Draft Preview 2023: Tight Ends

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March 24, 2023

by Steve Thomas

Welcome to another edition of The Hog Sty’s draft preview series.  This week, we’re going to cover the tight end group.  It appears pretty likely that Washington will draft a tight end this year, as the team currently has under contract a veteran who’s performance declined last season, plus a number of young players with varying degrees of success and experience.  Plus, with Eric Bieniemy having just comes from the Kansas City Chiefs, it seems probable that he will want to try to duplicate the success he had with Travis Kelce.  Also, this year’s class of tight ends is viewed by scouts as being outstanding, perhaps even historically great.  Therefore, I expect Washington to burn a draft pick on one of these players.  Let’s dive in.

Michael Mayer (6’4” / 249, Notre Dame):  Mayer is a true junior who played 36 games for Notre Dame, with 180 receptions for 2099 yards, 11.7 yards per reception, and 18 touchdowns.  Last season, he played 12 games and made 67 receptions for 809 yards, 12.1 yards per reception, and 9 touchdown.  He was a Consensus All-American in 2022 and a Third-Team All-American in 2021.  At the NFL Combine, Mayer ran the 40 yard dash in 4.7 seconds, and jumped 32.5 inches in the vertical leap and 9’10” in the standing broad jump.  Mayer is viewed as a player with quality hands and route running ability, and is a good blocking tight end.  He’s known as a player who is outstanding in contested-catch circumstances and is something of a mismatch in the middle of the field.  With new Washington offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy onboard and probably looking for a new version of Travis Kelce, this isn’t an inconceivable pick for Washington.  Mayer is viewed as mid-first round talent by most.

Luke Musgrave (6’6” / 253, Oregon St.):  Musgrave played for years with Oregon St., playing a total of 20 games, and had 47 receptions for 633 yards, 13.5 yards per receptions, and 2 touchdowns.  A knee injury in week 3 limited Musgrave to just 2 games in 2022, but in that time he had 11 receptions for 169 yards, 15.4 yards per reception, and 1 touchdown.  At the NFL Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.61 seconds, and jumped 36 inches in the vertical leap and 10’5” in the standing broad jump.  Musgrave had prototypical size for an NFL tight end and is known to have good athleticism, although he’s not overly explosive.  Musgrave is not known as a plus-level blocker.  The other obvious concern is that he hasn’t played much in four years due to the lost COVID season and his 2022 injury.  Musgrave is thought of as a first round talent.

Dalton Kincaid (6’4” / 246, Utah):  Kincaid is a fifth-year senior who originally started his collegiate career at San Diego St. in 2018, then transferred to Utah in 2020.  In total, he has 173 total receptions for 2623 yards, and 35 touchdowns.  In 2022 for Utah, he played 12 games and made 70 receptions for 890 yards, 12.7 yards per reception, and 8 touchdowns, and was a First-Team All-Pac-12 selection.  He didn’t participate in athletic measurements at the NFL Combine because he is still recovering from a small back fracture.  Kincaid is known as a pass rusher, not a run blocker.  Critics view athleticism, route-running, and hands as his strengths.  He’s expected to be selected in either round 1 or round 2.

Darrell Washington (6’7” / 264, Georgia):  Washington is a true junior who played 27 games for Georgia, and made 45 receptions for 774 yards, 17.2 yards per reception, and 3 touchdowns.  In 2022, he played 15 games and had 28 receptions for 454 yards, 16.2 yards per reception, and 2 touchdowns, and was a Second-Team All SEC selection.  At the NFL Combine, Washington ran the 40 yard dash in 4.64 seconds, jumped 31 inches in the vertical leap and 10’2” in the standing broad jump, and did 21 bench press reps.  Washington’s size makes his a fit for an inline blocking tight end, although some analysts think that his blocking technique isn’t ideal.  He projects as an inline, traditional Y-tight end in the NFL.  Washington is viewed as a first round talent by many.

