As much as the modern NFL is a 3×1 league in the passing game, the ways in which teams get to that equation are very different. Last season, the Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs, known above all for their explosive passing game, ranked second in the league in dropbacks with two tight ends on the field — their 245 such dropbacks left them behind only the Baltimore Ravens (338 dropbacks with two tight ends), who are far better known for such things.
With two tight ends on the field, Patrick Mahomes completed 166 of 230 passes for 1,707 yards, 831 air yards, 16 touchdowns, two interceptions, and a passer rating of 113.4. The Philadelphia Eagles, who met the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII, had the highest passer rating (127.1) with two tight ends on the field.
No team had more dropbacks with three tight ends on the field than Kansas City’s 78 (the Houston Texans ranked second with 48), and in those 3TE sets, Mahomes completed 51 of 68 passes for 714 yards, 314 air yards, 11 touchdowns, no interceptions, and a passer rating of 149.0.
Of course, it helps to have a generational, slam-dunk Hall of Famer like Travis Kelce on your roster when going heavy at the position, but the overarching point is that tight ends are more important to a lot of NFL offenses than you may think — and not just the ones you know about.
So, when we turn our attention to the tight ends prospects in the 2023 draft class — a class as full of talent at the position as we’ve seen in years — it’s crucial to understand that there isn’t just one type of tight end important to NFL teams. The big receivers who don’t block obviously have better stans and get the most recognition for the most part, but it’s about more than that.
Here are the eight top tight ends in the 2023 NFL draft class.
(All advanced metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus, Sports Info Solutions, and Football Outsiders unless otherwise indicated).
(All prospect measurement percentiles courtesy of MockDraftable.com).
2023 NFL Draft: The top 9 safeties
2023 NFL Draft: The top 11 cornerbacks
2023 NFL Draft: The top 8 linebackers
2023 NFL Draft: The top 8 interior defensive linemen
2023 NFL Draft: The top 8 edge defenders
2023 NFL Draft: The top 5 offensive tackles
2023 NFL Draft: The top 8 interior offensive linemen
1. Dalton Kincaid, Utah
Height: 6′ 3⅝” (25th) Weight: 246 (20th)
40-Yard Dash: N/A
10-Yard Split: N/A
Bench Press: N/A
Vertical Jump: N/A
Broad Jump: N/A
3-Cone Drill: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: N/A
Wingspan: 78⅜” (40th)
Arm Length: 32⅝” (32nd)
Hand Size: 10¼” (81st)
Bio: A multi-sport guy as he was growing up, Kincaid didn’t really start playing tackle football until his senior year in high school. That’s when he became a receiver for Faith Lutheran High School in Las Vegas, Nevada. Basketball had been Kincaid’s primary sport, but the no-star recruit signed with San Diego and played two year there before deciding to explore what might be available at bigger schools. The 2019 Third Team All-American, who led all FCS tight ends in receiving yards, chose Utah as his next destination. Over three seasons with the Utes, Kincaid caught 107 passes for 1,414 yards and 16 touchdowns. In 2022, he lined up to the formation on 376 snaps, with 257 in the slot, 49 out wide, and one in the backfield.
Stat to Know: If you watch Kincaid’s tape and assume that he’s a killer against zone coverage, you would be correct. His 45 receptions against zone ranked first among all tight ends not only in this class, but in the FBS. Kincaid gained 626 yards on those catches, also tops in the nation, and only Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer had more touchdown with four than Kincaid’s three.
Strengths: Kincaid is just creeping death to basic zone coverage for a few reasons: He has the speed to get through the first gates, he’s on point when it’s time to stop and catch, and he’s just a bully after the catch. You need to have a better plan for this guy once he gets going than Colorado’s defense did here.
And though his athleticism is a primary attribute, Kincaid can also be a real problem for defenses with contested catches. Even with defenders all over him, the ball is more his than it is theirs.
In those aforementioned 3×1 sets, the “Y-iso” — the tight end who can align alone to one side of the field and make big plays — is of primary importance if your tight end has the skills to get that done. Kincaid’s athletic attributes and ball-tracking ability project him quite well into that particular scenario.
