Don't understand why so many people are wanting a TE?

[JRYCRL]

We need to shore up the OL and CB positions first and foremost. We have Dustin Keller and Charles Clay. We do not have a very good OL and it would be a shame if Ryan T was running for his life instead of having time to find Wallace, Hartline, Gibson, Bess, Keller or Clay. That's SIX offensive skill receivers not including Matthews who I thought was fairly decent in his time last year. Only skill guy I take is Austin because he can score every single time he touches the ball. Other than that, I take 2 OL's and 2 CB's with our first 4 picks.

 

[COMEBACKRICKY]

Elite TE's help you get first downs and help out immensely in the red zone. This is a game of first downs and extending drives. Wallace and Hartline can run routes to create room in the middle where a guy like Eifert could post up and grab an easy first down. If we take a skill guy at #12 I would much rather take Eifert over Austin. Gronk and Graham put up better numbers than a lot of WR and having a guy like that makes it easier for everyone on offense.

Keller is good and Clay could be good but Eifert will likely become elite.

 

[JRYCRL]

I understand all your points but we HAVE Keller and Clay. We DON'T have a LT or a decent RG for that matter. If we signed Winston and took Cooper, I'd be thrilled and so would Tannehill.

 

[FearTheBeard]

Elite TE's help you get first downs and help out immensely in the red zone. This is a game of first downs and extending drives. Wallace and Hartline can run routes to create room in the middle where a guy like Eifert could post up and grab an easy first down. If we take a skill guy at #12 I would much rather take Eifert over Austin. Gronk and Graham put up better numbers than a lot of WR and having a guy like that makes it easier for everyone on offense.

Keller is good and Clay could be good but Eifert will likely become elite.

Elite tight ends are the guys like Graham and Gronk. Athletic freaks who make plays in the red zone and beat you down the seam. Eifert is a backend first round guy, the one guy I see who has the traits of a Gronk is Vance McDonald, he's got that extra gear, but his hands are ****. He's the guy I would roll the dice on in round 2 if we did.

 

[COMEBACKRICKY]

Well, Keller and Clay are okay but they are not elite. Thats like saying we dont need AJ Green we already have Hartline. While its not a dire need, a TE who could grab first downs and touchdowns is going to help the offense more than a super fast WR. I'm not saying we for sure need to go TE but if we do go skill I would much rather get Eifert over anyone else.

As far as offensive line goes it's not uncommon to find really good starters later in the draft. An elite, defense-breaking TE is much tougher to find later in the draft. The Saints got really lucky with Jimmy Graham but now teams are actively looking for those types of TEs. Just watch a Saints game or Patriots game. Their TEs bail them out of so many 3rd down situations.

 

[FearTheBeard]

Well, Keller and Clay are okay but they are not elite. Thats like saying we dont need AJ Green we already have Hartline. While its not a dire need, a TE who could grab first downs and touchdowns is going to help the offense more than a super fast WR. I'm not saying we for sure need to go TE but if we do go skill I would much rather get Eifert over anyone else.

As far as offensive line goes it's not uncommon to find really good starters later in the draft. An elite, defense-breaking TE is much tougher to find later in the draft. The Saints got really lucky with Jimmy Graham but now teams are actively looking for those types of TEs. Just watch a Saints game or Patriots game. Their TEs bail them out of so many 3rd down situations.

If you want 2 guys who won't carry a first round grade to re-create the Pats tight end stable, McDonald and Jordan Reed have some uncanny similarities.

 

[COMEBACKRICKY]

Elite tight ends are the guys like Graham and Gronk. Athletic freaks who make plays in the red zone and beat you down the seam. Eifert is a backend first round guy, the one guy I see who has the traits of a Gronk is Vance McDonald, he's got that extra gear, but his hands are ****. He's the guy I would roll the dice on in round 2 if we did.

Right, 12 may be a bit high for Eifert but the parallels to Gronk are definitely there. Eifert's combine numbers are almost the same and I would definitely classify him as an athletic freak.

I'm not so hot on McDonald. It's tough to teach someone how to catch the ball better since it relies on a lot of innate abilities. Eifert has great hands and anticipation. I'm not saying we should definitely take Eifert but I would rather take Eifert at 12 than spend a second round pick on McDonald.

 

[TheWalrus]

The Dolphins are looking under every available rock for guys who can help them control the middle of the field. That's what the offense is missing right now. They've got the outside threat in Wallace and also like Hartline (inexplicably) on the outside. What they need is a bigger force between the hashes than Davone Bess.

