Who can take over TE2 spot for LA Rams after losing TE Johnny Mundt?

You may not view the loss of tight-end Johnny Mundt for the remainder of the 2021 NFL season in the same way that LA Rams head coach Sean McVay views the loss. That’s okay. McVay is not a Fantasy Football team owner looking for a player who can score more touchdowns and catch more passes than any other tight end in the NFL.

McVay is more interested in versatility, in blocking, and in the players who are willing to sacrifice themselves over and over again so that other players on the team can wind up on Fantasy Football team rosters. It’s the mindset of coaches that compels them to look for team players, not FF stars when building a roster.

Now, the LA Rams need a blocking tight end, someone the team can rely upon when the going gets tough. A player who sees as much value in team success as in personal accomplishments. Tight end Johnny Mundt is gone for the season.

So what do the Rams need in his replacement?

Who are you, Johnny Mundt?

Well, the first step is to define the role Johnny Mundt played on the LA Rams offense. Mundt is a diverse, multi-role duct tape type of player for McVay’s offense. He can play in a running back, power back, fullback, H-back, Y-back, tight end, split end, and even wideout spot.  While he doesn’t carry the football, he does block from virtually anywhere, from defensive backs to linebackers, to defensive linemen.

He will catch an occasional pass as well. Over the past four seasons, the Rams have thrown to him 13 times for 10 catches, 93 yards, and three first downs.  Mundt has been used as the misdirection receiver, the guy who is thrown to in order to deceive the defense in the past. That role was unlikely in 2021, as the team has a full stable of wide receivers who can be used to redirect the focus of the defense.

But the Rams may not need to stick with a blocker-only role. What options does the team have on the existing roster?

TE Brycen Hopkins

The LA Rams drafted Purdue Boilermakers tight end, Brycen Hopkins, with the 136th pick of the 2020 NFL Draft. The 6-foot-4 245-pound big boy from the Big-Ten was brought to the team as a strategic replacement for the anticipated exodus of teammate Gerald Everett.

He saw action on just two offensive plays in 2020, and a bit of work on special teams. But even that light bit of usage has evaporated in 2021. Some reports have indicated that he is not quite the blocker that the Rams expect from their tight ends. Well, that could pose a problem, couldn’t it?

This moment is clearly a defining moment for Hopkins’ future with the LA Rams now. Either he steps up and fills the TE2 role, or he is simply wasting the Rams’ time by occupying a roster spot. It’s as simple as that. I mean, isn’t that why he is on the team’s roster? If he does not step up now, then when?

Why he won’t work

The LA Rams need a blocker, a tough-minded sonofagun who loves to mix it up in the trenches. They also need a dependable outlet receiver, a guy who may not get many targets, but who is expected to catch the balls that are thrown his way. He has been on the Rams roster for his now second season, and yet he has not been involved in either the offense or special teams?

Sometimes players do not meet their pre-draft profiles. There are those occasions where even the best scouts and data analytics simply miss on a player. The Rams have hit on plenty of players, but perhaps Hopkins simply is not going to work out for them?

Why he will work

Let’s look at this the other way. If he is that bad, then why did he end up making the team’s 53-man roster? He has been on the shelf for just such an event, so why keep him on the bench? Hopkins flashed an ability to catch passes in the preseason, and all that potential has been placed into limbo. Well, no more.

Tyler Higbee is adept at pass-catching and blocking. While Brycen Hopkins proves the ability to block, Higbee can handle some of those duties as well. There is something to be said about the ‘now-or-never,’ pressure that is upon Hopkins. The Rams clearly need him to step up. If he does not do so, the front office knows what must be done before the 2022 NFL season begins.

WR/TE Jacob Harris

From the moment that the LA Rams drafted 6-foot-5 211-pound, Jacob Harris from the University of Central Florida, there has been a tremendous buzz about his NFL potential. The young man is relatively new to football, and as such is pretty much a blank slate. That is both a boon and a bane to his NFL career.

To state that Jacob Harris is raw is an understatement. But so is saying that he has tremendous potential. This guy is a skyscraper, is lightning fast, and has a fierce mindset that allows him to be ideal in his special teams’ role so far this season.

Because he is a blank slate, the Rams coaching staff has trained him to play as both a tight end and as a wide receiver. That type of versatility is incredibly effective for the Rams’ offensive scheme. Of course, he has to achieve a certain level of proficiency before the Rams will send him onto the football field. And the team needs to have an opening. Until now, there has not been an opportunity to contribute on offense.

