Fran Duffy’s NFL Scouting Combine position preview, TE: It’s Oregon’s Kenyon Sadiq and then who?

I find the NFL Scouting Combine to be a test of expectations. Fast players should look fast. Slow players should look slow. When the results don’t match the expectations, that is when more work must be done. 

Below you’ll find my expectations for this position group this week in Indianapolis. Who do I expect to stand out? Who does this week mean the most for? What are the drills I prioritize most? Here are my thoughts on all of that and more!

Full Scouting Reports on all of these players can be found in the DieHard Draft Guide!

Workout Warriors

These are the players I expect to perform best in the athletic testing portion of the workout.

Kenyon Sadiq (Oregon)

Sadiq is the clear-cut top tight end in this draft, in my opinion, and his athleticism is certainly one of the big reasons why. If he tests this week, I expect him to ace all of those drills and look strong across the board with his speed, quickness and leaping ability. This is an easy one.

John Michael Gyllenborg (Wyoming)

Gyllenborg stands 6-foot-5 and 251 pounds, so he looks like your typical in-line tight end. That said, he’s also a really graceful athlete with explosiveness to stretch the seams downfield. A long strider with ability to threaten safeties, he eats up grass when he has free access to the second level both in the slot and tight to the formation. I expect him to test well in this environment. 

Justin Joly (NC State)

Joly isn’t as tall as Gyllenborg (coming in at an even 6-foot-3), but he’s also 251 pounds. A former high school receiver who has consistently been his team’s No. 1 pass threat going back to his days at UConn, he’s my second-favorite tight end in this draft because of what he does as a pass catcher. A fluid athlete who is smooth in and out of cuts, he has the juice to change gears and threaten the seam vertically. I’m excited to see him this week. 

Nate Boerkircher (Texas A&M)

Joly was productive for all four seasons of his college career, whereas Boerkircher didn’t really put up any numbers until his sixth and final season on campus (he played five years at Nebraska before joining the Aggies last spring). That said … I like this kid. He has pretty good size across the board, is a better blocker than the other two seniors I’ve already mentioned, and he plays like a good athlete. He’s got an extra gear when he reaches the second level and he’s really smooth and fluid out of breaks. It would not shock me if he became a starter down the road. 

Marlin Klein (Michigan)

A redshirt junior who was born in Germany, Klein moved to America with the sole purpose of playing high school football and to try and play the sport professionally. Athletically, I would expect him to test pretty well across the board, but I’ll say that on film he looks more smooth and fluid than explosive in a straight line. We’ll see if the testing bears that out, but I do expect his profile to look pretty good across the board. 

The Drill To Watch

I am a big proponent of studying the position work at this event. That is my focus when I’m inside Lucas Oil Stadium – not the athletic tests! Here’s the drill I weigh the heaviest and who I expect to shine when it’s that time of the night.

These position drills are meant to make these players uncomfortable, and for a lot of these players, blocking is not something they’re used to doing. Here are some things to take note of in these bag drills on the field:

• When these tight ends strike the bags, look for explosiveness out of their stance, some knockback on the bag, and finally some violence through contact. Ideally, if the microphones are turned up on the field, you should be able to hear the ‘thud’ on contact! 

Here are the players who have a chance to shine in these drills.

Will Kacmarek (Ohio State)

A fifth-year senior who began his career as a receiving threat with Ohio University, Kacmarek transferred to the Buckeyes two seasons ago and has become a blocking specialist. He’s a really effective in-line presence who can turn DEs out with good strength, technique and effort. They often left him one-on-one with bigger bodies on the edge and he has the ability to create knockback on first contact. Those bags will never know what hit ‘em.

Sam Roush (Stanford)

Roush has good size at over 6-foot-5 and nearly 260 pounds. I don’t think he’s overly dynamic as an athlete, but he has reliable hands as a receiver and stands out as a blocker. He’s technically sound, has a good base and he can create some knockback. He’s a well-rounded player who profiles well as a future backup.

Dallen Bentley (Utah)

Bentley is short at just over 6-foot-3, but he’s a dense 262 pounds, and he’ll show the pop on contact that teams are looking for. Seeing him in person at the Shrine Bowl a few weeks ago, he has some explosive traits. It goes back to that simple equation we all learned in school: force equals mass times acceleration. A big, heavy tight end who can move quickly is going to generate movement. He should impress here. 

Josh Cuevas (Alabama)

Cuevas is built a bit like a fullback or H-back with a lean towards run-game value as opposed to pass catching in the NFL. He was able to consistently block linebackers and safeties out in space and he had some really good reps pinning down defensive ends on perimeter run plays. I think he’ll look pretty good in these sled drills.

