Two Sleeper Tight Ends Broncos Could Target in Draft

The Denver Broncos brought back almost all of their tight ends from the 2025 season, despite the room being a bottom-five unit in the NFL. The Broncos will have to look for another way to upgrade the room, and the draft offers a deep tight end class with many projected fourth-round picks who could fit.

The Broncos' biggest priority is a blocking tight end, as their blocking at the position has been a mess for a few years. That said, the Broncos also need to upgrade their receiving ability in the room, even with Evan Engram returning.

Engram didn’t cut it last year, is on the last year of his deal, and seemingly isn’t close to the receiving threat he once was as a two-time Pro Bowler. So, I'm highlighting two possible tight ends with condensed scouting reports in the latest edition of our Finding Broncos draft series.

Background

Joly was a two-star recruit, and his recruitment was slow. When he started getting offers, they were as a receiver, tight end, and even linebacker.

Joly originally committed to Delaware, but decommitted and was almost headed to Monmouth, which gave him his first offer, before UConn got involved. He spent two years at UConn before entering the transfer portal and landing at NC State.

Stats

Joly lined up in the slot over 50% of his time through his career, with a season low of 46.8%, while only playing 36.3% of snaps as an in-line tight end, with a high of 45% this last year. He dropped 10 passes over four years, while catching 35 of 53 contested passes.

Pros

Joly has a well-built, lean, and muscular frame. He is extremely athletic, and his smooth movement makes it easy to see. The way he moves, with his build, makes him look like a big receiver out there rather than a tight end, and that's the kind of impact he can have in the passing game.

Joly has plenty of speed to stretch the seam, but he also has good breaks to stress it, then cut it off for instant separation. He has a lot of nuances as a route runner that you don’t commonly see with tight ends, which adds to his look as a big receiver. He knows how to set up his routes and stack defenders to get good positioning to be a target.

Joly is tough during his routes and doesn’t get bounced around, and does well working in contested-catch situations to protect the catch point and secure the ball. His hands are also reliable, and he doesn’t have a high percentage of drops and doesn’t have those double catches.

Joly's awareness is also noteworthy, and he looks to be the quarterback's best friend when the pocket gets crowded and the passer has to get out of there.

Joly shows some fire and competitiveness as a blocker when working out in the slot, and he has enough to work there. He can swallow up defensive backs as a blocker and knows how to seal lanes for screens or outside runs in the slot. He is praised for his work ethic and intangibles on and off the field.

Cons

North Carolina State Wolfpack tight end Justin Joly (7) catches a pass against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. | Luke Jamroz-Imagn Images

Joly's blocking isn’t enough to work as an in-line tight end consistently, and he can struggle catching edge defenders or linebackers as a blocker. He also doesn’t have the power to generate movement, even against outside defensive backs, and is a lane sealer more than a lane creator. He can miss his landmarks when working as an outside blocker, especially in the screen game.

Joly has no special teams value. His pacing is off as a receiver and blocker, where he can get behind the play and throw off the quarterback's timing, or miss those landmarks as a blocker. Despite his toughness through his routes, it doesn’t show with the ball in his hands, and he can be easily brought down.

Most of Joly's work was quick-pass stuff, and there are some concerns about his ability to work on longer-developing routes and whether his effort stays the same. He also has a bad tipping problem, telegraphing his routes and making it easier for defensive backs to read them.

Fit With the Broncos

Joly is a fit with Denver as an Engram replacement option, with a chance for more because of what he can do as a blocker in the slot. Engram saw his snaps cut to around 20 per game due to a lack of blocking, and Joly could fill in to keep the receiving potential similar in certain situations while also helping with blocking from the slot.

Grade: #3 Big Slot, Fourth Round

Nate Boerkircher and Rueben Bain Jr. — Texas A&M Aggies tight end Nate Boerkircher (87) blocks Miami Hurricanes defensive lineman Rueben Bain Jr. (4). | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Background

Boerkircher was a no-star recruit, and he didn’t have a lot of interest. He eventually jumped at a chance to play at Nebraska with a preferred walk-on opportunity.

Boerkircher carried that chip on his shoulder and worked hard before earning a scholarship in 2023. He spent five years at Nebraska before transferring to Texas A&M in December 2024 over Alabama, Miami, and Oklahoma.

Stats

Boerkircher only has 38 catches in his career, with 19 of them coming in 2025, including three of his four career touchdowns. It's a small sample size, but he had two drops on his 48 targets and caught six of nine contested catches.

Boerkircher played 64.5% of his snaps as an in-line tight end over his collegiate career.

Pros

There is a great frame and build with Boerkircher, and it comes with good athleticism and power. Even though his receiving opportunities have been limited, he shows good work there with an extended catch radius and the ability to chase passes off his frame.

Boerkircher also appears to have strong, natural hands that pluck the ball out of the air without fighting it; this was really shown at the NFL Combine during the gauntlet drill.

Boerkircher is tough as nails, both as a blocker and as a receiver, unafraid to work the middle of the field, and has even shown the ability to bounce off hard hits over the middle. When working as a receiver, he has shown he knows how to find soft spots in the zone and make himself a target, while maintaining awareness of the quarterback and being a target in scramble drills.

Boerkircher is a blocker first and foremost, and he has some of the best and cleanest technique as a blocker entering the NFL since Darnell Washington. His hands have the power to control defenders, and he knows how to anchor and torque power through loose hips to generate driving force and create movement as a blocker.

Boerkircher blocks with a good base and pad level, he doesn’t lean or lunge into contact, and he keeps his center of gravity and balance. He can be enough of a threat to also work in the slot to keep the predictability down.

Boerkircher's mindset as a blocker is that of an offensive lineman, and he looks to punish defenders and impose his will. He has special teams value on coverage units, with plenty of experience, and can even work in the backfield on offense to offer even more offensive versatility.

Cons

Texas A&M Aggies tight end Nate Boerkircher (87) celebrates a first down against the Miami Hurricanes. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Boerkircher is only 245 pounds, and stronger NFL edge defenders could have more success than their college counterparts did if he can’t add about 10-15 pounds, but his frame may not be able to hold that extra weight very well. When working outside or climbing, he needs to keep his awareness up, as he can miss incoming defenders or fail to hit his landmarks.

With such limited work as a receiver, it's still a projection, even with the positive traits Boerkircher has shown. Can he handle a larger workload as a receiver?

There isn’t much there after the catch, and Boerkircher will likely be limited to a safety net tight end role as a receiver. His route tree isn’t diverse, he's easy to read with his routes, and he doesn’t have the route quickness to get separation.

Boerkircher will turn 25 on September 4, and a tight end can take time to adjust to the NFL. His athleticism is limited, and tight end is a position where athleticism can translate quickly.

There are also some long-term medical concerns over his knees that teams have had to dig into.

Fit With the Broncos

Boerkircher could give the Broncos the blocking tight end they need if he checks out medically. With the issues they’ve had with their tight ends getting hurt, they can’t really afford another medical risk.

If Boerkircher does check out, he would immediately be the best blocker on the team from a technical standpoint.

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