Michigan Projected Tight End Room After Marlin Klein Was Selected in the NFL Draft

What does Michigan's TE room look like with Malin Klein now off to the NFL?

Michigan Wolverines tight end Marlin Klein leaps Maryland Terrapins defensive back Jamare Glasker | Tommy Gilligan-Imagn Images

On Friday night, Marlin Klein was selected by the Houston Texans with the 59th pick in the NFL Draft. Klein's value skyrocketed as the Texans traded up to land him in the second round. He was the second Wolverine off the board behind Derrick Moore.

Let's take another look at what Klein accomplished in the Maize and Blue and then we'll dive into what the Michigan tight end room now looks like with him out of the picture.

Marlin Klein's Michigan Career

Marlin Klein was at Michigan for all four years of his college career, catching a total of 38 passes for 364 yards and 1 TD. His stats do seem pretty meager on paper but he was also playing behind All-American Colston Loveland for his first three seasons as a Wolverine. Even with Loveland gone, he didn't make a huge jump in his Senior season production wise, as he managed to catch just 24 passes for 248 yards and 1 TD in 2025.

While he was never a huge receiving threat, he did vastly improve as a blocker in his final year in Ann Arbor and it looks like that might now be his best trait as he heads off to the NFL.

Michigan's New Tight End Room

After Klein got selected, that now leaves Zack Marshall, Hogan Hansen, and Deakon Tonielli as true TE's on Michigan's roster for 2026. They also have Jalen Hoffman and Eli Owens as H-Backs (or fullbacks). All three of Marshall, Hansen, and Tonielli have contributed for the Wolverines thus far in their Michigan career, but they've always been in a backup role.

Both Zack Marshall and Hogan Hansen have shown flashes of being good players for the Wolverines, but neither of them have been asked to do it on a consistent basis. Personally, I'm really high on Hogan Hansen, and I think he ends up being the guy who leads this group in receiving and snaps played this fall. He's looked good physically when he's out there, he just missed most of last season with an injury but I'm betting on him to bounce back strong this season.

While this room might seem thin on paper, the other thing to consider is that in this new offense led by Jason Beck, they might not utilize the TE position as much as the previous coaching staffs did. Having a super strong TE room probably won't be as important as it was in past seasons, but regardless they will need someone to step up and be a leader for this position group with Marlin Klein now officially off the NFL.