Weaknesses: Kincaid seems to be a willing blocker most of the time, but it obviously wasn’t a point of focus at Utah. He needs some work latching onto his targets and making his blocks look like more than effort reps with minimal results. There are other instances in which… well, let’s just say he’ll need to be coached up at the next level with this stuff.
Conclusion: Any NFL team would find Kincaid to be an asset in its offense, but those teams most dependent on multiple tight end sets — think the Chiefs, Ravens, Seahawks, Falcons, and Packers — would especially love what he brings as a space weapon capable of major plays all over the field. Maybe your second and third tight ends are the big blockers, and you just have Kincaid working defenses to all three levels. There is no other tight end in this class more capable of winning in these roles.
NFL Comparison: Travis Kelce. The Chiefs took Kelce out of Cincinnati in the third round of the 2013 draft, and after a rookie season in which he didn’t make an impact due to a knee injury, Kelce quickly became an epicenter of a Kansas City offense that has become exponentially more complex, explosive, and hard to stop in the last decade. Kincaid projects so well in many of the areas that have made Kelce a future Hall-of-Famer.
2. Luke Musgrave, Oregon State
Height: 6′ 5⅞” (80th percentile) Weight: 253 (52nd)
40-Yard Dash: 4.61 (88th)
10-Yard Split: 1.58 (87th)
Bench Press: N/A
Vertical Jump: 36″ (82nd)
Broad Jump: 125″ (93rd)
3-Cone Drill: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: N/A
Wingspan: 79½” (53rd)
Arm Length: 32⅝” (32nd)
Hand Size: 10⅜” (87th)
Bio: A championship skier in his younger days, Musgrave played quarterback, defensive back, receiver, and then tight end at Bend Senior High School in Bend, Oregon. The three-star recruit chose Oregon State over Oregon, and he’s got a lot of family connections in football. Most notably, his uncle, Bill Musgrave, was selected in the fourth round of the 1991 draft out of Oregon by the Dallas Cowboys, and Bill Musgrave spent five seasons in the NFL as a backup quarterback, later becoming an offensive coordinator for several NFL teams. Over four seasons with the Beavers, Luke Musgrave caught 47 passes on 80 targets for 633 yards and two touchdowns. In 2022, he lined up 80 times inline, 28 times in the slot, and six out wide. Musgrave missed all but two games in the 2022 season due to a knee injury.
Stat to Know: Last season, Musgrave was targeted just three times on passes of 20 or more air yards — due mostly to that injury. His 2021 season, in which he caught four deep passes on 10 targets for 117 yards, should be more indicative of his explosive play opportunity rate, with a serious bump in efficiency based on his 2022 tape.
Strengths: Musgrave’s high-percentile speed and burst at the combine absolutely show up on tape. He’s quick out of the gate, and he has excellent build-up speed through the second and third levels of a defense. This doesn’t just allow him to create big plays in a straight line — he’s also comfortable and capable at the end of a route in an explosive play situation. If you want to echo Kyle Shanahan and run a bunch of “Y-throwback” stuff, Musgrave would be plug-and-play.
Musgrave’s comfortable speed has also allowed him to develop subtle (and at times not-do-subtle) moves to create separation, thwarting tight coverage.
Musgrave also brings a good sense of creating openings through route breaks; he knows how to maximize space and leverage, and this will be important in his professional development — especially as he expands his route palette.
Weaknesses: Musgrave is more of an innocent bystander than a true blocker; effort and intent don’t really show up on tape. Teams will have to decide how important and coachable that is in his case.
There are times when Musgrave could improve his radius for his quarterbacks by squaring to the ball more accurately and with better timing. He has nine drops throughout his collegiate career, and he’ll need to shore that up.
Conclusion: Musgrave’s value to NFL teams will depend entirely on what NFL teams are looking for. Making him a YAC specialist who blocks a lot and gets the occasional big play isn’t the ideal paradigm for him at all. He is a player for teams who see tight ends as big receivers, have moved on from the “traditional” constructs of the position, and will let the developmental liabilities slide in the name of how he can burn up the field.