Tucker Kraft (6’5” / 254, South Dakota St.): Kraft is a senior who redshirted his freshman year in 2019.  Between 2020 and 2022, he had a total of 99 receptions for 1211 yards, 12.2 yards per reception, and 9 touchdowns.  In 2022, he had 27 receptions for 348 yards, 12.9 yards per reception, and 3 touchdowns.  2021 was his true breakout season, with 65 receptions for 773 yards.  Kraft was an FCS All-American in both 2021 and 2022.  At the NFL Combine, Kraft ran the 40 yards dash in 4.69 seconds, jumped 34 inches in the vertical leap and 10’2” in the standing broad jump, and did 23 bench press reps.  He obviously has the size of a traditional NFL inline tight end, and scouts view him as having decent athleticism, but needs improvement on his route running and with his pad level in blocking.  He’s viewed by most as a round 2 – 3 prospect.

 

Sam LaPorta (6’3” / 245, Iowa): LaPorta played 40 games in 4 seasons at Iowa, with a total of 153 receptions for 1786 yards, 11.7 yards per reception, and 5 touchdowns.  In 2022, LaPorta played 12 games and had 58 receptions for 657 yards, 11.3 yards per reception, 1 touchdown, and earned First Team All-Big 10 honors.  At the NFL Combine, LaPorta ran the 40 yard dash in 4.59 seconds, and jumped 35 inches in the vertical leap and 10’3” in the standing broad jump.  He lined up both inline and out of the slot at Iowa.  LaPorta is known to have good hands and route-running ability; however, scouts see him as giving good effort as a blocker, but ultimately not great as a lead blocker.  He’s viewed by most as a day 2 draft prospect.

Brenton Strange (6’4” / 253, Penn St.):  Strange is a senior who played 33 games in four years at Penn St., and made 70 receptions for 755 yards, 10.8 yards per carry, and 11 touchdowns.  In 2022, Strange played 13 games and made 32 receptions for 362 yards, 11.3 yards per reception, and 5 touchdowns.  He earned Third Team All-Big Ten honors in 2022.  At the NFL Combine, Strange ran the 40 yard dash in 4.7 seconds, jumped 36 inches in the vertical leap and 10’4” in the standing broad jump, and did 23 bench press reps.  Some scouts see Strange has have potential as an H-back, whereas others view him as a traditional inline tight end.  Strange is an above-average athlete with some acceleration, and had success after the catch.  Some scouts feel as though his route running could use improvement at the NFL level.  He also had some drops in college.  Strange is ranked by most as a potential third round pick.

Luke Schoonmaker (6’5” / 251, Michigan): Schoonmaker, a fifth-year senior, played 43 games in four years at Michigan, with 54 receptions for 637 yards, 11.9 yards per reception, and 7 touchdowns.  In 2022, he played 12 games, and had 35 receptions for 418 yards, 11.9 yards per reception, and 3 touchdowns, and earned Third Team All-Big Ten honors.  At the NFL Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.63 seconds, and jumped 33.5 inches in the vertical leap and 10’7” in the standing broad jump.  Schoonmaker is known as a blocking tight end who specializes in the run game.  Scouts view him as having only limit ability with the ball after the catch and as being one who struggles to get separation.  Schoonmaker has been graded at anywhere from a third round to fifth round value.

Davis Allen (6’6” / 245, Clemson):  Davis played 41 games in four seasons with Clemson, and made a total of 88 receptions for 951 yards, 10.8 yards per reception, and 12 touchdowns.  In 2022, he played 14 games, with 39 receptions for 443 yards, 11.4 yards per reception, and 5 touchdowns, and earned Third Team All-ACC honors.  At the NFL Combine, he ran the 40 yard dash in 4.84 seconds, and jumped 38.5 inches in the vertical leap and 10’5” in the standing broad jump.  He lined up in a wide variety of positions at Clemson, including inline tight end, H-back, slot, and wide.  Scouts rave about his elite ball skills.  His weaknesses include his slow speed and abilities as a run blocker.  Scouts see him as being a fifth round talent.

Josh Whyle (6’6” / 248, Cincinnati): Whyle played 37 games in four years at the University of Cincinnati, with 88 receptions for 1062 yards, 12.1 yards per reception, and 15 touchdowns.  In 2022, he played 12 games and made 32 receptions for 326 yards, 10.2 yards per reception, and 3 touchdowns, and earned First Team-All AAC honors.  At the NFL Combine, he ran the 40 yards dash in 4.69 seconds, and jumped 33.5 inches in the vertical leap and 9’7” in the standing broad jump.  He is an extremely versatile player who filled a variety of roles at Cincinnati.  Scouts view Whyle as a fourth or fifth round talent.