Draft Preview: Tight End

March 21, 2025

by Alex Zeese

With Washington bringing back both Zach Ertz and John Bates, to go with last years 2nd round pick Ben Sinnottddi, ang a tight end in the draft doesn’t look like the highest priority. That said, there are lot of good tight end prospsects in this class.

1st through 3rd round caliber picks:

Tyler Warren, Penn State, 6’6”, 256 lbs
2024 Stats: 104 catches, 1233 yards, 8 TDs
Probably a top 10 to top 15 pick. He should be a fan favorite for any Washingtonian. The Mechanicsville native wears 44 because he grew up watching film of John Riggins and loved his game. He plays like a classic tight end, setting up in-line outside the tackles. He is good at just about everything, including vertical routs. He also was a Swiss army knife threat last year and had 26 runs for 218 yards and 4 touchdowns. He even threw 6 passes and has a passing touchdown. He should be looked at as the best tight end in this draft class. Sadly, there’s almost no chance he will fall all the way to Washington at 29.

Colston Loveland, Michigan, 6’6”, 248 lbs.
2024 Stats: 56 catches, 582 yards 5 TDs
Should be a first round pick. Lines up all over the field. He’s a wide receiver / tight end type. He’s a your hand in the dirt blocker and can make plays both inside and outside the numbers. There is a reason why he’s viewed as a first round 1 draft pick. The talent as a receiver is clear, and I think on most teams he will quickly become a go-to target.

Harold Fannin Jr., Bowling Green, 6’3” 241 lbs
2024 Stats: 117 catches, 1555 yards, 10 TDs
Arguably the best offensive player in the MAC last year, Fannin blew up in his senior season. He would be a great receiving target, a 2nd tight end type. He looks lean for his size. At the NFL Combine, he ran a 4.71 second 40 yard dash and did 22 bench reps. I don’t expect him to be a first round pick. Some places have him ranked in the 2nd round, and some seem to have him as low as a 3rd or 4th rounder. If he were available later in the draft I think he could be an interesting pass catching weapon for a team that still needs one or two more.

Gunnar Helm, Texas, 6’5” 241 lbs,
2024 Stats: 60 catches, 786 yards, 7 TDs
Should be a 2nd or 3rd round pick. More traditional looking tight end. Good at finding space to get open. Good receiver overall. Didn’t do great in the combine – ran the 40 yard dash in 4.84 seconds and had the worst 10 yard split of the tight end group, 1.69. He had the worst vertical of the group as well.

Elijah Arroyo Miami (Fla.), 6’5 250 lbs
2024 Stats: 35 catches, 590 yards, 7 TDs
Good deep crossing rout type tight end. He does a good job getting open when he’s given those types of routes. Clearly a big play guy, given that he averaged almost 17 yards per catch. He didn’t participate fully in the Combine but did 22 reps on the bench. He’s projected to be a late 2nd or early 3rd round pick on most sites.

Mason Taylor, LSU, 6’5”, 251 lbs
2024 Stats: 55 catches, 546 yards, 2 TDs
Would be useful in the quick passing game. He has a number of catches where he’s just running a quick out route at the line of scrimmage and turning up field for a big gain. He’s a yards after catch type. Not as much of a deep threat tight end. Probably a 3rd round pick.

Terrance Ferguson, Oregon, 6’5”, 247 lbs
2024 Stats: 43 catches, 591 yards, 3 TDs
He may have had the best combine numbers of any tight end: he ran a 4.63 in the 40 and had a 1.55 10 yard split, has very good jump ball ability and the top vertical of the tight end group. Despite his impressive combine he is still looked at as a #2 tight end in the NFL and a late third or early 4th round pick. But there’s some things to like with Ferguson. Some tight ends have that natural “bounce off a guy” talent, where they are always seemingly able to make a guy or two miss. He is one of them, and can do it with jukes, spin moves. He seems to have a lot of different tools.

Day 3 picks:

Oronde Gadsden II, Syracuse, 6’5”, 243 lbs
2024 Stats: 73 catches, 934 yards, 7 TDs
Projected anywhere from the 4th round to the 7th round. I like Gadsden as a flanker, big slot slot receiver type of tight end who would be a natural 2nd tight end on a roster. While he isn’t as fast or explosive as some of the higher ranked guys, I think he could be a good red zone receiving target given his size.

Mitchell Evans, Notre Dame, 6’5”, 258 lbs,
2024 Stats: 43 catches, 421 yards, 3 TDs
Projected anywhere from the 4th round to the 7th round. Big body type, average speed for a tight end and not a lot of separation. But can use his size to his advantage when matched up against defensive backs.

Jake Briningstool, Clemson, 6’6”, 240 lbs
2024 Stats: 49 catches 530 yards 7 TDs
Good short yard target. Not always the best at breaking away from a tackle. Could go anywhere from the 4th round on.

Moliki Matavao, UCLA, 6’6”, 260 lbs
2024 Stats: 41 catches, 506 yards, 2 TDs
Blocker and short yardage guy.

CJ Dippre, Alabama, 6’5”, 256 lbs
2024 Stats: 21 catches, 256 yards, 0 TDs
Had the most bench reps at the combine, 32.

Ben Yurosek, Georgia, 6’4”, 245 lbs 7th
2024 Stats: 15 catches 185 yards, 0 TDs
Didn’t produce much after transferring to Georgia

Jackson Hawes, Georgia Tech, 6’5”, 253 lbs
2024 Stats: 16 catches, 195 yards, 0 TDs
As his numbers would suggest Hawes is a blocker first.

Gavin Bartholomew, Pittsburgh, 6’5”, 250 lbs 7th
2024 Stats: 38 catches, 322 yards, 4 TDs
Known as a good blocker, he’s also a good jump ball option.

Caden Prieskorn, Ole Miss, 6’6”, 255 lbs 7th
2024 Stats: 27 catches, 401 yards, 3 TDs
Doesn’t break tackles but he does keep his legs moving as guys try and bring him down.

Thomas Fidone II, Nebraska, 6’6”, 242 lbs 7th
2024 Stats: 36 catches, 373 yards, 0 TDs
Nice catch radius and good size.

Brant Kuithe, Utah, 6’2”, 236 lbs 7th
2024 Stats: 19 catches 206 yards, 3 TDs
A great athlete who sadly gets hurt frequently, he is also 25.

Joshua Simon, South Carolina, 6’4”, 259 lbs 7th
2024 Stats: 40 catches, 519 yards, 7 TDs
May be a sleeper pick. Good hands. Good speed for a TE, ran a 4.65 40, but not a blockre.

Rivaldo Fairweather, Auburn, 6’4”, 252 lbs 7th
2024 Stats: 31 catches 372 yards, 2 TDs
Has that long lean body type that looks more like a WR than a tight end.

Thoughts on this class: Unless somehow Warren were to fall to 29, I don’t see Washington going after a tight end in the 1st and 2nd round. However, I do think that there’s an outside chance of Washington grabbing one of these tight ends in the later rounds, for long term team building reasons. This is a very deep tight end class, and even the guys who I expect to end up as the 7th round picks to me look like they could be solid contributors in the NFL.