Dalton Kincaid, TE, Utah
 

Man, every time I watch this guy I can't help but think he would be fantastic in this offense. I know TE in the 1st isn't an option for many on here, and I doubt it happens, but he might be the best TE in this class and has the upside to be a top 3 TE in the NFL in a couple years.

Andy loves his YAC guys, and Kincaid is really ****ing good after the catch. Kelce and Kincaid would be a cheat code in the middle of the field.

Of course, you could say the same thing about Mayer and Musgrave. Any one of the top 3 TEs would have the rest of the NFL collectively shitting their pants.

And before kccrow comes in and mentions it, I fully agree that this TE class is deep, which further makes taking one in the 1st unlikely.

Who knows? Veach was feeling himself after the last Super Bowl and YOLO'd the first round for CEH. Maybe he lets it rip again on a non-traditional position in the first?

I mean, if you're trying to extend Kelce AND trying to continue having a "big slot" guy like Smith-Schuster to make plays in the middle of the field, Kincaid is a good fit for KC.

Receiving weapon is a receiving weapon.

Funny you say that, because I was going to mention this in the OP but I forgot.

Yea, he's bascially a better version of JuJu in that roll that JuJu played this season.

God I hope not.

I love the kid and think he’s gonna be great if he can go to a team like ours.

Kelce turns 34 in early October. He’s not gonna be the Kelce we know for too much longer.

And man I know folks want a WR but a TE is incredibly difficult to defend, especially in this offense. A two headed TE duo would be so hard to defend.

It would certainly be a nice transition kinda like the Eagles did with Ertz/Goedert. Kelce has 4 seasons left at the most IMO.

Yeah, I would think so.

The best version of JuJu you can possibly get would be from Travis Kelce.

And the way you'd do that is by getting a WR that can supplant him in that Z role.

It would prolong his career in the process.

I just don't know that I can figure out who that is. Hyatt is more of an X sort. Downs more of a Y. I guess Flowers?

I can't quite figure out this WR class after the first 3 and I don't think those 3 are realistic options.

Gotta be Smith-Njigba right?

Kincaid is my favourite TE in the tier 2 of TE prospects (assuming Mayer is clear #1), prefer him over Musgrave & Washington. I mentioned it in a previous post but I love the idea of trying to draft the next elite TE while Kelce is still near the top of his game. Whoever the prospect is won’t have too high of expectations out of the gate and gets to learn from one of the greatest tight ends of all time.

LaPorta I also have a lot of time for also.

Captain obvious here, but I would think that if one of the top 2-3 potential 1st round TE’s are available at 31 AND the top WR’s the team likes are gone, a TE would be a consideration.

I'll be more shocked that we don't draft this kid if he's available, than if we do. He looks like a near perfect fit for the new offensive philosophy.

I think they'd pivot to DE or OT. I just can't see them spending a 1 on a TE.

You use a 1st on a guy who has blue chip talent AND is ready to play at/near that level right now. You use a 2 or 3 on guys who have the talent OR the readiness but not both.

We simply don't need a guy who can play at that level right this minute. If I can elect to use a 2 or 3 on a guy with similar tools who may take a year or two to get to that level, I'd take that over using a 1st on a guy who's probably not an every down starter for at least 3 years.

Hey, the TE class is really deep. :P


And it's not that it's just deep, it's how athletic it is in that depth.

What I like about Kincaid is his quickness off the snap. He gets to speed really quickly. In a draft with an embarrassment of riches in that regard, he's certainly towards the top.

I absolutely 100% would not take a TE in round 1 in this class but I'd definitely consider it at any point after that and really more in the 3rd. The dropoff from 1 to 10 in this group isn't significant enough that I think it's worth going high with one.

I wouldn’t hate using the 2nd round pick on one of Kincaid or Kraft, or even moving up to get one.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm all in. I hope we trade Clark for some more draft capital. Since the NFL Draft comes to KC and they want to make a statement, I want them to grab Kincaid at all costs! Can you even imagine Kelce and Kincaid on the same field together? Some say a pipe dream, I say make it happen!

