Latest news with #tightend
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Browns rookie changing positions in training camp?
The Cleveland Browns have one of the most discussed quarterback battles in the NFL currently taking place, as Kenny Pickett, Joe Flacco, Dillon Gabriel, and Shedeur Sanders all compete for the starting job. And while the latter two rookies are garnering a lot of attention, there is another first-year player who could make a huge impact that is flying under the radar. Tight end Harold Fannin had an incredible 2024 season. The Bowling Green product led the nation with 117 receptions and 1,555 yards. In addition, he scored 10 touchdowns. And while he is a tight end, the Browns reportedly view him more as a receiver than anything. "I think for [the Browns], the way they've always talked about Harold Fannin to me is just like another big receiver," Ashley Bastock of says. Fannin has been somewhat forgotten by those who ask who Cleveland's No. 2 target could be - why can't it be him? If they wanted to move him to receiver, he'd likely thrive in the roll, and he could rotate between being a big power slot pass-catcher and be put on the boundary at times, as well. A full position change may not come, but the utilization of Fannin all over the offense very well could. Follow The Sporting News on WhatsAppBrowns star says Kenny Pickett reminds him of Baker Mayfield Watch: Browns QB Shedeur Sanders throws deep touchdown at training camp Baker Mayfield throws shade at Browns as they struggle to find franchise quarterback NFL insider confirms Cleveland Browns avoided injury disaster in training camp Cleveland Browns starter shockingly announces retirement two days into training camp
New York Times
2 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Falcons still believe in Kyle Pitts, but can he be trusted in fantasy this season?
Kyle Pitts enters the 2025 season as one of the most significant fantasy football question marks, but one thing is a good bet. He will have five touchdown catches. No more. No less. The reasoning for this prediction is that Pitts had one touchdown catch in his rookie season, two in his second season, three in his third season and four last season in his fourth season. It's been just about the only stable thing in the talented tight end's time in the league. Advertisement The Falcons drafted Pitts fourth overall in 2021. It remains the highest a tight end has ever been picked. Since then, he has caught 196 passes for 2,651 yards and 10 total touchdowns. It's not what fantasy managers (or Falcons fans) expected. Pitts is the 13th-highest scoring tight end (based on PPR scoring) since he's been in the league, and the numbers are even worse after subtracting his rookie season, when he had career highs in catches (68) and yards (1,026). In the last three seasons, Pitts is 20th among tight ends in fantasy PPR scoring. After an injury-shortened 2022 season, he was 13th in tight end fantasy scoring in 2023 and 15th last season. OMG KYLE PITTS TD!!! 📺: #ATLvsWAS on NBC/Peacock📱: Stream on #NFLPlus — NFL (@NFL) December 30, 2024 The good news from a fantasy perspective is that Pitts enters the fall as the Falcons' starting tight end, and he's their only option at that position. Atlanta has five other tight ends on the training camp roster. Backup Charlie Woerner has 18 catches in five seasons, and free-agency addition Feleipe Franks has one catch in his career. The other three players are long shots for the 53-man roster. That roster construction illustrates the Falcons' seemingly never-ending patience with Pitts, who will be playing on his fifth-year option this season. Just as he did last offseason, coach Raheem Morris has expressed optimism that Pitts could be on the verge of a breakout. 'He's done such a great job of all the things we have asked him,' Morris said. 'He's been absolutely outstanding to be around.' Pitts was fourth on the team last season with 602 receiving yards and fifth in catches with 47. His reception percentage (catching 47 of 74 targets, 63.5 percent) ranked 30th among tight ends, but the Falcons talk as if they plan for him to be a bigger part of the offense in 2025. Advertisement 'Kyle has always had the same role, as a big-time matchup problem,' Morris said. 'He's one of those guys that, on third down, is absolutely able to move the chains. Most of the time, his big-time role has been in the pass game. 'Last year, he grew a little bit in the run game. He's developed his role as he's gone and become more of a complete tight end. I have a lot of belief in him.' Complicating projections for Pitts is the fact that he sat out minicamp practices due to a foot injury, but he did return for the start of training camp. Pitts will make almost $11 million this season. His market next year, and whether the Falcons will be interested in being a part of it, will be determined mainly by what he does this season, which could serve as motivation for some fantasy managers to draft him, hoping for a contract-year bump. 'He's super talented,' Morris said. 'That's always going to be the thing that gives you hope with Kyle.'
