Gavin Escobar And The Bucs
February 28th, 2013
Though Bucs rock star general manager Mark Dominik believed it was too early to rank these future tight ends, NFL Network draft guru Mike Mayock believes three tight ends are virtually tied and all could be drafted from the first to the second round.
The three? Notre Dame’s Tyler Eifert, Stanford’s Zach Ertz and San Diego State’s Gavin Escobar.
If the objective is to get Bucs quarterback Josh Freeman more toys than FAO Schwarz on Black Friday in order for him to consistently succeed, then an upgrade to a pass-catching tight end would surely fit the bill.
This is no knock on Dallas Clark, the Bucs’ incumbent and free agent tight end, but Clark has seen his best days in the NFL come and go.
One huge unknown to many Bucs fans is Escobar, who played in obscurity at San Diego State but is already an NFL-caliber pass catcher some liken to the Packers’ Jordy Nelson (yes, Joe knows Nelson is a wide receiver).
Escobar, who is entering the draft after his junior year, believes his lack of blocking or perhaps need to improve his blocking is overblown, Escobar said at the NFL Scouting Combine over the weekend.
“I think some people look past my blocking ability because of my pass catching ability,” Escobar said. “It’s something I’m willing to do and I’m always working hard to get better at.
“The feedback I’ve been getting from most teams is they like my pass catching ability. They’re a little concerned
with the run game. I’ve been trying to tell them I’m willing to do that and I’ve been working hard at that, and over time I can only improve.”
Of course, lighting up defenses in the Mountain West will be a bit different than trying to expose the seam route in the NFL, but playing in that conference didn’t hurt Doug Martin or Andy Dalton.
Could Escobar be there at No. 45 when the Bucs pick in the second round? Perhaps.
This is why this draft is so intriguing to Joe. Without knowing what the Bucs will do in free agency, Dominik could draft at virtually every position other than quarterback, defensive tackle, wide receiver, running back, guard and center in the first round, and it would make sense.
Again, if Dominik drafts a pass-catching tight end who to improve his blocking, Joe trusts offensive line coach Bob Bostad can rectify that issue.
February 28th, 2013 at 8:12 am
Joe, josh has had vincent and doug for one season, nicks for less than half, no joseph at all last year. You act like he has had so much talent around him forever. Noone had less to work with then he did in his 1st 3 years. It is not a negative to surround young qbs with talent.
February 28th, 2013 at 9:17 am
Or just get a blocking tight end and take a great slot receiver in the fourth or fifth round or FA. Watch out for Amendola
February 28th, 2013 at 9:19 am
Our FA moves will speak volumes.
February 28th, 2013 at 9:25 am
Escobar has huge upside, think of him as Jimmy Graham with way more football experience coming out of college.
February 28th, 2013 at 9:30 am
@Jvato What elite QB has a “Blocking tight end” as their starter? If you want to have a consistent offense you have to have a great TE.
February 28th, 2013 at 9:33 am
My ideal TE scenario, Sign Martellus Bennett, draft Escobar in Rnd 2, and Stocker becomes 3rd TE. Imagine the Personnel Group of Jackson and Williams at WR, Bennett and Escobar at TE and Martin at RB, that’s a match up nightmare, and we can run or pass with that group.
Make it happen Dom.
February 28th, 2013 at 9:42 am
Every elite qb has/had an elite-great TE. Josh in 2010 had a good kellen Winslow. When he lost a step, so did Freeman.
February 28th, 2013 at 9:42 am
Im still trying to figure out how you liken Jordy Nelson to Gavin Escobar Joe….
Escobar: TE 6-6 260. 40yd time of 4.84
Nelson : WR 6-3 215 40yd time of 4.51
Where are ANY similaraties?
February 28th, 2013 at 9:44 am
I don’t even know what or who to suggest for the Bucs at TE. What is the role for TE in this offense? Who is Brian Angelichio and can he develop TEs? We have a blocking TE in Byum and Stocker has been here long enough to have shown promise. What do the Bucs think about Danny Noble? We can keep picking up TEs, but it’s not going to matter unless we know what to do with them!
For slot WR, Kenny Stills/OK in the 4th.
February 28th, 2013 at 10:03 am
MACABEE i love stills. Have you seen the little slot guy moe. Everyone at texas vs nation was raving about him. I would love to have a slot machine.
February 28th, 2013 at 10:13 am
Well the administrator not only drafted stocker in the 4th but he traded a 4 to trade up when he would he been there in the 7th. Way to read to draft Dom.
February 28th, 2013 at 10:36 am
I like Escobar young seems to have his head on straight. I truly believe we will have a Bennett brother reunion. I think it’s important enough to both brothers to play together and Dom will use that to his advantage. Draft should shape up nicely after FA in couple of weeks. On the CB I watched a fair amount of Xaiver Rhoads last night. I like his length
February 28th, 2013 at 10:48 am
Why can’t he draft DT?
February 28th, 2013 at 11:06 am
Agree that the team could go multiple ways with their first rnd pick, but I wouldn’t discount DT being a need pick if the team has one rated that high on their board. Obviously a lot depends on free agency as well. Resigning Miller and adding a FA like Starks, Hill, Jones (if the knee checks out), or Bryant (if he’s sober and has destroyed that mugshot) would alleviate the need. Or taking a flyer on Dorsey, Ellis or Branch might work as well for the right price.
