Cincinnati Bengals tight end Tyler Eifert has had quite the inauspicious beginning to his NFL career.
Eifert, the team's first-round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, has managed just 42 receptions for 482 yards and two touchdowns in 16 total games spread over two seasons.
While Paul Dehner Jr. of Cincinnati.com believes that Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis will "bank on Eifert not only completing a healthy season next year, but making good on the first-round potential the team invested in 2013," he also suspects that the looming 2015 NFL Draft will provide further reinforcements for the tight end position.
"This leaves the draft as an area where one or two tight ends need to enter the equation, including one who could start in two-tight-end sets immediately," writes Dehner Jr. "Unfortunately for the Bengals, this draft - in the early rounds - doesn't overflow with them. But recent results would suggest taking a third stab in five years at the position in the first round wouldn't make much sense."
Dehner Jr. believes that the middle rounds are the team's best bet for adding the more blocking-centric tight end the Bengals are likely to target - considering Eifert's difficulties and playing style and the lack of explosive success for Jermaine Gresham, it's not farfetched to think that Lewis likely isn't interested in expending an early pick on the position.
Players like Jeff Heuerman of Ohio State (6-foot-5, 254-pounds), Clive Walford of Miami (6-foot-4, 251-pounds), Nick Boyle of Delaware (6-foot-4, 268-pounds) and Jesse James of Penn State (6-foot-7, 261-pounds) all fit the size and availability parameters the Bengals will find particularly enticing in the 2015 NFL Draft.
Walford is the best receiver of the group, having led all collegiate tight ends in years per route run last season. He worked a large portion of his snaps out of the slot.
Heuerman provides upside as a receiver, but was limited in his role in the Buckeye passing game.
Boyle is a physical blocker and would potentially provide a good complement to Eifert. James performed well in many of the athletic tests at the combine, but struggled with drops.
Walford and Heuerman are likely to be available somewhere around the third or fourth-round, while Boyle and James will potentially be available well into the last couple of rounds.
Another player the team could look to target is former Florida State Seminole, Nick O'Leary. O'Leary is considered something of a "throwback" at the tight end position and seems to project well as an H-back-type at the NFL level.
"O'Leary has the competitive spirit and toughness that teams look for in a dual-threat tight end, but he lacks the physical traits," writes Lance Zierlein of NFL.com. "Based on how Florida State used him, he is an easy projection to an H-back spot where he should be an effective move-blocker and pass-catcher."
If the Bengals are targeting a player with grit and the ability to shift around the formation, O'Leary could be their man somewhere around the fourth-round.
