beware_d-ware
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TE is a really, really hard position to draft.
I'm going to borrow, and by borrow I mean steal, a chart that PFF posted the other day. This is every first-round TE taken in the last decade.
As they concluded, "this list reads like a who's who of tantalizing yet middling tight end play."
Interestingly enough, Kelce was a 2nd round pick, Ertz was a 2nd round pick, and Kittle was a 5th round pick. Mark Andrews was also a 3rd rounder.
And if you look at it, Kelce/Ertz/Kittle/Andrews is almost the entire list of productive TEs in the NFL. There's a few other guys like Tyler Higbee and Austin Hooper getting some catches, but as any fantasy player will tell you, there's not even a dozen real TE1s out there. It's quietly become a dying position.
So drafting a dying position with a steep learning curve that most colleges don't even bother to feature any more - it's a major gamble. IMO, if you just wanted to limit your exposure to risk, roll with JAGs at that spot, and spend your draft resources at other positions, I wouldn't blame you. But if you do want to try and find a TE, I say you either need to
-draft a freak athlete, or
-go to a college TE farm like Alabama, Notre Dame, Stanford or Iowa and pick one of their guys who knows how to play in-line.
If someone fits both of those criteria, like Fant, Hock, or Howard, I could see signing off on a first round pick there. But if I can only get one, I'm hedging my bets and using a Day 2 pick or later. Interestingly, Kittle met both and went in the 5th round.
Personally, I'd prefer to not draft any TE this cycle. Jarwin has the athletic profile of a mid-rounder and has spent three years developing into a pretty decent receiver. I'm not spending a mid-round pick and waiting 3 years to see if a new guy could develop into something better, I'd prefer to just pay Jarwin. Schultz can keep JAGing it up on the bench - most coaches only use a 2nd tight end about 15% of the time.
I'm going to borrow, and by borrow I mean steal, a chart that PFF posted the other day. This is every first-round TE taken in the last decade.
As they concluded, "this list reads like a who's who of tantalizing yet middling tight end play."
Interestingly enough, Kelce was a 2nd round pick, Ertz was a 2nd round pick, and Kittle was a 5th round pick. Mark Andrews was also a 3rd rounder.
And if you look at it, Kelce/Ertz/Kittle/Andrews is almost the entire list of productive TEs in the NFL. There's a few other guys like Tyler Higbee and Austin Hooper getting some catches, but as any fantasy player will tell you, there's not even a dozen real TE1s out there. It's quietly become a dying position.
So drafting a dying position with a steep learning curve that most colleges don't even bother to feature any more - it's a major gamble. IMO, if you just wanted to limit your exposure to risk, roll with JAGs at that spot, and spend your draft resources at other positions, I wouldn't blame you. But if you do want to try and find a TE, I say you either need to
-draft a freak athlete, or
-go to a college TE farm like Alabama, Notre Dame, Stanford or Iowa and pick one of their guys who knows how to play in-line.
If someone fits both of those criteria, like Fant, Hock, or Howard, I could see signing off on a first round pick there. But if I can only get one, I'm hedging my bets and using a Day 2 pick or later. Interestingly, Kittle met both and went in the 5th round.
Personally, I'd prefer to not draft any TE this cycle. Jarwin has the athletic profile of a mid-rounder and has spent three years developing into a pretty decent receiver. I'm not spending a mid-round pick and waiting 3 years to see if a new guy could develop into something better, I'd prefer to just pay Jarwin. Schultz can keep JAGing it up on the bench - most coaches only use a 2nd tight end about 15% of the time.
"But all he does is get open!"
