It doesn’t take a rocket
scientist to identify that Tony Gonzalez has
been one of the most dominant tight ends in
football since he entered the league in 1997.
Tony came in as a physically gifted two sport
athlete who quickly used his abilities to his
advantage to help him become the pro-bowler he
is today. Tony gave a little bit of a shinier
look to the tight end position. A position that
historically was more of a blocking position
than a receiving one. Tony flipped the script a
bit, and became a great receiver who also had a
talent for blocking. Obviously the onslaught of
athleticism at the tight end position didn’t
just start with Tony Gonzalez, but if you
consider that Ricky Dudley, Kyle Brady, Irv
Smith, Derek Brown and Johnny Mitchell were the
last five tight ends to be drafted in the first
round before Tony Gonzalez, it shows you what he
did for the position from an athletic
standpoint.
It’s not just about Tony Gonzalez either. All
around the league, teams are scrambling to draft
the most athletic tight ends they can get their
hands on. Bigger, more athletic players are what
the NFL is turning into, and the tight end
position isn’t any different. Gone are the days
where the 6’3”, 245lb blocking tight end started
on 25 NFL teams and caught 40 passes each
season. This is a new era for tight ends, and
for the National Football League as a whole.
Another player who has arguably been better than
Gonzalez for the past few years has been Antonio
Gates. Gates went undrafted, but was signed by
the San Diego Chargers based solely on his raw
athleticism. Currently, he’s right there with
Gonzalez when you speak of the best tight ends
in football. Considering Antonio played college
basketball rather than football, his level of
success based on athleticism alone seems pretty
amazing. Or does it?
Let’s take a look at some of the players at
tight end who are going to be in demand this
April. First off, there’s Vernon Davis. Vernon
possesses freakish athleticism and strength. He
has outstanding hands and will literally make
people during the combine with his 40+ inch
vertical, his 4.40 speed, and his brute
strength. Next we have Marcedes Lewis. Lewis
looks more like a receiver than a tight end, but
he is an absolute monster. He’s 6’6” and has the
speed of a receiver, and catches everything in
sight. Finally, there’s Leonard Pope out of
Georgia. Leonard is even bigger than Lewis at
6’7”, and he is still a dominating athlete. He
might not be as great of an athlete as Lewis and
Davis, but Pope is still better than 98% of
other tight ends from an athletic standpoint.
These three players are all going to be drafted
in the first round and all three will probably
make major impacts in their rookie seasons.
Whether they become the consistently dominant
players that Tony Gonzalez and Antonio Gates
have become is still unknown, but one thing is
for sure, the tight end position is changing.