Why he won’t work

Jacob Harris is very green, and even with a full training camp and seven weeks into the season, he has a lot to learn to achieve his full potential. That potential is coming, but it may not be this day. The LA Rams used Johnny Mundt to help the offensive line block, and blocking is most assuredly not what Jacob Harris excels at.

Forcing the matter now could prove to be counter-productive. Jacob Harris has all of the raw tools to become an outstanding pass catcher in the NFL. Should the Rams try to make use of all that potential by playing him now, when the majority of offensive snaps means that he will need to lock up with a defensive lineman or outside linebacker and try to sustain a block? That seems to be a complete misuse of his skillsets.

Why he will work

Talk about a cheat code? Imagine a receiver who stands 6-foot-5 who can blaze downfield at 4.39-seconds in a 40-yard dash? Now imagine placing him on the football field alongside Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, Tyler Higbee, and Van Jefferson or DeSean Jackson?  Who will cover him? If he races to the end zone, who can keep up with him?

The LA Rams have been very innovative at times, and when that has failed the team, veteran quarterback Matthew Stafford picks up the task of redirecting receivers to the open spot on the football field.  But Harris gets open vertically as well. He’s just so tall that he can reach up in a dead run or reach out on a fade route for the score.

Harris may be young and inexperienced, but holy moly is he ever talented. The only way to get experience is to play.  It would be far better to get him broken in now and be adept for the playoffs than try to surprise unsuspecting defenses come playoff time.

TE Kendall Blanton

So far, we’ve been talking about trying to reshape square pegs to fit into round holes. But promoting Kendall Blanton to the active roster now would most certainly put a big burly blocker back onto the team’s roster.  Hey, this guy is 6-foot-6 and weighs 260 pounds. If anyone on the team’s roster can block at the tight end spot, Blanton is it.

Until this season, Blanton had seemed to be a bit anonymous on the team. He is huge, yes. But his performance didn’t seem to showcase that size advantage on the football field. Well, until 2021 that is.

Positive reports from OTAs fed into positive reports from training camp fed into positive performances in preseason games. In fact, it almost seemed as though Blanton had overtaken Brycen Hopkins on the depth chart. Now, with Mundt lost for the season, Blanton is the obvious choice to be promoted to the active roster if the Rams do not use other tight-end options. If he is promoted, he has a good chance of showcasing his talents to block and catch. That could spell the end of Hopkins’s career with the Rams, and the start of Blanton’s career.

Why he won’t work

Kendall Blanton has yet to take on the yolk of the 53-man active roster. Yes, he’s big. Yes, he’s been with the team since 2019. Yes, he is an obvious choice. But he’s been unable to get over the hump to land a roster spot so far, and this is less of what Blanton has done to be promoted and more about Mundt’s absence creating a need in the team’s offense and special teams play.

The LA Rams have other options.

Right now, the Rams have three healthy tight ends on the roster, and Blanton is the lone tight end on the practice squad. With injuries mounting on the team’s defense, would the Rams be tempted to promote a defensive back here? With the team also losing RB Jake Funk, the team could promote RB Buddy Howell, whose 6-foot-1 225-pound build could give him the ability to fill in for Funk’s special team play, as well as play in a pseudo blocking back role as well. That would negate the need for Blanton to join the active roster as well.

Why he will work

To date, Blanton has been benched because his style of play is just too similar to that of Johnny Mundt. Now that Johnny Mundt is lost for the season, it’s time for his understudy to assume the lead role at TE2 for the Rams offense.

There is a lot to like about Blanton in this role. It’s not a high-pressure spot.  It’s blocking with an occasional pass tossed his way. Did we mention that Blanton is 6-foot-6? That’s as tall as Tyler Higbee, and at 262-pounds, he is an ideal size for getting physical at the line of scrimmage. That will be enough for now.

Eventually, Blanton could be the offense’s other receiver amidst the Rams pass progressions. He can be the outlet pass guy or the one who slips through undetected. Ultimately, he can grow into whatever role the coaches want and need him to play in the future.

But like any of the three players mentioned so far, he will need opportunities. Will he get it? Someone will. All we can hope for now is that whoever is given a chance for a larger role in the LA Rams offense, they make the best of it. The Rams will need that player to perform well. Not just at catching passes, but in blocking too.