Editor’s Note: In the lead-up to the 2026 NFL Draft, Phil Perry is identifying the best fits for the Patriots at each position based on the traits that Mike Vrabel and Eliot Wolf value, as well as intel from coaches and scouts.
First up was offensive tackle. Today’s installment: tight end.
Since the Patriots spent a small fortune on the tight end position in free agency back in 2021, it has been a bit of a forgotten position during the team-building portion of the calendar.
Across three different regimes, since inking Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith to lucrative deals five years ago, New England has bypassed high-end depth there — in both free agency and the draft — in favor of other positions.
This, however, could be the offseason where that changes.
Not only have the Patriots already bolstered the position behind Henry by signing free agent block-first option Julian Hill, but they’ve also invested in an experienced fullback — a position that has some crossover with the tight end spot in Josh McDaniels’ offense — in Reggie Gilliam. In the draft, there’s further opportunity to buttress that room.
While going after a tight end with their first pick would serve as an eye-opener given their needs at other spots, one could make the argument that it’d be worthwhile to dip into this year’s deep class of tight end talent on Day 2.
When asked about what stands out to him in this year’s draft, Mike Vrabel pointed immediately to the tight end crop.
“Just looking across the board,” he said, “I think there’s volume at the tight end class. Whether they’re premium players or what people would say are first-round picks, I just know that when you go and you evaluate other teams and you get ready to play for them, there’s a bunch of fourth- and fifth-round tight ends that end up starting, playing and contributing. Wherever that value is, I just think that there are some names there.”
In that same back-and-forth with reporters, Vrabel touched on the specific traits he’s looking for when evaluating tight ends.
“There’s going to be different styles of tight end,” he said. “Ones that are going to be maybe better pass catchers and harder, tougher matchups for defenses. There are going to be guys that are more suited at the line of scrimmage. There are going to be guys that are suited to more movement blocks.
“You see these [blocks], being able to create some movement before the snap going laterally, that then could transition into getting into the line of scrimmage. You see these tight end blocks that are kind of changing and evolving, and we have to be conscious of who we have, how we need to run the football and ideas that we can give them.”
In this edition of “Best Fits,” we’re going to lean on what it seems McDaniels has preferred in players at this position in the past, while also valuing the traits Vrabel and Eliot Wolf appear to hold in high esteem.
Vrabel didn’t establish much in the way of a trend when it came to traits he valued in the tight end position in the draft during his time as head coach at Tennessee. But there have been 11 tight ends who have been drafted by a member of the Ron Wolf executive tree over the years in the first, second or third rounds.
On average, those 11 players checked in at 6-foot-4, 252 pounds. They ran, on average, a 4.72-second 40 time and clocked a short-shuttle time of 4.36 seconds. They had average jumps of 34 inches in the vertical and 9-feet-11 in the broad. A player at that position with those measurements would be given a strong Relative Athletic Score of 8.36. Per Kent Lee Platte’s RAS metric, one of the closest comps to this composite average Wolf tree tight end would be, believe it or not, former Patriots tight end Austin Hooper.
When looking at the totality of the group, what trends emerge?
Size matters. Of the 11 players studied, only two — Josiah Deguara and Jermichael Finley — didn’t eclipse the 250-pound mark. Wolf execs also have seemed to value some baseline quickness requirement: Nine of the 11 players studied clocked short-shuttle times before the draft, and nine of those came in under 4.50 seconds.
With further ado, let’s get to the Day 1, 2 and 3 options that appear to fit the bill for the Patriots this year…
Day 1: Kenyon Sadiq, Oregon
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Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images Kenyon Sadiq is the consensus No. 1 tight end in this year’s draft.
Freaky. Yes, right off the bat, we’re highlighting an outlier here. Sadiq doesn’t hit the 250-pound mark, but he’s likely the only tight end who’ll hear his name called on Thursday night of draft week thanks to his physical gifts. The 6-foot-3, 241-pounder posted one of the best combine performances we’ve ever seen with a 4.39-second 40, a 43.5-inch vertical and an 11-foot-2 broad jump.
He might not be the in-line force that the best tight ends in team history have been — he’s no Rob Gronkowski — but he’s a versatile weapon who isn’t afraid to mix it up as a blocker, and who McDaniels could use all over offensive formations to try to generate mismatches.
Sadiq may not make it to the Patriots at No. 31, but if he did, he’d be an enticing option as a dynamic pass-catcher who can grow with quarterback Drake Maye.
Day 2: Sam Roush, Stanford
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Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images Sam Roush is one of the most athletic tight ends in this year’s class.
One of the lone old-school “Y” tight ends in this year’s draft class, Roush looks like he could’ve played when Vrabel was mixing it up in the trenches for Bill Belichick.
Both Vrabel and McDaniels know just how valuable it can be to have a big-bodied athlete at tight end who can move people in the running game, and that’s Roush. The 6-foot-6, 267-pound tight end threw up 25 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press and then tore up the athletic testing portion of the combine: his 38.5-inch vert, 10-foot-6 broad, 4.70-second 40 and 7.08 three-cone were all eye-popping for someone with his frame.
