Second round: Noah Fant, TE, Iowa
There’s a very interesting rumor floating around that not only is Noah Fant considered by NFL teams to be the second-best tight end in this draft behind teammate TJ Hockenson, he’s considered a very distant second.
Like, he could fall out of the first round distant.
Peter King said in his Monday column he could see Fant slipping to round two. Lance Zierlein of NFL.com has Fant ranked 39th on his overall board.
I personally don’t agree with that but listen — crazier things have happened.
Last year at this time, had you told me Courtland Sutton would be there in round two for the Broncos, I would have laughed in your face, and then I would have looked like a fool.
There are other positional needs for other teams in this draft class that could push Fant down the draft board a bit, and if he’s sitting there for the Broncos in round two, they would probably be dancing circles in the draft room.
Fant is a mismatch at the tight end position, and just because he’s not as prolific of a blocker as Hockenson doesn’t mean he’s not good at it at all.
As a matter of fact, Fant is actually a good blocker, it’s just not his greatest strength.
Fant is a player the Broncos can use like his predecessor at Iowa — George Kittle. He profiles so similar athletically to Kittle, it’s almost scary.
These two guys are almost the exact same size with near identical numbers in their athletic testing, though Fant’s are a little better across the board.
I would be shocked to see Fant sitting on the board for the Broncos in round two, but if he’s there, they have to take him. Heck, maybe even try to trade up a little to get him.