NFL Comparison: Darren Waller. Selected in the sixth round of the 2015 draft by the Ravens out of Georgia Tech, Waller overcame personal issues to become one of the NFL’s most explosive pass-catching tight ends. Musgrave doesn’t have Waller’s longer track speed (Waller ran a 4.46-second 40-yard dash at his scouting combine), but the 1.58-second 10-yard splits are identical, and from the deep play potential to the blocking issues to the occasionally maddening drops, Musgrave looks a lot like Waller to me.
3. Michael Mayer, Notre Dame
Height: 6′ 4½” (52nd percentile) Weight: 249 (33rd)
40-Yard Dash: 4.70 (66th)
10-Yard Split: 1.66 (32nd)
Bench Press: N/A
Vertical Jump: 32½” (42nd)
Broad Jump: 118″ (68th)
3-Cone Drill: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: N/A
Wingspan: 76¼” (9th)
Arm Length: 31⅝” (7th)
Hand Size: 9½” 924th)
Bio: Mayer grew up dreaming of playing basketball at Kentucky, but when he enrolled at Covington High in Covington, Kentucky, he started playing football, and it really stuck. He was a U.S. Army All-American and Kentucky’s 2019 Mr. Football, helping Covington to a 44-1 record with two state titles in his three varsity seasons. The five-star recruit chose Notre Dame over Penn State and Kentucky among a host of schools. Over three seasons with the Fighting Irish, Mayer caught 180 passes on 255 targets for 2,099 yards and 18 touchdowns. In 2022, he had 463 snaps aligned to the formation, 202 in the slot, 63 out wide, 19 in the backfield, and one on the offensive line.
Stat to Know: Mayer led all tight ends in the 2023 class with eight receptions of 20 or more air yards, gaining 420 yards and scoring four touchdowns on those plays.
Strengths: Mayer isn’t an explosive player with a lot of juice downfield — and we’ll get more into that in a minute — but he does have the ability to stack defenders with route awareness, and there are times when he looks like a proto-Gronk when he gets by opponents and just posts them up in some remarkable ways.
Mayer is also a highly effective receiver on short passes because he can explode (in a relative sense) after the catch. He’s learned through tons of positive experience to not fear contact, because he can just beat people up in open space.
As a run- and pass-blocker, Mayer also has no issue getting grimy. He could use a bit of help latching onto his targets in open space, but he’s a willing and effective protector.
Weaknesses: If your tight end preference leans toward the explosive slot guy who can riddle defenders with short-area movement and speed, Mayer isn’t going to be your optimal choice. He needs to be schemed open for those big plays, because he’s not going to win in those situations with his own pure athleticism, and he’s at his best aligned to the formation.
Mayer’s speed deficits show up in a couple of ways — he’ll look downfield too quickly at times on shorter passes because he’s looking to get going, and if the timing of the throw is off at all, Mayer will let defenders into his kitchen for potential incompletions.
Conclusion: It’s easy to overthink players like Mayer to their own detriment. When a prospect does most everything pretty well to very well, few things badly, and few things spectacularly, we tend to label him a “safe pick” and move to the next guy, hoping for something more explosive. Mayer will not throw highlights all over his NFL team’s game tape, but that team will get a few splash plays, a manageably low rate of negative issues, and proven repeatable consistency game after game. That may sound boring to some, but there are times when boring is preferable to zany spikes in production. He is a true tight end in the old-school sense, and if that is what you want (or are willing to settle for) at the position, Mayer will be plug-and-play from Day 1. There’s nothing wrong with that.
NFL Comparison: Jason Witten. I could also go with Zach Ertz, though Ertz has been a bit more explosive throughout his career. Instead, let’s look at Witten, selected by the Cowboys in the third round of the 2003 draft out of Tennessee. Witten was nobody’s idea of a speed demon, and he wouldn’t necessarily fit the modern prototype of the detached big receiver masquerading positionally as a tight end, but he made 11 Pro Bowls and had two All-Pro nods because he was consistent, tough, and fearless on the field. He maximized his abilities, and I think Mayer will do the same in his own way with similar athletic limitations.
