Detroit Lions draft profile: Tight end Dallas Goedert

After the start of free agency, the Detroit Lions are left without two tight ends. They may need to address that high in the draft with Dallas Goedert.

When it came to the tight end position, all seemed right with the world for the Detroit Lions last season. Eric Ebron was finally living up to his draft hype and heating up down the stretch, and veteran Darren Fells was always a safe bet for solid blocking and sure hands.

That all has been thrown out the window this week, as Ebron was surprisingly released by Detroit last week and Darren Fells signed a 12 million dollar deal with the Cleveland Browns. These two moves have left the cupboards nearly barren for Motor City in the tight end department.

After the moves, the Lions are left with only one tight end that played significant minutes last season: Michael Roberts. The former fourth-rounder was seen as more of a blocker in his rookie season, as he was only targeted seven times for four receptions and 46 yards in 2017.

Due to a lack of tight ends on the depth chart, it’s safe for Roberts to expect an increased role in the offense this season. But at the same time, Roberts seems to be more of a run-blocker, so adding another pass catching big man in the draft would be a smart move by the Lions.

That is where the subject of this post comes into play. Standing at 6’5″ and 255 pounds, Dallas Goedert is one of the best tight end prospects in this draft, and would look good in the Honolulu blue.

A former high school basketball player, Goedert specializes in circus catches as a possession tight end, as he uses his length and sheer strength to dominate smaller defensive backs.

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The former South Dakota State Jackrabbit got on scouts’ radars his junior year, as he caught 92 balls for 1,293 yards and 11 scores, averaging almost 100 yards per game receiving. He was able to keep things rolling his senior season. posting 72 receptions for 1,111 yards and seven touchdowns.

Goedert is currently projected as a late first rounder or early second rounder, as ESPN’s Todd McShay has him ranked as one of his top three tight ends and says he would not be shocked if the Lions used another first round pick to draft a tight end.

The biggest area of concern for suitors of Goedert is the fact that he played at a rather small school, and in turn was facing much worse competition. If Goedert can adjust to the size and speed of NFL defenders quickly, those small school concerns will quickly be forgotten about.

Goedert does have the size and speed to produce in the NFL, as he possesses a long frame and proved his strength at the combine, getting 23 reps in the bench press, ranking him first amongst all tight ends in the workout.

That good mix of arm strength and long wingspan means he won’t get pushed off his route by physical corners and linebackers, allowing Goedert to make many more miraculous catches like the ones seen in on his highlight tape.

Lions general manager Bob Quinn is a former employee of the New England Patriots, a team that has loved to play two physical tight ends who can catch passes all over the field. It was most successful with Rob Gronkowski and the late Aaron Hernandez, and recently tight ends such as Martellus Bennett have been able to fill that tight end role as well.

With how successful two tight end formations were in New England, the Lions may want to replicate that by pairing a pass catching tight end like Goedert with a more physical guy in Roberts. The two of them could combine to form a deadly duo that could make key blocks on the edge, get open in the flats and find the seams in defensive zones for key plays at just the right time.

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Darren Fells’ veteran leadership will be missed, and it seemed like Eric Ebron was just hitting his stride when he was released. But by drafting a pass catcher like Dallas Goedert in the first or second round, Detroit Lions fans could forget about Ebron fairly quickly.

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