2014 Nfl Draft Tight End Rankings - Topic

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Jan 14 2014 11:45pm

I'm going to rank and give a quick analysis of some of the top talents per position in this year's draft. I am going to make a new thread for each position and will keep old threads listed in each new thread.

Keep in mind, this is purely my opinions. I am not saying this will be the order, this will be how players turn out or anything along those lines, it's just simply my own personal thoughts.

If you'd like a specific position to be done next, feel free to post, I don't mind jumping around. If not, I'll go in order (QB, WR, RB, TE, OT, etc...)

If you ever notice a player not in my list, it's either because I have them at a different position and/or they have not declared yet. I am trying not to put anyone in these lists who has not declared for the draft yet.

Anyway, as always, rate, hate and critique your hearts out.

Tight End

1) Jace Amaro, TE, Texas Tech
Jace Amaro has established himself as the number 1 tight end in this year’s draft. He has all the tools you need and want in your tight end. Big, strong, physical, fast, good vertical, bear trap hands, can run all the routes and can block for the run game. I mean what else is there, seriously? There really isn’t anything else to say, he’s going to be an absolute stud in the NFL, definitely along the lines of a Jimmy Graham, Rob Gronkowski type of guy (and yes I am ready to put him in that level, might not be there immediately, but he will be).

2) Eric Ebron, TE, North Carolina
Ebron isn’t far behind Amaro (and for that sake, Seferian-Jenkins isn’t far behind both of them either). He’s Big, physical, fast, good hands, good route runner, solid in blocking, all the above. Argument can surely be made for Ebron > Amaro, it’s all personal opinion though but you can’t blame any team for drafting either over the other, they’re both going to be significant difference makers in the NFL.

3) Austin Seferian-Jenkins, TE, Washington
This is going to be a broken record here but the same holds true for Seferian-Jenkins as it does for Amaro and Ebron. Big, physical, fast, athletic freak with reliable hands and a massive disadvantage for opposing defenses. The one knock on Seferian-Jenkins is his pass blocking skills. Now while he is pretty good at it, he could stand to improve some. It’s nothing to really take concern in, but it is the slight downside with him.

4) C.J. Fiedorowicz, TE, Iowa
Fiedorowicz is a major sleeper this year. Guy is huge standing at 6’7’’, 265 and is incredibly fast for that size. Very strong and athletic. You’d never expect him to have the speed that he does and he does a very solid job in run blocking as well. Could be a steal on day 2.

5) Richard Rodgers, TE, California
Rodgers is a stud in waiting. Good size and speed, reliable hands and can be physical when needed. I rate him a little higher than most, but I see a lot of potential here. If Rodgers would have stayed in school, he could have easily been a first rounder next year but this year is so loaded with talent at the TE position, he’ll likely be a day 2 selection.

6) Troy Niklas, TE, Notre Dame
I only recently learned about Niklas after he declared last week. He’s another big, athletic, fast tight end with good hands and solid route running and blocking skills. The problem is that he could have done himself a favor by returning to school. By coming out this year and not having the greatest of seasons, he’ll have to deal with a day 2 selection rather than round 1.

7) Marcel Jensen, TE, Fresno State
Jensen didn’t really shine this year but he was solid. Looking at the numbers will only show a mediocre tight end but if you watch him, you’ll see much more than that. Good size and he’s very physical. Probably the strongest tight end in this draft (I’d bet that he puts up the most reps at the combine, maybe lol). Anyway, that strength comes with a price, he’s a bit slower than the others. Still quick, but not quite the top end speed the other guys have. He’s a bit of a project but could be very deadly in a 2 TE set (maybe the Saints will snag him at the end of day 2, start of day 3).

8) Xavier Grimble, TE, USC
Grimble has fallen in the rankings because of the extreme level of talent that has declared in this draft. He is a good athlete with top end speed for his size. He has solid hands and overall receiving abilities and could be an immediate impact in an offense. He does really need to work on his blocking ability both in the run and pass games.

9) Arthur Lynch, TE, Georgia
Lynch is a better blocker than receiving threat. Although he has some good receiving abilities and can be a major threat in the redzone, he’s not the Graham/Gronk standard that has been set. He can be serviceable, but should go to a team that doesn’t rely on the TE position to be a major contributor in the offense.