Also, let JuJu walk and go after Lazard. This offense would be incredible!

As for the "D" fill in the gaps as you can through the draft. Trade CEH and get more picks. Try to get McKinnon back as well.

In Veach I trust - I need his magician hat this draft and in free agency! I actually have high hopes for us! Let's do this!

Posted this about Kincaid 3 months ago. I like Musgrave, Washington, and Mayer - in that order - but I think Kincaid will end up being better than all of them by a decent sized gap. I'd be ecstatic if we somehow got him, he'd absolutely crush in a Reid offense with Mahomes throwing to him.

Oh, I agree. DE and or OT would be the primary considerations.

I'd friggen love to see Musgrave serve a season or two apprenticeship under Kelce.

He's the closest thing the draft has to TK athletically but he doesn't have the feel for defenses that Kelce does (nobody does) nor does he do that crafty route running shit that makes Travis so dangerous.

Give Musgrave a couple years under TK's wing and you may have your next KC All Pro tight end.

I think it's a classic ceiling/floor debate with Musgrave vs. Kincaid. Dalton is more pro-ready, runs better routes and can produce immediately. I'm not sure that Musgrave can, but if he develops those rough edges, he's a better player than Kincaid, IMO.

That said, Musgrave is probably a 1st rounder and will definitely be gone by our 2nd. Kincaid miiiiiight fall to us in the 2nd or at least fall within reasonable trade-up range.

That might be a bit overblown as far as playing time. Noah Gray got 50% of the snaps as #2 TE. Kelce got 79%. Wouldn't be the worst idea to get one in now and start to even out the work load or even give the rookie more than Kelce eventually to prolong his career.

Just for further reference, MVS and JuJu each took about 65% and they were the top 2 WRs.

It sucks saying it, but how many more years of "prime" Kelce do we have left? 2, maybe 3? Looking at finding his replacement is starting to become a necessity. Plus our 12 formation would be just flat unfair if we were to take Kincaid (even if it would be a total luxury pick in this draft).

I agree with DJ - if the receivers they're targeting are gone, get a tackle or end with pick 31.

I just want to point again to Chad Lewis. Was on his way out of the league, Reid shows up and he makes 3 straight pro bowls.

Kelce is great but Andy simply gets production out of his TEs.

We may not need the best TE in football to get the best production from the position in the league going forward. Andy just knows how to use his TEs.

Draft is to get the best talent. Free agency is to fill holes. I wouldn't be opposed to a tight end at all. Kelce is 34 this season.

In a vacuum, yeah.

But when you have a HoF QB on a top QB contract and a HoF DT on a top DT contract (soon), you can't JUST use free agency to fill holes.

Last season very clearly demonstrated that fact. We filled, what, 4 starting spots in a single draft? And while that's not something you can expect, you probably do need to cover at least one and possibly 2 of your Day 1 starting spots in the draft given this cap realities of having a premier QB and DL.

I mean shit, Andy had Sean ****ing McGrath looking like a legit receiving option here for a hot minute when Kelce and Fasano were both down. QBs and TEs - Andy knows 'em, and that's not even sprinkling the Mahomes factor.

Again, I wouldn't hate Kincaid here at all, but give me a tackle prospect or a raw edge rusher that can be molded. And I kind of dig the TE room we have at the moment with Kelce, Gray, Bell, and Fortson anyway.

I'm definitely not against spending pick 31 on a TE. Even if you still have 3 years left of Kelce...having a 2nd option that you can put out on the field at the same time and create mismatches is extremely beneficial.

When you consider this video then think about what a Kincaid to add to this offense, I get it......

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-ijhneH4OeI" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I'm not sure if that was Mahomes' best pass of the season, but damn it's at least top 5.

I mean I built the Hockenson bandwagon before I drove the thing.

I do love what a dynamic 2 TE set could bring to the table. I just think we have more pressing needs that are better served being addressed both now and going forward.

There ya go the surprise of the offseason...

TJ Hockenson grew up a big Chiefs fan, he signs with the Chiefs giving them the most ridiculous TE pair ever.

