The 2019 NFL Draft is over and teams are getting comfortable with their new draft picks. The next class of players is getting prepared now for another year of college football. Each position will be analyzed in the coming days. Here are the best 2020 NFL Draft prospects: Tight ends.
Note: Players will not be ranked in the article.
Grant Calcaterra, Oklahoma
Calcaterra has never been the featured target in Oklahoma’s high-powered offense, but has shown moments of brilliance. He is 6-foot-4 and 221 pounds, which means he’ll need to add some play strength to be a more well-rounded tight end for the NFL. With that, he’ll have to prove he can play in a pro-style system and block well.
He has just 36 receptions for 558 yards and nine touchdowns in his career. Calcaterra at least doubled his production in every single statistical category from his freshman year to his sophomore year. In his two seasons at Oklahoma, Calcaterra has played with the top pick in the last two NFL Drafts. Now he’ll have to hope that Jalen Hurts can get him the ball enough to display how good of a player he is. If it is a good season for Calcaterra he could be selected in the early rounds of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri
Although he could’ve been one of the first tight ends selected in the 2019 NFL Draft, Okwuegbunam decided to go back to Missouri for his redshirt junior season. Okwuegbunam stands at 6-foot-5 and 255 pounds, which means he’ll look right at home for a tight end in the NFL. He’s pretty well-rounded as a tight end as far as prospects go, which is why he’s so highly regarded as a prospect.
Okwuegbunam is a mismatch because of his good size and speed, but wasn’t used a lot at Missouri last season. In his two seasons at Missouri, he has played in 18 games and caught 72 passes for 881 yards and 17 touchdowns. Now, he’ll have Kelly Bryant throwing him the ball. Even if his numbers decrease this season, he has put enough on tape to be considered the top tight end prospect heading into the 2019 college football season.
Colby Parkinson, Stanford Cardinal
Stanford is always churning out tight end prospects and they have another one in Parkinson. He is 6-foot-7 and 240 pounds, making him very tall, but thin for an NFL tight end. Playing in Stanford’s offense means that Parkinson is required to block a lot, but he has had limited reps as Stanford has had Dalton Schultz and Kaden Smith go to the NFL in the last two seasons.
He played a little bit as a freshman, but got to share the field with Smith last season. Parkinson had 29 catches for 485 yards and seven touchdowns for the Cardinal in the 2018 season. He will try to link up with quarterback K.J. Costello to show what they can do to NFL scouts this year.
Mitchell Wilcox, USF
Wilcox plays at a group of five school in USF, but has some pretty good experience over the last three seasons at USF. The redshirt senior is 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds making him a solid target for quarterbacks. He’ll have a lot to prove this season, as he’ll be the best player for the Bulls.
He redshirted in his first year on campus before getting limited playing time over the next two seasons. Wilcox played well as a redshirt junior with 43 catches for 540 yards and two touchdowns. That is solid production for a tight end at the collegiate level, but he’ll have to be more effective in the red zone to prove to NFL executives that he is worthy of a pick early in the 2020 NFL Draft.
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