Pro Football Focus tabs TE Gerald Everett as Los Angeles Rams’ 2019 breakout candidate

In a list of breakout candidates for all 32 NFL teams in 2019, Pro Football Focus tabbed Los Angeles Rams TE Gerald Everett as one to watch in 2019:

Los Angeles Rams: Gerald Everett, tight end

Everett was targeted just 48 times a season ago, and he caught 33 of those passes for 320 yards, three touchdowns and 144 yards after the catch en route to the fifth-best receiving grade among qualifying tight ends (79.7). Everett proved to be an absolute force with the ball in his hands last year (his broken tackle rate trailed only George Kittle, Vance McDonald and David Njoku among tight ends), and you can bet your bottom dollar that Sean McVay has already come up with a plan to get Everett more involved in 2019.

While Young Gerald has always displayed great YAC skills and hands, his usage in Rams Head Coach Sean McVay’s system has seemingly prohibited his ascension more so than his talent. Will McVay employ more two-tight end sets in 2019, or has Everett’s blocking improved enough to supplant TE Tyler Higbee in the 11 personnel grouping? We’ll start to get some answers on Sunday in Week 1 when the Rams open their regular season against the Carolina Panthers.

Here are a few other Rams who might open some eyes this season:

EDGE Ogbonnia Okoronkwo

Sure, it’s a limited sample size against a lot of players who are now on the street, but Ogbo flourished in his NFL audition, capping the preseason with a two-sack performance against the Houston Texans. Good players dominate backups. Don’t be surprised if Okoronkwo winds up with a significant role in this defense.

RB Darrell Henderson

Did he look good in the preseason? Not really, but there were some small signs that given a crease here and there, Henderson wild find ways to turn and burn. Many hearken back to McVay’s usage of RB Chris Thompson in Washington when looking for an appropriate barometer for Henderson. If the rookie can grab 5-6 passes a game and break a few big plays here and there, he may make a list like this in 2020. If any harm befalls Todd Gurley, Henderson likely breaks out this season.

OL Joseph Noteboom

Fair enough: guards don’t usually “break out,” but given that we’ve seen Noteboom play about 8 snaps during the regular season if the second year pro can draw comparisons to the departed Rodger Saffold, that’s breaking out enough for me. Opportunity is knocking here. Let’s see if Noteboom can answer the bell and make us forget about a former Ram great in his first turn as a starter.