To that end, they've explored everyone from Tavon Austin to Keenan Allen to Tyler Eifert to Gavin Escobar and on down the line. Track the workouts, and the theme emerges in bright lights. One way or another, imo, a guy who can come in and draw attention away from Wallace on the outside is coming into the building and Bess is on his way out. They obviously like Keller, but he's on a one year deal. Egnew is to certainty what the stock market is to certainty.

 

[COMEBACKRICKY]

If you want 2 guys who won't carry a first round grade to re-create the Pats tight end stable, McDonald and Jordan Reed have some uncanny similarities.

Yeah Reed seems like he could be a quality starter if he could learn to block better. I wouldn't mind him in the third if Swope is already picked up.

Whoever it is, I think we can both agree that TE is becoming an increasingly important position which is what the whole point of the thread was. I just wanted to point out that an elite TE is definitely worth the #12 pick and we want TE so bad because it makes the game much easier.

 

[bird33]

cant draft ol or db in rds 2-4? how many first rounders are gonna be used on ol or dl? when is it gonna sink in we need freaking playmakers and austin or eiffert will most likely be there at 12. draft someone who touches the ball and can score td's with that 12th pick!

 

[ThrowDaTD]

The more offensive targets Tannehill has to choose from, the quicker he can get rid of the ball. With more options, we won't need Tannehill to stand in the pocket for 5 seconds (or however long an elite NFL OLine can hold up protection).

OTOH, if we have an elite Line but not enough weapons, Tannehill will have to wait for someone to open up.

 

[FearTheBeard]

Right, 12 may be a bit high for Eifert but the parallels to Gronk are definitely there. Eifert's combine numbers are almost the same and I would definitely classify him as an athletic freak.

I'm not so hot on McDonald. It's tough to teach someone how to catch the ball better since it relies on a lot of innate abilities. Eifert has great hands and anticipation. I'm not saying we should definitely take Eifert but I would rather take Eifert at 12 than spend a second round pick on McDonald.

I can't disagree with you on that. I think he's a prime target if we trade down to the low 20s (Eifert).

 

[COMEBACKRICKY]

I can't disagree with you on that. I think he's a prime target if we trade down to the low 20s.

Todd McShay has Eifert going 6 overall to the Browns in his most recent mock. I dont see that happening but I dont think Eifert gets past 17. Getting him at 12 is reaching for him based on prior drafts but theres going to be a team out there that won't mind taking him early because he brings a unique skill set to the offense. It'll be justified if he can turn into a 75+ reception per year TE.

 

[MiamiDolphin618]

I like Eifert and Im fine with him at 12. With all of the weapons we have on offense...we are still missing a true red zone win option and thats what we would expect him to bring. However, Gronk he is not. He is on my short list at 12...but not my first pick. I prefer Kelce in the 2nd...the off-field issues are there but if he checks out the kid is a stud. If I recall NU did a breakdown of TEs and Kelce had a ridiculous YAC average of over 10 yards...and it wasn't some small sample size it was like 40 catches. That is what we need.

Also, Fauria is a forgotten man at this point to many. But you could get him in the 4th, heck maybe 5th round and he is the epitome of a red zone threat. He high points the ball very well and has pretty good athleticism for his massive size...even if you don't like him as an every down TE he could bring some serious value as a red zone threat IMO

 

[JDRA20]

Elite tight ends are the guys like Graham and Gronk. Athletic freaks who make plays in the red zone and beat you down the seam. Eifert is a backend first round guy, the one guy I see who has the traits of a Gronk is Vance McDonald, he's got that extra gear, but his hands are ****. He's the guy I would roll the dice on in round 2 if we did.

Gronk is an athletic freak but Eifert isn't? You're delusional.
Combine results:
Eifert
40 time - 4.65
Bench - 22 reps
Vertical leap - 35.5"
Broad jump - 9'11"
Shuttle - 4.32
Cones - 6.92

Gronkowski
40 time - 4.68
Bench - 23 reps
Vertical leap - 33.5"
Broad jump - 9'11"
Shuttle - 4.47
Cones - 7.18

You can't say Eifert doesn't deserve the pick because of his athleticism, that's completely idiotic. Just because he doesn't run a 4.3 like Vernon Davis doesn't mean he can't be a great TE...