February 28th, 2013 at 11:12 am
Draft one of these pass catching tight ends or just sign Martellus Bennett for blocking purposes, then trade up to the beginning of the 2nd round for Tavon Austin. I am really interested to see what we do with our TE and slot receiver positions this offseason. What ever moves we make will speak volumes to the offensive style of Mike Sullivan and our offensive attack.
February 28th, 2013 at 11:17 am
Our offense needs some firepower Joe! Which player besides Doug Martin on our team should the defense be afraid of every time they touch the ball in space. I know coach Schiano is a fan of speedsters, so I hope he will add not one, but a few this offseason. We need speed, point blank. We need someone with the ability to get the ball in space and turn it into a home run. We must upgrade our slot receiver position, and I think Tavon Austin is exactly the guy to do just that. I am sick of us missing these game changers like when we passed on Desean Jackson (kind of glad we passed on him now) and passed Percy Harvin (wish he was in pewter and red). Dont let the next Wes Welker/Percy Harvin pass us by..
February 28th, 2013 at 12:05 pm
I see the Bucs using their first round pick on a defensive lineman, or defensive end.
Escobar may very well be there in round two, but Tyler Eifert probably will not.
Maybe the Honey Badger will be there in round two ?
February 28th, 2013 at 12:09 pm
Gil Brandt says Eifert & Ertz are gone in Rd 1
February 28th, 2013 at 12:11 pm
Lagarretts we didn’t pass on Jackson.He came off the board a couple pick’s befor us.Instead we took Dexter Jackson in the second round.Austin’s size scares me.I’d rather take Swope or Stills later in the draft.They measured Desean Jackson’s arm’s and found that they are 6 inches shorter.Than they measured at the combine.Lol
February 28th, 2013 at 12:13 pm
I really, really like. Dion. Sims, michigan state.
I would pass on mar. Bennet
February 28th, 2013 at 12:20 pm
If Werner falls to us.We can let Bennett go.I like Bennett but someone will give him 8-10 mill.Buc select the all draft drop team.1st Werner,2nd Demontre Moore,3rd Manti T’eo,4th Honeybadger Lol
February 28th, 2013 at 12:23 pm
@76bucs. I believe/recall the bucs traded down in rnd 2pick when $desean jackson was avaleable.We picked up a 5th. Round pick and we picked up Josh Johnson
February 28th, 2013 at 12:34 pm
Bucs select 43rd, don’t they?
February 28th, 2013 at 1:02 pm
Astrobuc Jackson came off the board before our selection.But we did trade down to reach on Dexter.Should of stayed putt and selected Ray Rice.
February 28th, 2013 at 1:03 pm
jvato24 Says:
February 28th, 2013 at 9:17 am
Or just get a blocking tight end and take a great slot receiver in the fourth or fifth round or FA. Watch out for Amendola
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so you would rather waste 2 positions on a position that can be handled by one person? a single blocking/catching TE is WAY more schematically friendly than having just one blocking TE and one slot WR.
February 28th, 2013 at 3:04 pm
If there is a run on CBs in the bottom of the first and top of the second round like I suspect, the Bucs need to draft a CB with the first pick, or be left in the cold, for a premium CB, before their 2nd round pick. Miami is pick #12 and their are rumblings coming out that they are considering CB Xavier Rhodes, even though he’s considered a later round choice. Is Miami over-reaching? Perhaps, but when the talent level drops-off the cliff after the top 5 CB, you either bite the bullet and draft one early, or be left looking for scraps later.
February 28th, 2013 at 3:57 pm
Macabee sees it the same way I do. Without a defined role for the TE in this offense, it doesn’t make sense to spend any more resources on a position that’s already stacked with depth. With TE Luke Stocker hopefully taking over the reigns, and with our own freak rookie TE Danny Noble, who can finally contribute, after suffering a season ending injury, at the beginning of last year. We have a stable of TEs that should be good considering their perceived roles. On offense, our priority should be on OT, and slot WR with depth.
March 1st, 2013 at 10:08 am
Why are we not rushing to sign DT Roy Miller?
Because there are many good DT’s available.
Imagine drafting a stud DT to go next to Gerald McCoy?
Boog McFarland was an an awesome first round pick back in the day to go alongside Warren Sapp.
I would love to see us draft another great DT. And at #13 there could be a steal available.
Also, later in the draft, I like the HUGE NT from Georgia. Jenkins. He would be a nice addition in the 2nd or 3rd round.
My bet? The Pats will draft him to eventually replace Wilfork.
Wanna bet?
March 2nd, 2013 at 3:52 am
Josh would not throw to Clark unless he was told to. He complained about K2 being in his face/ear but clearly didn’t like it when K2 was shipped off. Check D Josephs latest comments, teammates are beginning to talk about his head problems. He really misses his buddy Raheam. Hope Dom gets more good players this year so he eather has to put up or he can be sat down. IMO he only wants the big dollars and the women, he could give a rats A@s about winning.