Colby Parkinson confirmed what Rams fans suspected about his down year

For Los Angeles Rams tight end Colby Parkinson, limping on and off the field against the Raiders was nothing new. Clearly, he hasn't been himself this season. Despite missing only one game, Week 4 against the Eagles, Parkinson has effectively played hurt all year. He's had to manage knee and shoulder injuries simultaneously, and who knows what else. 

"If you guys knew the half of it, he's been unbelievable," Matthew Stafford said of Parkinson's Week 7 performance and what he's gone through this season. It wasn't surprising, then, when Parkinson confirmed that simply preparing for games has been challenging.

"I mean, definitely getting a lot more treatment. It takes a little bit longer to get ready for games, you know, more tape and brace and all that stuff," Parkinson said. "Sometimes it feels like when it rains, it pours for some reason. But, I said it after the game, this team is easy to play through hard stuff for because of how much love I have for the guys. I know that every single one of my teammates would do the same thing."

While Parkinson trailed only Puka Nacua with five catches for 48 yards in Las Vegas, his contributions thus far aren't nearly what he did last season after stepping up for an injured Tyler Higbee. Rams fans already suspected that injuries played a big part, and it seems that has been the case, after all. 

Injuries haven't kept Colby Parkinson from giving the Rams his all

Although Parkinson only got going in 2025 after Higbee went out, there have been similar opportunities this season with Terrance Ferguson on injured reserve and rookie tight end Max Klare gathering dust on the bench. In six games, though, Parkinson has managed only 14 catches for 103 yards and a touchdown. 

Compare that to his production starting in Week 7 a year ago, a stretch spanning 14 games counting the postseason: 47 REC/549 YDs/9 TD. 

Obviously, Parkinson isn't operating at nearly that level in 2026. The past two weeks are the only times he's drawn more than two targets in a game or hauled in over 15 yards. That context makes his Week 7 showing all the more impressive, as Parkinson fought through pain and leg tape to help fill the void left by Davante Adams' injury. 

As Stafford and Parkinson's other teammates know, the guy levels up when he's needed. His hot streak in '25 began with the Rams missing Puka Nacua against the Jaguars, and Parkinson never looked back after that. His eight receiving touchdowns were third-most among tight ends last season, and second on the Rams after Adams' league-leading 14. 

Parkinson easily paced the tight-end room with 43 grabs for 408 yards, then followed up with over 150 more receiving yards and another TD in the playoffs. He does it all: run blocking, pass protection, checkdowns, mid-range route-running. The deflection off his hands against the Raiders, resulting in an interception and his only missed target of the day, was an uncharacteristic miscue.

Despite playing hurt, he has logged more offensive snaps per game, 44.5, than last season. Among Rams tight ends, Parkinson has taken the field for the highest rate, 63 percent, of available reps in the games he has played. Only Higbee (59 percent) has more total offensive snaps, 300 to 267. 

Parkinson may not be healthy anytime soon, but whatever he can give this team, it will be his very best. 

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