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I actually thought McKitty looked good in the time he got. I can see him developing into a starting-caliber TE. He didn't play initially, but was our best inline blocker late in the season, and considering he wasn't used as a receiver at Georgia, he did a good job catching even though he really was on the field mostly when we ran the ball.
Parham is obviously the high upside player as a receiver. He too improved a good deal as a blocker, but has a ways to go. I am not sure he will ever be a great blocker, which will limit his playing chances some, but if he can continue to develop as a receiver, he brings a lot of problems for defenses. He is not fast, but he can get deep with his long strides, and he is more athletic than most long strider types. He broke a lot of tackles underneath to get extra yards and does a good job of catching passes on the edge of his catch radius.
If there is a great TE choice available we should take one, but I don't think it is a real prority. From what I have seen so far, this is not a good year for them anyway. Another young TE is going to cut into the playing time for Parham and McKitty. Anderson will probably be back as a hybrid FB and blocker, event though he will never be much of a receiver. He does the dirty work that McKitty and Parham can't do.
if we are going to free up a roster spot, it would be at FB. Nabers was very athletic in college as sort of a move FB or H-back. Considering I think he probably gets a lot of extra work with Herbert (considering they are housemates), he just doesn't seem to add much as a receiver, and his blocking has just not developed. He is an OK ST, but when I watch him, he still doesn't seem all that great. I am fine keeping him as a ST guy, but he adds nothing to the O unless he really takes a big step up this offseason.
If we want a FA there are not too many good options at TE. If you want the high risk, high reward type, there is Njoku or Gronk. Gronk has the history, but he always had his bad back (that is why he fell to the Pats in the draft) and I am not sure he is going to be that enthusiastic about learning a new offense and not having Brady. He also will almost certainly miss 4-7 games at this stage in his career, if his back doesn't get too much worse (the perils of the being 33). Njoku is just plain inconsistent, but I get the sense he wants a big paycheck, even though he is a poor blocker and inconsistent receiver. He is a name though, so maybe we want him for that.
The only good name I see is Hayden Hurst. He is not a super dynamic guy, but he is somewhat consistent. He is the odd man out behind Pitts in Atlanta, so he is the guy you could bring in and let him earn some playing time. if McKitty and Parham keep him off the field, fine. But he is more of a Eric Heiden or Craig McEwan type of guy in the sense that he is a dependable outlet guy, but he is not going to hurt a defense badly. And if they show him any attention at all, they can take him out of the game.
Parham is obviously the high upside player as a receiver. He too improved a good deal as a blocker, but has a ways to go. I am not sure he will ever be a great blocker, which will limit his playing chances some, but if he can continue to develop as a receiver, he brings a lot of problems for defenses. He is not fast, but he can get deep with his long strides, and he is more athletic than most long strider types. He broke a lot of tackles underneath to get extra yards and does a good job of catching passes on the edge of his catch radius.
If there is a great TE choice available we should take one, but I don't think it is a real prority. From what I have seen so far, this is not a good year for them anyway. Another young TE is going to cut into the playing time for Parham and McKitty. Anderson will probably be back as a hybrid FB and blocker, event though he will never be much of a receiver. He does the dirty work that McKitty and Parham can't do.
if we are going to free up a roster spot, it would be at FB. Nabers was very athletic in college as sort of a move FB or H-back. Considering I think he probably gets a lot of extra work with Herbert (considering they are housemates), he just doesn't seem to add much as a receiver, and his blocking has just not developed. He is an OK ST, but when I watch him, he still doesn't seem all that great. I am fine keeping him as a ST guy, but he adds nothing to the O unless he really takes a big step up this offseason.
If we want a FA there are not too many good options at TE. If you want the high risk, high reward type, there is Njoku or Gronk. Gronk has the history, but he always had his bad back (that is why he fell to the Pats in the draft) and I am not sure he is going to be that enthusiastic about learning a new offense and not having Brady. He also will almost certainly miss 4-7 games at this stage in his career, if his back doesn't get too much worse (the perils of the being 33). Njoku is just plain inconsistent, but I get the sense he wants a big paycheck, even though he is a poor blocker and inconsistent receiver. He is a name though, so maybe we want him for that.
The only good name I see is Hayden Hurst. He is not a super dynamic guy, but he is somewhat consistent. He is the odd man out behind Pitts in Atlanta, so he is the guy you could bring in and let him earn some playing time. if McKitty and Parham keep him off the field, fine. But he is more of a Eric Heiden or Craig McEwan type of guy in the sense that he is a dependable outlet guy, but he is not going to hurt a defense badly. And if they show him any attention at all, they can take him out of the game.
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