Jordan Whittington opens the season in a matchup that could give the Los Angeles Rams an early chance to test the San Francisco 49ers through the air on Thursday at 8:35 p.m. ET. The setup puts Whittington in a favorable spot as the Rams begin their season opener.
That is why Tyler Higbee is part of the conversation around this game: the Rams' passing chances are drawing attention before Week 1 even kicks off. San Francisco allowed 232.4 passing yards per game last year, a figure that ranked eighth-worst in the NFL and helps explain why this matchup is being watched so closely.
Whittington’s own numbers show why the spotlight is useful but not automatic. He finished last year with 171 receiving yards and 18 receptions on 25 targets, averaging 11.4 receiving yards per game. Those are the kinds of totals that leave room for a better setting to matter, but they also show he has not yet turned volume into much production.
That is the friction inside the opener: a defense that was vulnerable against the pass last season is on the other sideline, but Whittington’s track record was modest enough that the matchup alone does not settle how much he will be involved. What happens next is simple enough to know and hard enough to project — the Los Angeles Rams meet the San Francisco 49ers on Thursday night, and Whittington’s role will be judged in real time.
