The Minnesota Vikings have used a somewhat strict policy of creating workout thresholds for potential rookies at the combine and various pro days and might do so again. A number of teams do so to cut their board down from 300-plus players to 150 – the Patriots board is often 75 players – and though the Vikings have moved on from their old models, they may be implementing a new set of thresholds when selecting their players.
We don’t know the new set of thresholds the Vikings have implemented over the last two years, but we may be able to reasonably guess. For tight ends, Minnesota previously looked at those who ran faster than 4.70 seconds in the 40-yard dash, but for now it looks like they’ve limited themselves to looking for tight ends who jumped verticals of 33 inches or higher, with a particular focus on those who hit high marks of 38 inches or higher.
Only seven tight ends participated in the vertical leap this year, and it seemed like they only had occasion to jump if they thought they could beat the historical average. All seven of them either matched or beat that average.
Honorable Mentions
Not every tight end worked out, and one of the favorites, Dallas Goedert, couldn’t because of an injury sustained early in the Senior Bowl. He plans on going through every drills at South Dakota State’s pro day, which will be held on March 30. He should exceed positional averages in most of the workouts given his profile and scouting report, but until then he remains an honorable mention.
Wisconsin tight end Troy Fumagalli didn’t participate in the vertical leap or the broad jump, but his reputation as a contested catch specialist should intrigue the Vikings when they head to Wisconsin on March 14.
Three players did not participate in the vertical leap but did have excellent broad jump scores, which correlates fairly strongly with vertical ability. Two of those players, Hayden Hurst from South Carolina and Mark Andrews from Oklahoma, could challenge Goedert as the top tight end in the class.
Andrews posted a broad jump of 9’5”, and about half the players who hit that mark also manage a 33-inch vertical. Hurst posted an even better broad jump of 10’0” — 92 percent of players who hit that mark manage at least a 33-inch vertical. Tight ends with that broad jump average a 35-inch vertical and about a third hit the elite 38-inch mark.
To see either of them confirm their projected vertical leaps, pay attention to their pro days. Oklahoma’s is on March 14 and South Carolina’s is less than a week later, on March 20.
Another player leaped 10’0” in the broad jump without participating in the vertical leap — Dalton Schultz from Stanford. On March 22, he may prove that he has an elite vertical leap at Stanford’s pro day. He could be a versatile mid-round tight end that could round out the bottom of the roster in the short term and may take on a bigger role in the long term.
Mike Gesicki, Penn State
Gesicki had an incredible combine performance, placing in the 99th percentile in composite athleticism scores, like the SPARQ metric. Tight ends this athletic only come around once every seven years or so in the draft. Naturally, Gesicki flew past the Vikings bare minimum thresholds and topped the stringent 38.5” mark that the Vikings have shown a preference towards.
Though the Penn State alum isn’t a well-rounded prospect because of his deficiencies as a run blocker, he showed improvement at the Senior Bowl and has consistently overwhelmed defenders as a pass-catcher and route runner.
Ian Thomas, Indiana
A late bloomer, Thomas’ performance against Ohio State has had media scouts and personnel executives within the league raving about his potential. He’s a late bloomer who still has a lot of room to grow as a route-runner and technically as a blocker, but he’s shown great development over his career in Indiana. If he could show the type of explosiveness in other games that he did against Ohio State, he’d be a top-tier prospect. For now, he’s a ball of clay that teams are itching to mold.
Tyler Conklin, Central Michigan
Conklin played through almost all of 2017 with a foot injury, so it’s difficult to get a good understanding of what he’s capable of from his film alone, but his workouts scores give us a glimpse. He’s one of the six tight ends this year to post a broad jump of 10’ or greater. While only 20 percent of NFL prospects at tight end historically produce scores that good, 40 percent of this year’s crop did.
Though Conklin didn’t quite hit the 40-yard dash mark that the Vikings have historically preferred, his 4.71-second performance isn’t exactly disappointing, either. Add in his 38” vertical, and it’s clear that he has the athletic potential to offer teams something. He’s an aware player with smart route-running, but he needs more consistency at the catch point and will need to pass medical evaluations from teams to be on team boards.
Jaylen Samuels, North Carolina State
A potential Jerick McKinnon replacement, Samuels isn’t really a tight end, and is mostly working out there at the combine so that NFL teams can see him in H-back style roles, where he’d move around the formation to create mismatches. Traditionally, he’d be considered a running back with huge pass-catching upside, and played in the Senior Bowl as a running back.
Even though he doesn’t play the position listed, he did pass the filters that the Vikings have used at tight end. On the other hand, he was the only tight end at the event under 6’3”… and he’s 5’11”. As a running back, he tested athletically enough for the Vikings to consider him — which makes sense, given his 4.55 40-yard dash at 225 pounds and his 10’1” broad jump.
Not only that, he excelled in drills aimed towards scatbacks, like the three-cone and short shuttle.
Samuels played everywhere for the Wolfpack and expects to do the same in the NFL. An electric kick and punt returner, Samuels’ highlight-reel quickness also served North Carolina State as an outside zone runner, screen receiver, slot receiver and even Wildcat quarterback. Any NFL team that knows how to use position-less “gadget” players will love Samuels.
Ryan Izzo, Florida State
Another run-blocking tight end in the mold of David Morgan II more than Kyle Rudolph, Izzo may be a redundant talent instead of all-around depth. Still, his run-blocking prowess is formidable, and he has the ability to block from multiple spots in the formation. He’ll be an asset to any team that acquires him, and though his catch radius is limited while his technique limits him as a pass catcher, his aggressive attitude permeates all facets of his game.
David Wells, San Diego State
Wells has a senior season resume of nine receptions — evidence enough that he’s not a pass-catching specialist. Unfortunately, though he succeeded as a run-blocker in the Mountain West, he doesn’t seem to have the strength to parlay that into consistent NFL success in the same role. Though his hands are fine, his ability to get open is limited by his speed, evidenced by his 4.95-second 40-yard dash. If he adds more strength to his frame, he’ll find a role on a roster.
Marcus Baugh, Ohio State
Like Wells, Baugh is another seventh-round prospect who hopes to stick on a roster through one-dimensional value. In this case, Baugh succeeds with the ball in his hands in the open field against linebackers and safeties. His natural athleticism needs to be unlocked, however, as he looks fairly slow as a route-runner and doesn’t create separation with physicality or quickness. If he had more consistent hands, he could sell himself as a contested-catch specialist. Unfortunately, with frequent drops, he really has to rely on his ability to leap over defenders or generate separation downfield after winning the release.