Oh you did for sure.

And we have more pressing needs but we had those when Veach decided to go with CEH...so I'm not turning down any ideas at #31 right now.

He's not a FA.

Oh I thought he was and that was why Detroit moved him...

He's got his 5th year option left, I believe.

I'm intrigued by Sam as well. He comes from an absolute TE factory and he's been a plus player since he first arrived in Iowa City. I think he has a lot of upside.

Just realized this was missing from the thread

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/QxWz1GhHhQg" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

I watched a few of those games live. Literally seemed like he had 30 catches in that USC game.

Kincaid and Kelce on the field together wouldn't even be fair.

If that happens, just cancel the season and give us the Lombo.

I typically hesitate a little when I have to cite 'coming from an X factory' but I'll be damned if some schools don't just produce high level players at certain positions.

It probably does mean something, especially if the staff that produced those guys is still there.

Yeah, I don't say that just willy nilly. The way Iowa develops players is conducive to producing good TE's and linemen. They're pretty good at developing white linebackers too. :D

As far as TE's go, you always have the big names like Hockenson, Kittle and Dallas Clark. But you also have guys that are just solid TE's too. We're all familiar with Noah Fant due to recency bias but I bet nobody remembers a guy like Scott Chandler, who was a standout conversion project at Iowa. He bounced around for a few years before he stuck with the Bills. In 4 years there, he amassed 180 catches for just over 2000 yards and 17 TD's.

It actually goes all the way back to Hayden Fry and guys like Jonathan Hayes and Marv Cook. Fry was one of the very first NCAA coaches to introduce the idea of a stand-up TE.

Why when I hear the name Hayden Fry do I think of the tv show coach?

I kinda like the TE's we have but yeah, I'd love to have another one.

I wouldn't go looking to replace Kelce. It won't happen, so you go a different offensive direction.

Because he was one of the inspirations for Craig T Nelson's character, Hayden Fox.

Well I hope Hayden Fry had better assistant coaches cause those guys man!

His list of assistant coaches is pretty damn impressive.

Bob Stoops
Kirk Ferentz
Dan McCarney
Barry Alvarez
Bill Snyder
Joe Philbin
Brett Bielema
Jim Leavitt
Bobby Diaco
Bo Pelini

That's just off the top of my head.

Plus when you look at a guy like Bill Snyder, he has his own tree by himself.

IMHO, THIS IS your Kelce replacement! Get this guy at ALL costs. :thumb:
He can learn behind Kelce in a year or two before Kelce retires.

Luke Musgrave is also an intriguing prospect.

Sam LaPorta is intriguing to me. I think he checks a lot of the boxes of what Andy asks of a TE in the passing game.

If Washington falls to KC, you have to take him.

The Georgia TE?

I disagree. He's a bad fit for KC. Great blocker and athlete at his size, but I don't see the receiving fit.

I definitely wouldn't spend a 1st on him.

Definitely.

I think the teams that throw the ball a lot are going to really like Musgrave, Kincaid, LaPorta, and Whyle in the first couple of days. If they are more run-oriented, it'll be Mayer, Washington, Kraft, and Schoonmaker.

Latu is very similar to LaPorta but didn't get as much volume and might go a bit later.

I wouldn't mind someone like Schoonmaker in the later rounds. Sometimes he looks a little stiff and linear, other times he looks a bit more explosive than I'd expected.

Utah TE Dalton Kincaid, @MoveTheSticks’ top TE and No. 10 overall prospect, will not participate in drills at the Scouting Combine, source says. Kincaid suffered a small fracture in his back in the Utes’ final regular-season game and played through it in the Pac-12 title game.

Don't know but if you really think he could be a star you take him over just a good WR.

We need a few superstars in the next 5 years be added to the team, go find some.

Oh, I agree. But I doubt he makes it to 31.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr"><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Utah?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Utah</a> TE Dalton Kincaid says he met with the <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Chiefs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Chiefs</a> and Andy Reid. Says it would be fun to play with Patrick Mahomes. <a href="https://t.co/CCmCTgBmAB">pic.twitter.com/CCmCTgBmAB</a></p>&mdash; Mark Lane (@therealmarklane) <a href="https://twitter.com/therealmarklane/status/1631674953283125249?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 3, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Lesssss gooooooo!!!!!

