TE Tyler Higbee, S Cam Kurl sign multi-year deals to stay with Rams: reports
Safety Kam Curl and tight end Tyler Higbee are both re-signing with the Los Angeles Rams on multi-year deals, according to reports from The Associated Press.
Curl's deal, worth a $36 million over three years, was confirmed by a person who spoke on condition of anonymity because the Rams hadn't announced the specifics. It locks down a key component of the Rams' defense for the past two seasons. The deal includes $24 million in guarantees.
Curl has started 33 of the Rams' last 34 games, recording 201 tackles and two interceptions. He had a career-high 122 tackles last season, excelling both as a pass defender and a stopper inside the box during the most impactful year of his six-season NFL career.
Curl has also started all five of the Rams' playoff games in his tenure. His interception of Caleb Williams' pass in overtime led to Los Angeles' winning field goal to beat Chicago in the divisional round.
Curl's breakout season could have pushed him out of the Rams' price range in an open free-agent market, but he said he strongly preferred to return to the Rams after their season ended with a narrow loss to Seattle in the NFC championship game.
"I would love to be back here," Curl said at the time. "This is a great organization, a winning organization. I feel like this year I put the league on notice, and we're going to see what happens."
Curl is a former seventh-round pick who spent his first four NFL seasons in Washington before signing a two-year, $9 million deal with Los Angeles as a free agent. He has five career interceptions and eight sacks.
The Rams have been busy before the official opening of free agency, re-signing Curl and tight end Tyler Higbee while also agreeing to a major trade to acquire star cornerback Trent McDuffie from the Kansas City Chiefs for several draft picks, including their second first-round choice next month.
McDuffie will bolster the Rams' mediocre cornerback group when he joins safeties Curl and Quentin Lake, who have both re-signed with Los Angeles on three-year deals.
Higbee's two-year deal has not yet been confirmed by the team either, but a person familiar with the negotiations spoke with The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity when the deal was sealed, securing the team's longest-tenured player and the most productive tight end in franchise history.
Higbee was a fourth-round pick by the Rams in 2016 in their first draft after moving from St. Louis to Los Angeles. He has been a key component of their offense whenever healthy for the past decade, setting every major franchise receiving record for tight ends while racking up 386 catches for 3,949 yards and 27 touchdowns.
Now 33 years old, Higbee had 25 catches for 281 yards and three touchdowns last season despite starting just eight games due to injury. He missed six games down the stretch of the regular season before returning in January for LA's playoff push to the NFC championship game.
Higbee also injured his knee in the playoffs in January 2024 and missed the first 14 games of the following season before returning in December 2024 with a memorable TD reception.
Higbee has never been selected for a Pro Bowl or an All-Pro team, but coach Sean McVay has relied on him extensively as a physical blocker and a key pass-catcher for the past nine seasons.
The Rams have lost several key veteran players in recent years, thinning their ties to their Super Bowl championship team from the 2021 season. Higbee became the longest-serving player on the Rams' roster when right tackle Rob Havenstein announced his retirement last month.
Higbee played in the Rams' loss to New England in the Super Bowl in February 2019 but didn't make a catch. He then won a ring three years later even though he didn't get to play in the big game after injuring his knee in the Rams' victory over San Francisco in the NFC championship game.
Colby Parkinson was the Rams' top pass-catching tight end last season, catching 43 passes for 408 yards and eight touchdowns while playing extensively in Higbee's absence. Tight ends Davis Allen and rookie Terrance Ferguson also got plenty of playing in McVay's newest offensive scheme, which evolved at midseason to use three-tight-end sets to a degree rarely seen in modern professional football.
The unorthodox approach worked, with Los Angeles leading the NFL in total offense and scoring. All four tight ends are now under contract for the 2026 season.