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Los Angeles Rams tight end Colby Parkinson quietly turned in one of the best man-coverage seasons among NFL tight ends in 2025.
According to charted route data from @NoFilm_Analysis on X, Parkinson posted north of 2.4 yards per route run (YPRR) against man coverage, among the highest marks at the position and well clear of the 1.10 league average. His YPRR against zone, by contrast, sat closer to league average at around 1.4, placing him firmly in the "low zone, high man" quadrant alongside players like Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft.
That profile lines up with how Parkinson generated his production. A separate chart from @NoFilm_Analysis measuring avoided tackle rate against yards after catch per reception shows Parkinson sitting almost exactly on the league-average lines in both categories — a stark contrast to bigger after-the-catch playmakers like Sam LaPorta or Tucker Kraft, who ranked well above average in avoided tackles or yards after catch per reception, or Darnell Washington, whose avoided-tackle rate paced the position.
Parkinson wasn't making defenders miss at a high rate or piling up chunk yardage after the catch — his damage came from winning the catch point itself, not from playmaking with the ball in his hands.
That skill set helped him set career highs across the board, catching 43 of 56 targets for 408 yards and eight touchdowns in 15 games, numbers that outpaced his previous five NFL seasons combined in touchdowns. Parkinson was especially dangerous in the red zone, leading the Rams with 15 catches and 118 yards inside the 20, according to theRams.com, and his six red-zone touchdowns trailed only Davante Adams on the team. That zone of the field is where man coverage is far more common and where beating it consistently is at a premium.
Parkinson's game-winning touchdown against the Carolina Panthers in the Wild Card round was a textbook example of the skill set the numbers point to: a big-bodied target who can shake a single defender in a phone booth rather than one who needs a scheme-manufactured window against zone.
The question now is how much room there is for that role to grow. The Rams return a tight end room that's suddenly crowded: Terrance Ferguson enters his second season after flashing as a rookie, 2026 second-round pick Max Klare joins the mix, and veterans Tyler Higbee and Davis Allen remain on the roster as well.
Los Angeles' record-setting reliance on three-tight-end personnel in 2025 helped create room for all of them to produce, but with more mouths to feed in what's now one of the deepest tight end groups in the league, Parkinson's target share isn't guaranteed to hold steady in 2026. At the very least, Parkinson enters a contract year with a breakout season at his back and the knowledge of where he can be most effectively utilized on an offense.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Colby Parkinson's breakout was fueled by elite man-coverage production
Continue reading...
According to charted route data from @NoFilm_Analysis on X, Parkinson posted north of 2.4 yards per route run (YPRR) against man coverage, among the highest marks at the position and well clear of the 1.10 league average. His YPRR against zone, by contrast, sat closer to league average at around 1.4, placing him firmly in the "low zone, high man" quadrant alongside players like Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft.
That profile lines up with how Parkinson generated his production. A separate chart from @NoFilm_Analysis measuring avoided tackle rate against yards after catch per reception shows Parkinson sitting almost exactly on the league-average lines in both categories — a stark contrast to bigger after-the-catch playmakers like Sam LaPorta or Tucker Kraft, who ranked well above average in avoided tackles or yards after catch per reception, or Darnell Washington, whose avoided-tackle rate paced the position.
Parkinson wasn't making defenders miss at a high rate or piling up chunk yardage after the catch — his damage came from winning the catch point itself, not from playmaking with the ball in his hands.
That skill set helped him set career highs across the board, catching 43 of 56 targets for 408 yards and eight touchdowns in 15 games, numbers that outpaced his previous five NFL seasons combined in touchdowns. Parkinson was especially dangerous in the red zone, leading the Rams with 15 catches and 118 yards inside the 20, according to theRams.com, and his six red-zone touchdowns trailed only Davante Adams on the team. That zone of the field is where man coverage is far more common and where beating it consistently is at a premium.
Parkinson's game-winning touchdown against the Carolina Panthers in the Wild Card round was a textbook example of the skill set the numbers point to: a big-bodied target who can shake a single defender in a phone booth rather than one who needs a scheme-manufactured window against zone.
The question now is how much room there is for that role to grow. The Rams return a tight end room that's suddenly crowded: Terrance Ferguson enters his second season after flashing as a rookie, 2026 second-round pick Max Klare joins the mix, and veterans Tyler Higbee and Davis Allen remain on the roster as well.
Los Angeles' record-setting reliance on three-tight-end personnel in 2025 helped create room for all of them to produce, but with more mouths to feed in what's now one of the deepest tight end groups in the league, Parkinson's target share isn't guaranteed to hold steady in 2026. At the very least, Parkinson enters a contract year with a breakout season at his back and the knowledge of where he can be most effectively utilized on an offense.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Colby Parkinson's breakout was fueled by elite man-coverage production
Continue reading...