10) Joe Don Duncan, TE, Dixie State
Duncan needs to show that he can perform against actually competition if he wants to make it anywhere. He has some nice athletic ability and the ability to make all of the catches. If he can continue to shine against some top notch line backers and safeties, he could quickly rise up draft boards. He’s got the speed and strength to be a stud. A few inches shorter than the standard that Gronk and Graham have set, but nothing to be concerned with (listed at 6’3’’).

11) Jacob Pedersen, TE, Wisconsin
Pedersen is an interesting prospect. He’s played tight end but he’s a bit undersized, if he bulks up (he’s 6’4’’, 241), he could turn into a major steal. If not, someone could use him as a massive wide receiver or worst case, a solid FB.

12) Jake Murphy, TE, Utah
Murphy has a lot going against him. Not the best when it comes to size, not too fast, solid blocker, but he’s older (24) than you see most prospects so that’s always a note to mention. If he wants to make it in the NFL, he’s going to need to show some usefulness on special teams and/or be willing to move to full back.

13) Chris Coyle, TE, Arizona State
Coyle will benefit greatly by moving to WR and being a big, physical bruiser receiving weapon. For his size (6’3’’, 222) he is very quick but he just does not have the size to bang inside with the linebackers. He does however have the quickness to blow by them with a little more room and less blocking responsibilities. Could be a very nice later round pickup to help on special teams and be a threat in the receiving game too.

14) A.C. Leonard, TE, Tennessee State
There’s a good chance that Leonard won’t get drafted but he hasn’t really shined either. Returning to school wouldn’t have helped him much so you can’t blame the guy for declaring and at least giving it a shot. Maybe he’ll wow someone and they’ll get the best out of him, who knows but he’s fairly average as a whole.

15) Colt Lyerla, TE, Oregon
Aside from needing to add a bit of weight, Lyerla was on track to be up there with Amaro, Ebron and Seferian-Jenkins as one of the top tight ends in this class. He has the size, he’s very fast, good hands, runs good routes, an overall great athlete and versatile. Sounds good right, why is he at the bottom of the list? Well, he quit Oregon’s football program. That’s not good, shows signs that his heart might not be in football right? Well, after that, within a few weeks, he was arrested for cocaine possession. Well fan fucking tastic there. Pisses me off when these idiots have all the potential in the world to be great and piss it away. He entered the draft because he really didn’t have a choice, he won’t get drafted, someone will take a chance on him as an UDFA, he’ll shine for a bit but he’ll inevitably go down the wrong path and fuck up. I have absolutely no faith in this asshole to turn shit around. I hope that I’m wrong, but we’ll see.

This Year's Mocks:

2014 v1.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=68890136&f=204
2014 v2.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=68924563&f=204
2014 v3.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=68967249&f=204
2014 v4.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69010879&f=204
2014 v5.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69056177&f=204
2014 v6.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69101987&f=204
2014 v7.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69165845&f=204
2014 v8.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69235121&f=204
2014 v9.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69285391&f=204
2014 v10.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69468393&f=204
2014 v11.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69541086&f=204
2014 v12.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69649564&f=204
2014 v13.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69715922&f=204
2014 v14.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69804282&f=204
2014 v15.0: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69884204&f=204

2014 Mid-Season Big Board: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69198359&f=204

2014 Position Rankings Pre-Combine:

QB: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69847793&f=204
HB: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69861320&f=204
FB: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69913671&f=204
WR: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69871600&f=204
TE: Coming to you soon on 1/14/14!!!
OT: Coming to you soon on 1/15/14!!!
OG: Coming to you soon on 1/16/14!!!
C: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69891036&f=204

4-3 DE: Coming to you soon on 1/18/14!!!
3-4 DE: Coming to you soon on 1/19/14!!!
DT/NT: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69919859&f=204
4-3 OLB: Coming to you soon on 1/20/14!!!
3-4 OLB: Coming to you soon on 1/21/14!!!
ILB: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69882592&f=204
CB: Coming to you soon on 1/17/14!!!
S: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=69902916&f=204
K/P: Coming to you soon on 1/22/14!!!

Previous Year Mocks:

2013 Final Mock: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=67113792&f=204
2013 Draft Analysis: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=67228920&f=204

2012 Draft Analysis: http://forums.d2jsp.org/topic.php?t=62247355&f=204