4. Sam LaPorta, Iowa
Height: 6′ 3⅜” (23rd percentile) Weight: 245 (17th)
40-Yard Dash: 4.59 (90th)
10-Yard Split: 1.62 (69th)
Bench Press: N/A
Vertical Jump: 35″ (73rd)
Broad Jump: 123″ (90th)
3-Cone Drill: 6.91 (88th)
20-Yard Shuttle: 4.25 (78th)
Wingspan: N/A
Arm Length: 32⅛” (16th)
Hand Size: 10¼” (81st)
Bio: A four-year letterman and three-year team captain at Highland High in Highland, Illinois, LaPorta played wide receiver and defensive back to good renown. He was also a star in basketball, baseball, and track, and Iowa broke the logjam for the three-star recruit by offering him a football scholarship after seeing how he moved on the basketball court. Over four seasons with the Hawkeyes, LaPorta caught 153 passes on 238 targets for 1,777 yards and five touchdowns. Last season, he had 381 snaps in-line, 111 in the slot, 90 out wide, 28 in the backfield, and three at quarterback.
If you want to know how the Hawkeyes finished their 2022 season with an 8-5 record, including a 21-0 win over Kentucky in the Music City Bowl, consider that their defense ranked second among FBS teams in points allowed per game, and they ranked 123rd of 131 in points scored per game. Sam LaPorta, who continues an estimable tradition of Iowa tight ends including Dallas Clark, George Kittle, Noah Fant, and T.J. Hockenson, was the only real receiving threat in a passing game that averaged 14.8 completions, 156.7 yards, and 0.5 touchdowns per contest. His 58 catches on 90 targets for 648 yards and one touchdown should be seen in context. We generally go with more biographical information here, but it really is important to note what LaPorta was able to do with what he had to deal with.
Stat to Know: LaPorta led all tight ends in his class with 20 missed tackles forced, and I think about half of them came on this 27-yard catch against Kentucky in that bowl game.
by my count, iowa te sam laporta broke 136 tackles on this play #Analytics pic.twitter.com/nNxvVHu94i
— Doug Farrar ✍ (@NFL_DougFarrar) April 15, 2023
Strengths: So, yes. LaPorta is an after-catch demon, who has the wherewithal to find openings in space on short passes, and an impressive determination to beat people up when their uniforms look different than his. the whole “contested catch” idea is relative with him, because he’s generally the one doing the contesting.
We talked about the importance of the “Y-iso” position in the Dalton Kincaid discussion, and LaPorta is another prospect with the athleticism to be that guy.
Weaknesses: LaPorta might be a willing blocker; I’m not sure. But the results on tape are often lacking. He doesn’t really have an awareness to target and stick defenders, which can lead to some interesting whiffs.
LaPorta had six drops last season and 14 during his time at Iowa, which is less than optimal. You don’t want to assume that a tight end hears footsteps over the middle, but…
Conclusion: LaPorta’s NFL team should be excited to play on his potential in an offense that didn’t scare anybody. That team will also have to acclimate to his blocking issues, drops, and the fact that his height precludes him from being a post-up weapon downfield. Still, he shows ability as a move tight end and H-back, and that should work pretty easily into his next phase.
NFL Comparison: Owen Daniels. The Texans took Daniels in the fourth round of the 2006 draft out of Wisconsin, and Daniels managed to make two Pro Bowls as an undersized tight end with a lot of savvy, despite mostly bad-to-horrible quarterbacks. Like Daniels, who finished his NFL career as one of Peyton Manning’s more reliable targets in Denver, LaPorta has proven the ability to transcend broken offenses.
5. Darnell Washington, Georgia
Height: 6′ 6⅝” (93rd percentile) Weight: 264 (85th)
40-Yard Dash: 4.64 (79th)
10-Yard Split: 1.61 (73rd)
Bench Press: 21 reps (59th)
Vertical Jump: 31″ (26th)
Broad Jump: 122″ (86th)
3-Cone Drill: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: 4.08 (97th)
Wingspan: 83¾” (98th)
Arm Length: 34⅜” (91st)
Hand Size: 11″ (98th)
Bio: Washington grew up one of eight children with his mother in the Las Vegas area, and the family moved often, homeless at times. He didn’t have a lot of school stability until he was a sophomore at Desert Pines High School in East Las Vegas. There, he became a star at tight end and defensive end, as well as a championship-level athlete in basketball and track. The five-star recruit chose Georgia over just about every major college in the country. In three seasons with the Bulldogs, Washington caught 45 passes on 70 targets for 774 yards and three touchdowns. In 2022, Washington had 537 snaps aligned to the formation, 114 in the slot, 18 out wide, one in the backfield, and one at free safety.
