, giving the rookie a path to actual offensive utility. Sean McVay is moving Ferguson across F, Z, Y and X, while also planning to get him the ball quickly near the line of scrimmage after using him as a big bodied field stretcher last season.
That deployment matters because Terrance Ferguson flashed legitimate big play ability as a rookie, averaging 21.0 yards per reception while posting 231 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 25 targets in 14 games. Ferguson is a TE2 with a legitimate TE1 ceiling if McVay turns this expanded role into consistent targets.
