2012 NFL Draft: Senior Tight End Watch

1. Michael Egnew, Missouri – Egnew has good hands and that is shown by his 90 catches last season. He has good size at close to 6-6 240 pounds, and is a decent but not great blocker. He is a good overall athlete and can stretch the defense but needs to show better run after the catch so that he is a big threat when he gets his hands on the ball.

2. George Bryan, North Carolina State – Bryan has shown stead improvement over his college career and has shown that he can be a threat in the passing game as well as being a good overall blocker. He is a good but not great overall athlete.

3. David Paulson, Oregon – Paulson has great ability to stretch the field and does a good job going down the middle of the defense causing miss-matches. Look for him this season to be involved in the passing game. He could improve some his blocking techniques but does a decent job there.

4. Coby Fleener, Stanford – Fleener is a hard nose football player and is good all around tight end. He had his coming out party in the Orange Bowl in where he caught 6 passes for 173 yards and 3 touchdowns. Watch out for him to have a big season this year.

5. Ladarius Green, UL-Lafayette – Green is an impressive athlete with great size at 6-6 230 pounds. He is a big time threat in the passing game and cause miss-matches all over the field. He is a decent but not a dominate blocker at the point of attack.

6. Anthony Miller, California – Miller is much more a blocker then a pass catcher but has the ability to improve in that area. He needs to improve on his route running but has the size and the athleticism to play at the next level.

7. Rhett Ellison, USC – Ellison is a good overall tight end who can be a force in the run game as a blocker and then be a sure handed receiver when called on. He is what he is the question is how much more upside does he have as a tight end.

8. Brian Linthicum, Michigan State – Linthicum only had 18 catches last season but expect more this year as he has very good hands and shows the ability to get down field. He had an off the field issue this winter at a bar that caused him to miss some of spring football but should be the starter at tight end when Michigan State opens it season.

9. Kavario Middleton, Montana – Middleton was dismissed from the University of Washington and end up at Montana he is a big, physical tight end at around 6-5 255 pounds who has soft hands and good feet. The rumor on why he was dismissed from Washington was a failed drug test so that is something the NFL teams will look into further.

10. Evan Rodriguez, Temple – Rodriguez should be a bigger factor in the passing game this season and should move up people draft boards. He is a good blocker at the point of attack and help the running game out in this way.

11. Kevin Koger, Michigan
12. Deangelo Peterson, LSU
13. Josh Chichester, Louisville
14. Blake Ayles, Miami (FL)
15. Ryan Deehan, Colorado
16. David Duran, Coastal Carolina
17. Danny Noble, Toledo
18. James Hanna, Oklahoma
19. Brandon Barden, Vanderbilt
20. Eric Lair, Minnesota