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
From hoops to Hall of Fame: Antonio Gates' unique NFL journey to Canton
Antonio Gates thought his path to a Hall of Fame career would have been in basketball. Instead, he became one of the best tight ends in NFL history. Gates will be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, getting elected to Canton without playing college football. He played his entire 16-year career for the Bolts and finished with 116 receiving touchdowns, the most by a tight end in NFL history. 'My journey was probably the most unique journey in all of football because I came in as a former basketball player, not knowing what to expect,' Gates said. 'Some of those guys who are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, they wanted to be Pro Football Hall of Famers when they were 14 years old. I wanted to play in the NBA. That was my dream. Like I said, I still haven't wrapped my head around it all.' Gates played both football and basketball during high school at Detroit Central. Nick Saban recruited Gates to play football at Michigan State, but he didn't play as a freshman. Gates also wanted to play basketball, but Saban disagreed. Gates transferred to Eastern Michigan, then to two junior colleges, and eventually to Kent State. It was at Kent State that Gates reached national prominence. He led the Golden Flashes to the Elite Eight in the 2002 NCAA Tournament as a junior and an Associated Press All-America honorable mention selection as a senior after averaging 20.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. Even though Gates was convinced he would get drafted in the NBA, at 6-foot-4, scouts saw him as an undersized post player. However, Tim Brewster, who was the Chargers' tight ends coach in 2003, saw in Gates the size and speed that he thought would make him a great tight end. Brewster saw Gates during a private workout and immediately began making his pitch to Marty Schottenheimer and the Chargers' front office to sign him as a free agent. 'A lot of people like to take credit, but Tim is the number one reason why I am in the Hall of Fame,' Gates said. 'He found me, believed what I could become, and was around me constantly. He really got me into a position where I look up, and I was All-Pro my second year in the field.' After having 24 receptions for 389 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie, Gates had a career-high 13 touchdowns in 2004 en route to the first of three straight Associated Press All-Pro honors and eight consecutive trips to the Pro Bowl. He also had 81 catches for 964 yards. Even though he was catching a lot of passes, Gates' route-running didn't always get high marks from coaches. 'What I was doing as a rookie and in my second year was considered nontraditional. I would play well, but grade out bad because I creating a lane. And unfortunately, when you're creating something that's never been done or seen, it gets scrutinized. I would use my instinct to make the play.' Many of the things that Gates did with shape routes, pivot routes over the ball and tight ends releasing at the line of scrimmage are commonplace today with Kansas City's Travis Kelce and San Francisco's George Kittle. Gates utilized his basketball skills on the football field, as catching the ball at its highest point is similar to rebounding in the paint, as well as boxing out on the hardwood and trying to get open against a defensive back. Gates might have been outsized as a power forward, but he had an advantage going up against defensive backs who often were smaller than he was. Gates' career flourished under Norv Turner, the Chargers coach from 2007 through '12. Turner lined Gates up in different spots and also used more two tight end sets. Gates' route-running also improved under Turner and with Philip Rivers as the quarterback. 'He had to win on his route-running and his ability to separate and his understanding of coverages and all those things. Philip is as good a passer as there's been in a long time, but Philip wasn't going to move around and make a lot of plays off schedule,' Turner said. Gates finished with 955 receptions for 11,841 yards. He had 21 multi-touchdown games, the most among tight ends. Of his 116 touchdowns, 39 came on third down, which is tied for third all time. He had eight seasons with at least eight touchdowns and was a member of the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 2000s. Gates said the biggest thing he is looking forward to is being able to thank the people who helped him get to Canton. 'I've always been in a space where from a popularity standpoint, people know my name. It's my chance to thank everyone else,' he said. 'Although you are the face and the focus point, it's truly not about you. You're letting everybody understand what it took to get to this point and who were influential.' ___ AP NFL:
Associated Press
2 days ago
- Sport
- Associated Press
From hoops to Hall of Fame: Antonio Gates' unique NFL journey to Canton
