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don't be so quick to trade away our day three picks.... Telesco's round 5 nugget:
https://sports.yahoo.com/2021-nfl-draft-tight-end-125519839.html
Pro Wells TCU
A two-sport basketball/football standout from Dixie Hollins High School in Saint Petersburg, FL, Wells attended Northwest Mississippi JC before transferring as a JUCO to TCU prior to the 2018 season. A three-star prospect, he was rated as the fourth best JUCO tight end and 59th overall player in the nation.
He dipped his toes in the water getting acclimated to the collegiate level in 2018, maintaining his redshirt while still logging 14 snaps in four games. He broke out with an All-Big 12 worthy 2019, reeling in 17-of-28 passes for 196 yards, 61% catch rate, 11.5 YPC and five touchdowns.
He had issues with drops in 2019 however - posting 4 in 2` catch opportunities in 2019. But straightened out those issues by reeling in all 13 catchable pass opportunities this season, earning an excellent 82.3 hands grade from PFF for his 2020 showing. Ran 83% of routes from the slot, but was competent in pass protection when called upon, receiving pass block grades of 70.1 in 2019 and 73.1 in 2020 according to PFF.
In 2020 Wells improved his production across the board on a per-down basis, catching 13-of-20 passes for 195 yards, 65% catch rate, 15.0 YPC and three touchdowns while playing in 10 games for the Horned Frogs. His average target depth was an impressive 13.2 yards last year and 12.6 in 2019, showing he wasn’t just used as a check down option for TCU’s accuracy-challenged QB Max Duggan. He paid off those down field looks with big gains and acrobatic catches.
The stocky tight end showed out against good competition - vs. OU, he beat Delarrin Turner-Yell on a post before reeling in a nice catch and absorbing a heavy shot from converging S Justin Broiles who, despite a head of steam, bounced right off of the massive Wells allowing the Horned Frogs’ tight end to rumble for another 40 yards before finally being pulled down. This data point belies a greater trend of Wells being difficult to pull down, as he broke five tackles in only 13 tackles.
His 115.6 Passer Rating when targeted reflects his ability to make plays when called upon. In a more volume based passing attack, Wells would have turned more looks into greater production. However HC Gary Patterson’s system preferred to utilize Wells as an up-the seam weapon to deploy against smaller slot corners or slower linebackers when the matchup was favorable.
Wells has several upper echelon traits that standout out on film. His bull-like strength makes it difficult to bring him down once the ball is in his hands, while still possessing enough vertical to go up and get jump balls in the end zone and over the middle. His high school basketball tape is a sight to behold, as his multiple windmill dunk highlights foreshadow his ultra-athletic NFL profile. For perspective, eight of his 32 career catches went for touchdowns. Fast enough to stretch the field up the seam, while being stout enough to take a shot and still hold onto the ball.
Most NFL draft evaluators have Wells in the TE10-13 range, which is understandable given his lack of high volume usage. However I feel his upside and athleticism could vault him into fantasy relevance sooner rather than later, and for the very reasonable price of a fifth/sixth round selection.
A two-sport basketball/football standout from Dixie Hollins High School in Saint Petersburg, FL, Wells attended Northwest Mississippi JC before transferring as a JUCO to TCU prior to the 2018 season. A three-star prospect, he was rated as the fourth best JUCO tight end and 59th overall player in the nation.
He dipped his toes in the water getting acclimated to the collegiate level in 2018, maintaining his redshirt while still logging 14 snaps in four games. He broke out with an All-Big 12 worthy 2019, reeling in 17-of-28 passes for 196 yards, 61% catch rate, 11.5 YPC and five touchdowns.
He had issues with drops in 2019 however - posting 4 in 2` catch opportunities in 2019. But straightened out those issues by reeling in all 13 catchable pass opportunities this season, earning an excellent 82.3 hands grade from PFF for his 2020 showing. Ran 83% of routes from the slot, but was competent in pass protection when called upon, receiving pass block grades of 70.1 in 2019 and 73.1 in 2020 according to PFF.
In 2020 Wells improved his production across the board on a per-down basis, catching 13-of-20 passes for 195 yards, 65% catch rate, 15.0 YPC and three touchdowns while playing in 10 games for the Horned Frogs. His average target depth was an impressive 13.2 yards last year and 12.6 in 2019, showing he wasn’t just used as a check down option for TCU’s accuracy-challenged QB Max Duggan. He paid off those down field looks with big gains and acrobatic catches.
The stocky tight end showed out against good competition - vs. OU, he beat Delarrin Turner-Yell on a post before reeling in a nice catch and absorbing a heavy shot from converging S Justin Broiles who, despite a head of steam, bounced right off of the massive Wells allowing the Horned Frogs’ tight end to rumble for another 40 yards before finally being pulled down. This data point belies a greater trend of Wells being difficult to pull down, as he broke five tackles in only 13 tackles.
His 115.6 Passer Rating when targeted reflects his ability to make plays when called upon. In a more volume based passing attack, Wells would have turned more looks into greater production. However HC Gary Patterson’s system preferred to utilize Wells as an up-the seam weapon to deploy against smaller slot corners or slower linebackers when the matchup was favorable.
Wells has several upper echelon traits that standout out on film. His bull-like strength makes it difficult to bring him down once the ball is in his hands, while still possessing enough vertical to go up and get jump balls in the end zone and over the middle. His high school basketball tape is a sight to behold, as his multiple windmill dunk highlights foreshadow his ultra-athletic NFL profile. For perspective, eight of his 32 career catches went for touchdowns. Fast enough to stretch the field up the seam, while being stout enough to take a shot and still hold onto the ball.
Most NFL draft evaluators have Wells in the TE10-13 range, which is understandable given his lack of high volume usage. However I feel his upside and athleticism could vault him into fantasy relevance sooner rather than later, and for the very reasonable price of a fifth/sixth round selection.
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