North Carolina Tar Heels tight end Eric Ebron speaks at a press conference during the 2014 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
North Carolina Tar Heels star tight end Eric Ebron is regarded as the best prospect at the position in the 2014 NFL Draft class, and it would be a bit of a surprise if he wasn’t a top 20 pick in May. While Ebron struggles as a blocker and has some significant issues with drops, he’s also a dynamic playmaker at the position with his strength, agility, and explosiveness after the catch. Ebron is a top-notch weapon, and he’s the kind of guy who can really open things up for an offense as a “joker” tight end with his ridiculous blend of size and speed.
Draft insider Tony Pauline reports that Ebron “did not look good” at his pro day, as he “generally looked poor” during drills and only created more concerns regarding his hands by dropping “a number of” balls.
But just as we try to calm down people from taking too much out of a quarterback’s pro day, the same has to be said about a tight end’s pro day (or a player at any position). Ebron had an off workout, and that shouldn’t affect his draft stock much. I highly doubt it will, and he’s still the top-ranked tight end in this year’s draft class. That said, teams concerned about his hands and blocking might pick Jace Amaro instead, so Ebron also isn’t a lock to be the first TE off the board. That, of course, has much more to do with tape than workouts, as Ebron is the guy with the size, speed, and athleticism to awe people in workouts; he gets a pass for this one, but the drops are something we’ve always known about.