Senior Bowl Preview: Which TEs in Mobile Should the Jaguars Be Interested In?

Every January, herds of NFL coaches, scouts, front office executives and more flock to Mobile, Alabama for the Reese's Senior Bowl. Here, they are able to witness first-hand how the top senior NFL Draft Prospects take to NFL coaching and perform in individual drills.

This year's Senior Bowl, which will be played on Jan. 25, will once again provide teams like the Jacksonville Jaguars a key opportunity to scout their potential picks come April.

JaguarMaven will be present at Mobile this year to provide the most comprehensive content possible for Jaguars coverage, but until then we will preview each position group leading up to the week of practice.

This preview will focus on a position the Jaguars are mostly bare at as it stands today: tight end. Jacksonville hasn't had a consistent tight end since releasing Marcedes Lewis before the 2018 season and has gone through a series of journeymen, cheap free agents, and dissapointing rookies as they try to replace Lewis' impact. In 2019, the Jaguars got little to no production from the position once James O'Shaughnessy suffered an ACL injury in Week 5.

Luckily for Jacksonville's sake, there are several talented tight ends who will showcase their talents in Mobile this year. Which ones should the Jaguars focus? We identified a few:

Purdue TE Brycen Hopkins

A consistent producer for the Boilermakers over the last four seasons, Brycen Hopkins is one of the top tight end prospects in the entire class thanks to his soft hands and ability to stretch the field. With solid size at 6'5" and 245-pounds, Hopkins has a frame that can still be added onto that suggests he can play inline as well as in the slot or as an H-back.

In four seasons at Purdue, Hopkins caught 130 passes for 1,945 yards and 16 touchdowns. This 15.0 yards per catch average is a great figure considering Purdue didn't have a ton of on-field success during Hopkins time in school. He is the type of do it all tight end the Jaguars should keep their eyes on.

Florida Atlantic TE Harrison Bryant

Arguably the best tight end in college football in 2019, Florida Atlantic's Harrison Bryant thrived in Lane Kiffin's offense. He does most of his damage when lined up off of the line, with a good chunk of his production coming out of the slot in recent years. Though this is similar to Josh Oliver, Bryant wins in different ways. Oliver is a pure field stretcher, while Bryant attacks the middle of the field and kills defenses with yards after the catch.

Bryant had terrific production in college, totaling 148 catches for 2,137 yards and 16 touchdowns in his four-year career. 1,004 of those yards and seven of those touchdowns came in his stellar 2019 campaign. Bryant has work to do as a blocker, but he will add value to a passing offense somewhere.

Vanderbilt TE Jared Pinkney

Jared Pinkney won't dazzle with his speed or agility like some receiving tight ends, but he is still a threat to any defense thanks to his size, catch radius, and toughness. At 6'4" and 260-pounds, Pinkney has the ability to play inline in the Jaguars' offense as long as he continues to develop as a blocker.

In four years at Vanderbilt, Pinkney caught 114 passes for 1,560 yards and 14 touchdowns. He won't wow anyone after the catch, but he still has the ability to make life tough on linebackers and defensive backs who he towers over due to his hands and size.

Portland State TE Charlie Taumoepeau

A small school stud, Charlie Taumoepeau will have a big chance to impress NFL evaluators in Mobile. He was the centerpiece of Portland State's offense throughout his career and was even named First-Team All-Big Sky Conference in 2018. He has experience as both an inline tight end as well as one who is split out wide, and also has some unique experience as a defensive end for the Vikings. The hope is his time on defense can only aid him in the physical aspects of playing tight end, as well as help him understand more blocking assignments.

.@NFLPABowl watching @psuviksFB at @UNCBearsFB in Greeley, CO. Portland State’s Charlie Taumoepeau #89 rushing the passer. pic.twitter.com/DaebXlP3BR
— David McCloughan (@DavidMcClougha1) October 20, 2019

LSU TE Stephen Sullivan

The 6'5", 242-pound Sullivan was never a big contributor on LSU's offense, catching only 46 passes for 712 yards and three touchdowns during his time with the Tigers. Despite that, the former four-star wide receiver prospect earned a Senior Bowl invite thanks to his tantalizing physical tools and his experience at both tight end and wide receiver. He is one of those unheralded prospects who could see a big boost in his stock with a big week of practice in Mobile.