Utah's Dallen Bentley gaining NFL draft buzz ahead of East-West Shrine Bowl

Utes tight end has seen his draft stock increase significantly following his career-year in 2025

Utah Utes tight end Dallen Bentley (88) is gearing up for the East-West Shrine Bowl. | Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

Anyone familiar with the Utah football team or the 2026 NFL Draft class is probably well aware of the reputations preceding Spencer Fano and Caleb Lomu.

Both have been hailed as first-round talents since the start of the college football season, and they outstanding play as bookends to one of the best offensive lines in the country helped solidify their places as two of the top offensive tackle prospects available in this spring's draft.

Fano and Lomu aren't the only Utes destined for a pro career, though: Dallen Bentley, coming off a breakout season in which he developed into one of Utah's top threats in the passing game, has been gaining NFL draft buzz recently as well.

“I’ve started a little bit of tape on [Bentley]," said Todd McShay during an episode of The McShay Show podcast (around 21:50 mark). "Bentley might be the guy where everyone’s like ‘where did he come from?’”

In a draft riddled with premier prospects at tight end — Kenyon Sadiq, Eli Stowers and Jack Endries to name a few — Bentley is right up there with the top players at the position. In fact, ESPN draft gurus Mel Kiper Jr., Steve Muench and Matt Miller all have the 6-foot-4 Taylorsville, Utah, native in their respective rankings of the top-five tight ends in the 2026 draft (Kiper has him at No. 3) while CBS Sports' big board ranks him as the No. 8 tight end on its big board.

CBS has Bentley as the No. 145-ranked player overall, which would slot him in as a fifth-round pick if his projection wound up playing out.

Bentley's stock is on the rise following a career-year with the Utes, in which he hauled in with 42 receptions for 514 yards and five touchdowns, finishing second on the team in catches and receiving yards behind wide receiver Ryan Davis. Bentley is also coming off earning All-Big 12 third team honors and recognition as a semifinalist for the John Mackey Award, an annual award recognizing the top tight end in college football.

Had it not been for his breakout season, Bentley's name probably wouldn't have appeared on scouts' radars ahead of the 2026 draft. For context, Bentley entered 2025 with three catches for 20 yards through his first two seasons with the Utes, having served mostly as a backup upon transferring from Snow College (Utah) prior to the 2023 campaign.

Being patient and committed has clearly worked out well for Bentley, whose productive season has helped earn himself invitations to the East-West Shrine Bowl and NFL draft combine events. Both showcases will grant opportunities Bentley opportunities to put his talents on display in front of NFL evaluators, general managers and scouts, starting with the East-West Shrine Bowl on Jan. 27.

If all goes well for Bentley over the next few weeks, he'll be in great shape to become the next Utah tight end drafted into the NFL. The most recent, Caleb Lohner, a college basketball standout who transitioned to the gridiron, became the ninth tight end drafted from the Utes when the Denver Broncos selected him with the No. 241 overall pick in last year's draft.

Fans can watch Bentley put his skills to the test during the NFL Network's airing of the East-West Shrine Bowl, set for Jan. 27 at 5 p.m. MT.