Stat to Know: Washington’s yards after catch average of 7.8 leads all tight ends on this list, and that should not come as a surprise.
Strengths: We don’t usually start tight end evaluations with blocking prowess, but in Washington’s case, we’ll make an exception. He had a 0.0% Blown Block Rate in pass protection last season, and his Blown Block Rate of 0.5% in the run game tied with Notre Dame’s Michael Mayer for second among tight ends on this list, behind only Iowa’s Sam LaPorta (0.0%). You’d expect a guy Washington’s size to block well, but there are some pretty epic examples on his tape. Washington’s NFL team should love him as an inline blocker, and as an H-back on sweeps and pulls. The ways in which he’s able to casually Godzilla defensive linemen is kind of hilarious.
When I watch Washington high-point a catch over some poor defender, I think to myself, “How did this guy only have a 31-inch vertical leap at the combine? Did he slip on the turf?”
Weaknesses: Washington is far more a rumbler than a runner. A lot of his big catches over the middle came when Georgia was throwing four and five wide at a defense with all kinds of motion. He will need to be similarly schemed open at the NFL level, where the windows are generally tighter. Basically, just about every catch for Washington is going to be a contested catch if he’s the point of focus. He’s not going to separate with quickness.
Both as a blocker and as an after-catch giant, Washington could be even more effective with some technique fixes. Especially in the after-catch game, a more consistent ability to catch the ball with a stronger base could lead to some comical reps for opposing defenders.
Conclusion: I’m not sure how productive Washington will be at the NFL level; it’s hard for me to project him as an 80-catch, 1,000-yard player per season in any offense. But there’s a difference between production and value, and Washington can provide a ton of value as a field-tilter in all facets for his next team. Smart offensive coordinators will open him up with numbers and scheme, let him destroy cornerbacks on intermediate passes, and block defensive linemen with authority in the run game.
NFL Comparison: Darren Fells. An undrafted free agent out of UC Irvine, Fells was a basketball player in high school and college, and he actually played professional basketball in Argentina, Mexico, Belgium, Finland, and France from 2008 through 2012. Signed and released by the Seahawks in 2013, Fells caught on with the Cardinals in 2014, and over time with multiple teams, he’s been a good big receiver in certain routes, and a plus blocker in all facets. You have to imagine what Washington could be as you would have to imagine what Fells could be, and Washington obviously has more like-as-like football experience, and I’ll be fascinated to see how Washington is deployed in the NFL.
6. Tucker Kraft, South Dakota State
Height: 6’5″ (66th percentile) Weight: 256 (56th)
40-Yard Dash: 4.69 (71st)
10-Yard Split: 1.59 (84th)
Bench Press: 23 reps (75th)
Vertical Jump: 34″ (62nd)
Broad Jump: 122″ (86th)
3-Cone Drill: 7.08 seconds (64th)
20-Yard Shuttle: 4.29 seconds (69th)
Wingspan: N/A
Arm Length: 32¾” (38th)
Hand Size: 10″ (62nd)
Bio: Kraft attended Timber Lake High School in Timber Lake, South Dakota, a very small farming town. He was a star in basketball and nine-man football, playing quarterback, running back, defensive end, and linebacker. Kraft wasn’t ranked at all by any of he major scouting services, and South Dakota State was his first Division I scholarship offer. He later received an offer from Wyoming, but turned it down, and later refused several offers to enter the transfer portal from schools as large as Alabama. In three seasons with the Jackrabbits, Kraft caught 99 passes on 132 targets for 1,208 yards and nine touchdowns. This despite missing three games in 2020 with a sprained knee, and six games in 2022 with an ankle injury. Last season, Kraft had 274 snaps aligned to the formation, 66 in the slot, 28 out wide, 15 in the backfield, and three at quarterback.