Fracture in hi back? That's mildly concerning. But it's not a deal breaker or anything.

If we draft him that just means Rick Burkholder gave Veach the green light to do so. Rick never misses.

Hard to see him going top 10 or 20 in this draft with that, isn't it?

I have to think it would be a concern for at least some teams.

Didn't Kelce basically redshirt his rookie season due to microfracture surgery?

:hmmm:

I actually like Musgrave more but don't see him falling that far in the 2nd or the Chiefs investing in a TE2 that high

Musgrave looks toolsier, and a better straight line athlete. I just think Kincaid is a better football player. My knock on Musgrave is the opposite to Kincaid, he has zero YAC ability and goes down immediately on any contact.

This kid's game is very polished. But, he will be 24 in October.

The tight end from Iowa is very gronk ish

Zack Kuntz put on a show at the combine today. Just posted about it in the Combine thread on the main Lounge.

But... basically gives you Darnell Washington's advantage (size, speed, uncommon agility and speed for size) with better leaping ability and explosiveness, and has been used in a variety of ways as a pass game weapon.

Needs to work on his blocking, but otherwise a better fit for KC than someone like Washington.

From the little I've seen, he looks pretty good. Runs nice routes, runs them with good pace, good hands (possibly really good). He looks a little like a young Trav, tbh.

I also like Musgrave more. He's the guy that compares most favorably to Kelce IMO. There's already talk he might be a 1st round pick and I think he'd be a top 15 guy and the top TE off the board if not for the injury. He still might be.

Thoughts on Darnell Washington?

Darnell Washington posted the second fastest 20-yard shuttle among *ALL* WRs and TEs

The only faster time was Jaxon Smith-Njigba's 3.93

Washington weighs 71 pounds more than JSN


https://twitter.com/nfl/status/16321...kwVVahNBMPqdzA


https://twitter.com/jontweetssports/...kwVVahNBMPqdzA

I was dead set on him in December, and thought I had moved on. But **** it, I think I’m back. At worst he’s an extra tackle. Andy would have so much fun with a guy like him

I feel like Kincaid moves better. Not as big or fast but he seems to set guys up with savvy head turns and then he's just a YAC monster - in that way he seems way more like Kelce imo. I just don't see that with Musgrave - he's big and fast, but there's zero shake. I REALLY liked him when he was being mentioned outside of the 1st as an insane athlete with a ridiculous ceiling. But man a top half of the 1st seems rich.

This is the only player I'm going to let myself pine for. Really hope we snag this guy in the mid/later rounds.

If he makes it to 20 I would go get him.

In our current offense Kincaid could take the JuJu role and improve it while Kelce remains the focal.

Then we have the Kelce successor and a #1 "WR" with Kelce till that day happens.

How is Mayer's fit with our offense? I ask because I was able to get him in a PFN mock, though I think he's gone in the late teens / early twenties.

I think he plays like Gronk in that he is just physically imposing and dominant with solid hands. I feel like its a different style than Kelce.

Do Andy/Patrick just prefer a guy who excels at getting separation that much more than a possession guy?

I see him as a Jason Witten type.

Good player you want to have but not wow.

Too collegey.

This is the kind of 2nd day pick I'd rather see than a 1st rounder (or really even a 2nd) on a TE.

He's a little older so that will impact his growth curve in all probability. It will also probably push him into the late 3rd.

He's a tall dude, fast and agile. But he's green and he doesn't have a lot of runway in front of him. He wasn't super-productive in college and he'd definitely need to add some weight to be anything more than a Mikael Ricks sort of novelty item.

But that's what 3rd and 4th round picks are for, IMO.

Ok, hands down, this IS the Kelce replacement at TE. I would be willing to make this selection my #1 priority no matter what the cost. He is incredible.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gn3ZUdp5PKc" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe>

"Black Gronkowski"