His 4.37-second short shuttle falls well within the range we’re looking for here, too. No surprise, his RAS came in at 9.94 out of 10, which ranked ninth out of 1,356 tight ends from 1987 to 2026.
Roush might not provide much wiggle as a receiver, but in an offense that is always going to want some level of balance while marrying its passing concepts to its run looks, Roush could give the Patriots a well-rounded weapon at a position that’s becoming harder and harder to fill.
He can give them enough in the passing game, especially after the catch, to be worthy of attention from opposing defenses at the next level.
Day 2: Max Klare, Ohio State
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USA TODAY Sports Max Klare is a skilled pass-catching TE who can separate as a route-runner.
This is more about feel than it is checking boxes.
Klare measured in slightly lighter than what we’re looking for here at 6-foot-4, 246 pounds. And he didn’t test athletically at the combine or his pro day. But a quick glance at his tape reveals an NFL-caliber athlete at a position where movement skills matter. He has an ability to separate as a route-runner and then build up speed for potentially explosive gains with the ball in his hands.
A two-sport athlete at Purdue (baseball, football) prior to transferring to join the Buckeyes, Klare could end up developing beyond where his run-blocking skills currently reside. But if he’s simply capable in that regard to start his career, it could give him the runway to be able to flash his receiving skills — and ability to generate yards after the catch — early in his time as a pro.
Day 3: Oscar Delp, Georgia
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Travis Register-Imagn Images Oscar Delp didn’t do much as a pass-catcher at Georgia, but he has real upside as a draft prospect.
Delp checked in at 6-foot-5, 245 pounds at this year’s combine and looks like he could be one of those tight ends Vrabel referenced when he discussed pre-snap lateral movement that allows players a better opportunity to displace defenders as blockers. He’s more than willing to stick his nose into the chests of opponents in the running game. He’s also athletic enough to handle various alignments and responsibilities for McDaniels.
For a player out of Georgia, where Brock Bowers set records a few years ago, it’s a little head-scratching that Delp didn’t do more as a pass-catcher. Not that he’s on Bowers’ level as a receiving talent, but this isn’t a program that is tight end averse. Yet his best season as a receiver was back in 2023 when he caught 24 passes for 284 yards and three touchdowns.
If the Patriots are willing to look past his relative lack of production — focusing instead on the athletic traits that gave him an elite-level 9.82 RAS and make him an intriguing down-the-seam option — they could end up with a quality player on Day 3.
Day 3: Will Kacmarek, Ohio State
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USA TODAY Sports Kacmarek didn’t rack up the receptions last season, but he shined in the blocking game for Ohio State.
No, Kacmarek isn’t on this list solely because of the program for which he played. Vrabel, a proud Ohio State product, only drafted one Buckeye last year (running back TreVeyon Henderson). But regardless of where Kacmarek went to school, his play demeanor seems well-suited for Vrabel’s program.
He’s a determined in-line blocker at 6-foot-6, 261 pounds, and his 36-inch vertical is indicative of legitimate lower-body explosiveness. He caught just 15 passes last season for 168 yards, but Ohio State coach Ryan Day identified him as a player who “does a lot of dirty work for us and has been a really good player for us,” and was deserving of more recognition.
If the Patriots want a bully at the line of scrimmage on the offensive side, they could give him a call on Day 3.
Day 3: Nate Boerkircher, Texas A&M
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Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images Nate Boerkircher is a stellar blocker who has some upside in the passing game.
Boerkircher is another player at this position who didn’t do much to fill the stat sheet as a pass-catcher — he compiled 198 yards receiving in 2025 — but might offer more than his numbers would suggest in that regard. There are moments on his tape when he exhibits real savvy against zone looks, and at the Senior Bowl he flashed an ability to uncover in one-on-one situations.
His calling card, though? The thing that would get him on the field offensively early in his pro career? The 6-foot-6, 245-pounder — who clocked a quick-enough 4.4-second short shuttle — is a contact-loving blocker, unafraid to challenge bigger defenders at the line of scrimmage. If the Patriots want a player at this position who can get downhill and finish longer than the guy with the ball, Boerkircher looks like their type.
Day 3: Dallen Bentley, Utah
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Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images Dallen Bentley is an older prospect at 25, but he is an intriguing pass-catching TE.
Bentley has had a fascinating journey to this point.
He recorded just one catch in high school before suffering a severe lower-body injury that effectively ended his high school career. According to Dane Brugler of The Athletic, he didn’t play football as he completed a Mormon mission, then re-committed to football when enrolling at Snow College in 2022. He caught just three passes in two seasons after transferring to Utah before exploding in 2025.
The 25-year-old started in 12 games and reeled in 48 grabs for 620 yards and six scores. A John Mackey Award semifinalist as one of the top tight ends in the nation, the 6-foot-4, 253-pounder clocked a 4.42-second shuttle and posted an impressive 35-inch vertical at this year’s combine. He’s shown aggressiveness as a blocker and his 4.62-second 40 is indicative of potential field-stretching juice he’ll bring to his next team.
He’s an older prospect without a lengthy resume of production. But he’s big enough, athletic enough and tough enough to warrant consideration by the minds at One Patriot Place late on draft weekend.