Antonio Gates thought his path to a Hall of Fame career would have been in basketball. Instead, he became one of the best tight ends in NFL history. Gates will be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame on Saturday, getting elected to Canton without playing college football. He played his entire 16-year career for the Bolts and finished with 116 receiving touchdowns, the most by a tight end in NFL history. 'My journey was probably the most unique journey in all of football because I came in as a former basketball player, not knowing what to expect,' Gates said. 'Some of those guys who are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, they wanted to be Pro Football Hall of Famers when they were 14 years old. I wanted to play in the NBA. That was my dream. Like I said, I still haven't wrapped my head around it all.' Gates played both football and basketball during high school at Detroit Central. Nick Saban recruited Gates to play football at Michigan State, but he didn't play as a freshman. Gates also wanted to play basketball, but Saban disagreed. Gates transferred to Eastern Michigan, then to two junior colleges, and eventually to Kent State. It was at Kent State that Gates reached national prominence. He led the Golden Flashes to the Elite Eight in the 2002 NCAA Tournament as a junior and an Associated Press All-America honorable mention selection as a senior after averaging 20.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. Even though Gates was convinced he would get drafted in the NBA, at 6-foot-4, scouts saw him as an undersized post player. However, Tim Brewster, who was the Chargers' tight ends coach in 2003, saw in Gates the size and speed that he thought would make him a great tight end. Brewster saw Gates during a private workout and immediately began making his pitch to Marty Schottenheimer and the Chargers' front office to sign him as a free agent. 'A lot of people like to take credit, but Tim is the number one reason why I am in the Hall of Fame,' Gates said. 'He found me, believed what I could become, and was around me constantly. He really got me into a position where I look up, and I was All-Pro my second year in the field.' After having 24 receptions for 389 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie, Gates had a career-high 13 touchdowns in 2004 en route to the first of three straight Associated Press All-Pro honors and eight consecutive trips to the Pro Bowl. He also had 81 catches for 964 yards. Even though he was catching a lot of passes, Gates' route-running didn't always get high marks from coaches. 'What I was doing as a rookie and in my second year was considered nontraditional. I would play well, but grade out bad because I creating a lane. And unfortunately, when you're creating something that's never been done or seen, it gets scrutinized. I would use my instinct to make the play.' Many of the things that Gates did with shape routes, pivot routes over the ball and tight ends releasing at the line of scrimmage are commonplace today with Kansas City's Travis Kelce and San Francisco's George Kittle. Gates utilized his basketball skills on the football field, as catching the ball at its highest point is similar to rebounding in the paint, as well as boxing out on the hardwood and trying to get open against a defensive back. Gates might have been outsized as a power forward, but he had an advantage going up against defensive backs who often were smaller than he was. Gates' career flourished under Norv Turner, the Chargers coach from 2007 through '12. Turner lined Gates up in different spots and also used more two tight end sets. Gates' route-running also improved under Turner and with Philip Rivers as the quarterback. 'He had to win on his route-running and his ability to separate and his understanding of coverages and all those things. Philip is as good a passer as there's been in a long time, but Philip wasn't going to move around and make a lot of plays off schedule,' Turner said. Gates finished with 955 receptions for 11,841 yards. He had 21 multi-touchdown games, the most among tight ends. Of his 116 touchdowns, 39 came on third down, which is tied for third all time. He had eight seasons with at least eight touchdowns and was a member of the NFL's All-Decade Team of the 2000s. Gates said the biggest thing he is looking forward to is being able to thank the people who helped him get to Canton. 'I've always been in a space where from a popularity standpoint, people know my name. It's my chance to thank everyone else,' he said. 'Although you are the face and the focus point, it's truly not about you. You're letting everybody understand what it took to get to this point and who were influential.' ___ AP NFL:
National Post
2 days ago
- Sport
- National Post
Cowboys sign tight end Jake Ferguson to a 4-year, $52 million extension
OXNARD, Calif. — The Dallas Cowboys signed tight end Jake Ferguson to a four-year, $52 million extension Sunday. Article content The deal includes a $12 million signing bonus. A fourth-round pick in 2022, Ferguson is entering the final year of his rookie deal. Article content He had 59 catches for 494 yards but did not have a touchdown reception last season. The previous year, he posted career highs with 71 catches for 761 yards and five TDs. Article content