Stat to Know: Just one of Kraft’s catches and two of his targets last season were on passes of 20 or more air yards, which doesn’t make a ton of sense after you’ve studied his athleticism. Especially when that deep touchdown came on an iced field.
Strengths: As a straight-line runner, Kraft is a smooth glider to start, with impressive acceleration to the second and third levels. He’s comfortable as a receiver ln explosive plays because he’s not “efforting” to get to the ball.
Kraft brings plus power and leverage when asked to block, especially for a player with his height. Here’s where the fact that he broke the South Dakota State power-clean record shows up. He’s good at engaging defenders with his hands, and he’s got the power and leverage to bull people back.
Weaknesses: Kraft could stand to work on his route precision and his hands (two drops last season and 12 in his collegiate career); he was able to just height/weight/speed opponents in ways he won’t be able to in the NFL. In cases like that, you want to see consistent dominance to project his professional future, as opposed to stuff like this.
Conclusion: Kraft is a bit of a project as a total NFL receiver based on the intricacies of the position that he’ll have to pick up, but that’s balanced by the fact that he’s got downfield potential we haven’t seen nearly enough. He’s already got a lot going for him as a blocker and as a move receiver, and most of the stuff that needs coaching is pretty coachable.
NFL Comparison: Dawson Knox. Selected in the third round of the 2019 draft out of Mississippi, Knox has become a staple in the Bills’ offense with his ability to move to the second and third levels, while providing reliable blocking, He’s not the best route-running tight end, and goodness knows that drops have been an issue, but Knox present a good illustrative example of how Kraft could bring immediate value to an NFL offense even when he’s rounding out his football palette.
7. Luke Schoonmaker, Michigan
Height: 6’5″ (66th percentile) Weight: 251 (43rd)
40-Yard Dash: 4.63 (83rd)
10-Yard Split: 1.62 (69th)
Bench Press: N/A
Vertical Jump: 33½” (56th)
Broad Jump: 127″ (95th)
3-Cone Drill: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: 4.27 (72nd)
Wingspan: N/A
Arm Length: 32⅞” (42nd)
Hand Size: 9″ (3rd)
Bio: Schoonmaker started his prep career as a quarterback at Xavier High in Connecticut, where he was teammates with future Kentucky quarterback Will Levis. He suffered a lacerated spleen in his junior year, and transferred to Hamden Hall High to repeat his junior year. Schoonmaker became more of a receiver in his senior season, in addition to amassing three interceptions as a defensive back. At first, the three-star recruit received light offers, but Hamden Hall head coach Joe Linta, also a prominent sports agent (Joe Flacco is Linta’s most famous client) talked to then-Michigan defensive coordinator Don Brown about him, and that got the ball rolling.
In five seasons with the Wolverines, Schoonmaker caught 54 passes on 70 targets for 637 yards and seven touchdowns. Most of that came in his 2022 campaign — 35 catches on 45 targets for 418 yards and three touchdowns. Last season, Schoonmaker had 421 snaps in-line, 75 in the slot, 15 out wide, 10 in the backfield, and five on the offensive line..
Stat to Know: Schoonmaker had just six catches on nine targets against man coverage in 2022, but he gained 52 yards and scored a touchdown on those six catches.
Strengths: Schoonmaker has an excellent sense of how to get and stay open in zones with his route consistency and good get-up speed; anticipation throwers will especially appreciate this at the NFL level. He works through stationary coverage well, and has enough acceleration to test safeties at the second and third levels.
Schoonmaker is also a red zone asset, because of that sense of how to create and exploit openings.
He’s also a willing and able blocker who has no issue taking a strong upper body and good leverage to defenders.
Weaknesses: Schoonmaker is a weapon after the catch in open space, but he’s nobody’s idea of a YAC monster crashing through defenders. He’s not really set up to creating when contested by guys ready to take him down.
Conclusion: Schoonmaker’s injury history, not to mention his one season of real production over five seasons with the Wolverines, will give NFL teams a bit of pause. But in a vacuum, and based on his 2022 tape, he projects well as a Y tight end for teams looking to get their second and third players at the position open in space, and able to make big plays.