Riley Nowakowski (Indiana)

Nowakowski was one of the unsung heroes for the National Champion Hoosiers as a dirty-work player who did a little bit of everything in Curt Cignetti’s offense. At 6-foot-2, 239 pounds, he profiles as one of the true fullbacks in this class and should look good in this scenario.

Trust The Tape

These are the players I don’t expect to test off the charts athletically … but don’t panic! The tape shows a prospect who is a better football player than he is an athlete. With that in mind, don’t drop him down the board with a subpar workout!

Max Klare (Ohio State)

An Indiana native who began his career at Purdue, Klare moved on to Ohio State last offseason and went on to earn first-team All-Big Ten honors after leading the Boilermakers in receiving the year before. Klare is a fine combo tight end, but I don’t see the most dynamic athlete on tape and I don’t see the most forceful blocker in the run game. Still, he’s good enough in both areas to compete as a No. 2 guy on the depth chart. I don’t have high expectations for his testing, so I don’t think I’ll be sliding him down the board if he just tests like a solid athlete instead of a ‘good’ one.

Joe Royer (Cincinnati)

Royer is cut from the same cloth as Klare, in that I think he’s a well-rounded prospect and checks plenty of boxes but isn’t a needle mover in any one area. He has really soft hands and looks natural as a receiver but isn’t the sharpest route runner and is more smooth than explosive as an athlete. 

Jack Endries (Texas)

Endries is another tight end in this group that is uber-reliable at the catch point and is a willing blocker but not all the way there yet. When he gets bigger and stronger, I think there is something to work with, but that will likely come in a slight downtick in his athleticism (which is already just average in terms of explosiveness). I’m not expecting outstanding test results from him this week.

Lake McRee (USC)

I’d put McRee in the same bucket as a few of these guys, though I think he may have a bit more upside as a blocker than them. McRee is a decent but not overly impressive athlete, and the Trojans felt okay leaving him 1-on-1 against defensive ends at the point of attack and he can hold his own. I’d be shocked if he impressed as a tester. 

Most To Prove

Some players make this trip with a big question (or three!) at this stage of the process. How well does he run? Will he pass the medical check? What is he like off the field in the interview room? These are the prospects with the most notable question marks on their resume at this stage of the process.

Eli Stowers (Vanderbilt)

The reason I have Stowers in this group is that I think he NEEDS to test well. Listed 6-foot-4, 239 pounds, the former quarterback does not bring much as a blocker. As an older fifth-year senior who moved to tight end three seasons ago, he doesn’t have a ton of experience. So his selling point is that he’s a dynamic athlete. He has to cement that assertion this week. 

Jaren Kanak (Oklahoma)

Kanak was a linebacker for his first three seasons on campus and moved to tight end last offseason. He’s undersized across the board and is built more like a fullback than tight end. He’ll have to make it on special teams and I think he can do it, but testing like a freak athlete will dictate whether he gets drafted or not in this deep tight end class. 

Michael Trigg (Baylor)

Trigg is a former big-time recruit out of high school who played at USC and then Ole MIss before settling in at Baylor. He’s not the most inspirational blocker, but he has phenomenal hands and ballskills. He’s like a basketball player on grass. So he has to lean into that with a high-end athletic profile. It’s also been a bit of a messy journey for him, which is something he’ll have to talk about with teams. 

The Rest Of The Pack

Everyone else who will take part in the events in Indianapolis (in alphabetical order).

Oscar Delp (Georgia), Khalil Dinkins (Penn State), Matthew Hibner (SMU), Miles Kitselman (Tennessee), Tanner Koziol (Houston), Eli Raridon (Notre Dame), DJ Rogers (TCU), Bauer Sharp (LSU), Dae’Quan Wright (Ole Miss)

Mr. Average

We get to read all about the measurements for all these players over the next few weeks…but wouldn’t it be nice to have some context? What is considered a ‘good’ 40-yard dash time for this position? What about arm length? The broad jump? Here’s what the average player drafted at each position has looked like over the last decade (by my records).

Height: 6045  (6’4 5/8’’’)

Weight: 250

Hand Size: 968 (9 3/4’’)

Arm Length: 3278 (32 7/8’’)

Wingspan: 7878 (78 7/8’’)

40-Time: 4.68

10-Yard Split: 1.61

3-Cone Drill: 7.12

Short Shuttle: 4.34

Broad Jump: 120’’

Vertical Jump: 34.5’’