The Los Angeles Rams traded away tight end Mark Redman to the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, due to the likelihood that he wouldn't have cleared waivers and the team does not have a current roster spot for him.
Redman's departure reinforces the notion that the league will continue to expand its multiple tight end offenses, after the Rams pushed the concept to the limit last season to remarkable success.
However, the move does leave a lingering issue that the team will have to address before the season, and that's ensuring they have a game-ready tight end waiting on their practice squad. The reason is that despite the team being set to have five tight ends on their roster, their ability to run their 13-personnel package remains in a questionable
position.
Colby Parkinson, Tyler Higbee, Terrance Ferguson, Davis Allen, and Max Klare will be the probable names on the team's 53-man roster. The problem is that Higbee and Allen have extensive injury histories, and both Higbee and Parkinson missed multiple games last season due to injury.
When the Rams lost Higbee, their 13-personnel offense became non-existent as the team transitioned back towards their 11 and 12 personnel offenses. They simply did not have the players to sustain the scheme. An injury can not result in a team removing an entire personnel package from their game plan, but that's exactly what occurred in 2025, and the team never recovered.
They did bring in Nick Vannett to help, but he was not part of their offense in any form, likely because he didn't understand the complexities that Sean McVay installs into his system. Despite adding Klare in the draft, the physicality of the position, paired with the current wear-and-tear within the roster has put the Rams in a similar position to where they resided last year, despite adding numbers to the room.
In order to ensure the offense remains functional and productive, adding a game-ready tight end on their practice squad has to be at the top of the team's priorities.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams could still use TE depth on practice squad after trading one away