NFL Comparison: Cameron Brate. An undrafted free agent out of Harvard, Brate caught on with the Buccaneers in 2014, and became over time a valuable target in the short and intermediate passing game, and especially when it came time to make things happen in the red zone. Schoonmaker could have similar value, and when you add in his plus blocking, he’d be a nice find for any NFL team running a lot of two- and three-tight end stuff.
8. Zack Kuntz, Old Dominion
Height: 6′ 6⅝” (93rd percentile) Weight: 255 (61st)
40-Yard Dash: 4.55 (92nd)
10-Yard Split: 1.57 (91st)
Bench Press: 23 reps (75th)
Vertical Jump: 40″ (97th)
Broad Jump: 128″ (96th)
3-Cone Drill: N/A
20-Yard Shuttle: 4.12 (93rd)
Wingspan: N/A
Arm Length: 34″ (83rd)
Hand Size: 10¼” (81st)
Bio: A four-star recruit out of Camp Hill High in Camp Hill, Pennsylvania, Kuntz committed to Penn State in the same class as did current Cowboys Destroyer of Worlds Micah Parsons. He spent three seasons battling unsuccessfully for targets with guys like Jahan Dotson, Pat Freiermuth, and KJ Hamler before transferring to Old Dominion, following former Penn State offensive coordinator Ricky Rahne, who became head coach there. Kuntz made First Team All-CUSA in 2021 with 73 catches for 692 yards and five touchdowns. He looked to be on the same path last season with 12 catches for 144 yards and two touchdowns before losing the last seven games of the season to an ACL injury. As you can see from his preposterous combine numbers, Kuntz has made a full physical recovery.
Stat to Know: In 2021, Kuntz caught five passes of 20 or more air yards on 20 targets for 1415 yards and two touchdowns. Last season, he caught no such passes on four targets.
Strengths: There are big tight ends in this class who have not yet learned to use their size as an advantage to post up defenders. Kuntz is not one of them. He already understands that 6-foot-7 is its own weapon. You put a smaller slot guy on him, and you’re just begging your defense to concede the catch.
Kuntz’ combine show also shows up on tape when it’s time to shake and bake a defender; this seems especially relevant in the red zone. He has a nice sense of breaking his routes with leverage to the defender’s worst advantage.
Weaknesses: When a receiver of any type catches just 12 passes in 30 targets, you want to know why. Kuntz suffered from some really bad throws last season, but he also needs to refine the timing of those post-up jumps to present a more favorable catch radius. He’s not as effective when his defender can meet him at the catch point. Against Virginia cornerback Jaylon Baker, who stands 6-foot-2, Kuntz ran a great route to get open, but he needed to seal the deal.
There are cases of alligator arms on tape as well, which you never want to see. Tight ends need to go over the middle and make things happen.
There are also some matador blocks on Kuntz’s tape — “Ole!” is not the correct technique.
Conclusion: Kuntz’ rawness in certain aspects of his game given his football experience gives me pause, but I also wonder if some of these issues can and will be corrected by NFL coaching. I would be inclined to take a mid-round shot on him as a true move tight end were my offense in need of a player who could completely fill that role over time. Kuntz’s speed and fluidity off the line of scrimmage, his route efficiency, and his ability to win the size wars (at times) would give me a serious case of coach-’em-up-itis. We’ll just have to wait and see how that works for him in the NFL.
Three years from now, Kuntz could be the most productive NFL tight end on this list, or he could be an afterthought. Neither result would completely surprise me. Team and scheme will mean a lot.
NFL Comparison: Jimmy Graham. I’m not comparing Kuntz to the Jimmy Graham who broke out with the Saints in his second season and became the NFL’s most productive tight end for a span of time. He does, however, remind me of the Jimmy Graham who the Saints selected in the third round of the 2010 draft of Miami. Graham was mostly a basketball player who turned his attention to football late in his collegiate career, and that rawness showed up at first.
Like Graham, Kuntz has maddening moments in which he looks just about undraftable, but they’re buttressed by more than enough athletic potential to make some NFL team take a similar risk, with possibly a similar reward. Of course, since Kuntz has been a football guy for a lot longer, it does make you wonder.
