Los Angeles Rams Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

The Rams traded up to grab Ole Miss RB Zach Evans late in Round 6 of the NFL Draft. Our guy C.H. Herms is a big fan of Evans' film and has liked Evans' dynasty value all along. And he's far from the only Evans film fan. Evans bounced from TCU to Ole Miss and dealt with multiple injuries. He finished with just 290 carries and 30 catches through three seasons. But he also averaged 6.9 yards per rush and 10.8 per catch for his career. That included 6.5 yards per carry and 9.9 per reception in his lone SEC campaign. Going to the Rams likely puts him in competition with 2022 rookie Kyren Williams for the No. 2 spot behind Cam Akers. The situation presents opportunity, with neither Akers nor Williams having proved much as a pro to date. We'll be watching this backfield competition through training camp. He's worth a look late in your dynasty rookie draft. See where he lands in our dynasty RB rankings.

Ole Miss RB Zach Evans (hamstring) didn’t participate in any drills at the NFL Combine on Sunday. We did confirm his measurements at 5’11 and 202 pounds, though we won’t see the former TCU transfer run drills until the Rebels' pro day scheduled for March 29th in Oxford, Mississippi. A quality pro day performance could see the former top high school recruit work his way into Day 2 draft capital. Check back on Evans as the month unfolds.

The Rams are hiring Mike LaFleur as their new OC, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. LaFleur replaces Liam Coen, who left Los Angeles after just 1 season to return to his previous post as Kentucky's OC. LaFleur struggled as Jets OC the past 2 years, with both of those teams finishing bottom 8 in both total yards and points. Like Rams HC Sean McVay, LaFleur comes from the Shanahan coaching tree, so there should be plenty of synergy here. McVay will still be running the show, though, so don't expect a big change to the Rams' play calling.

The Rams are expected to pick up QB Matt Stafford's 2023 option bonus and 2024 salary, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. It'll pay Stafford a combined $62 million in guaranteed money. There had been questions about Stafford's football future after a spinal cord contusion ended his 2022 season. He's avoided surgery, though, and is expected to be ready for the offseason program. With HC Sean McVay also returning for 2023, the Rams offense has bounce-back potential with better health and improvements along the offensive line.

Rams HC Sean McVay has decided to continue coaching, according to multiple reports. That's good for all the offensive skill-position players relevant to our fantasy football teams. Now we can focus on who gets healthy, who leaves and who arrives this offseason.

Rams RB Cam Akers ran for 123 yards on 19 carries in Sunday's loss to the Chargers. That marked his 2nd straight game of more than 100 yards rushing but just the 2nd time all season that a Rams RB has exceeded 65 rushing yards. Unfortunately, RB Malcolm Brown claimed the team's lone TD. Akers closes out the season with a Seattle defense that hit Week 17 as the 2nd-best scoring matchup for RBs by adjusted fantasy points allowed.

Rams EDGE Leonard Floyd (illness) is active for today's game against the Chargers. Use him as planned in IDP lineups.

Rams TE Tyler Higbee (elbow) is active for today’s game vs. the Chargers. He got in just limited practices on Thursday and Friday but never seemed to be in danger of missing this one. See where Higbee lands in the Week 17 TE Rankings.

ESPN's Adam Schefter confirms that Rams TE Tyler Higbee (elbow) will play vs. the Chargers. Higbee only got in limited practices on Thursday and Friday, but there never seemed to be much doubt about his availability for this one.

Rams TE Tyler Higbee (elbow) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s game vs. the Chargers. He got in limited practices on Thursday and Friday and is expected to play, according to HC Sean McVay. Higbee is coming off a huge 9-94-2 line on Christmas, putting him back on the fantasy radar. Just remember that he totaled 6 catches on 8 targets for 38 yards in QB Baker Mayfield’s first 2 games.

Rams TE Tyler Higbee caught 9 balls for 94 yards among a team-dominating 11 targets (39.3%). Higbee also claimed both of the team's TD receptions. No other Ram caught more than 3 passes. TE Brycen Hopkins' 57 yards (on 3 catches) ranked 2nd on the team. No other teammate reached 30 yards.

Rams RB Cam Akers racked up 118 yards and 3 TDs on 23 carries in Sunday's beatdown of the Broncos. The numbers mark big jumps over his previous season highs. Akers has scored 6 rushing TDs over his past 4 games, though, and topped 5.0 yards per carry in 2 straight games. He now looks much more attractive as a Week 17 fantasy football option at the Chargers than we would have expected even heading into Week 16. RB Malcolm Brown added 19 yards on 2 carries. RB Kyren Williams rushed 6 times for 18 yards.

The Rams have ruled DL Aaron Donald out for the 3rd straight game. He's dealing with a high-ankle sprain.

Rams WR Ben Skowronek will miss the rest of the season with a calf injury, HC Sean McVay said Tuesday. Skowronek joins WRs Cooper Kupp and Allen Robinson on the sideline, leaving the Rams with WRs Van Jefferson, Tutu Atwell, Brandon Powell, Austin Trammell and Lance McCutcheon.

Rams RB Cam Akers led the team in both rushing and receiving in Sunday's loss vs. the Packers. The third-year back posted 12 carries for 65 yards on the ground in addition to reeling in all 3 of his targets for 35 yards in the receiving game. The only other Ram of note from this game is TE Tyler Higbee, a player who found the end zone on top of his 4 catches on 5 targets for 27 yards. At this stage of the fantasy season, it is tough to trust any Rams player (RB, WR, TE, or otherwise) with playoff hopes on the line in Week 16. The Broncos' defense ranks in the bottom 12 in adjusted fantasy points allowed to both RBs and WRs this season. Akers might be a decent flex option at best, but that's about it as far as the Rams are concerned.

The Rams have ruled DL Aaron Donald (ankle) out for Monday night’s game against the Packers

Rams HC Sean McVay admitted Tuesday that he'd be "hard-pressed" to envision WR Cooper Kupp (ankle) playing again this season. There's no reason for the 4-9 Rams to push Kupp back from a significant high-ankle sprain that required surgery. You can cut Kupp from redraft rosters if you've been hanging on.

Rams HC Sean McVay said Friday that QB Matt Stafford is not expected to need surgery on his spinal cord contusion and should be healthy for the offseason program. There's been some speculation that Stafford's injury could force him to retire, but it at least sounds like McVay expects him to be back for 2023. We'll monitor Stafford's status throughout the offseason.

Rams QBs John Wolford, Baker Mayfield and Bryce Perkins are active for tonight's game vs. the Raiders. It's unclear what the team's plan is at QB tonight, so we'd avoid the situation in all fantasy formats.

Rams QB John Wolford (neck) is a game-time decision for tonight's tilt vs. the Raiders, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. If Wolford can't go, QB Baker Mayfield would get the start, according to Schefter. Mayfield was just claimed by Los Angeles on Tuesday, so it's tough to imagine he has any level of comfort with HC Sean McVay's offense. Plus, of course, Mayfield was awful across 7 games for the Panthers this season. Hopefully you don't need to mess with any part of the Rams passing game in fantasy lineups tonight.