North Carolina tight end Eric Ebron is considered the near-unanimous top tight end in the 2014 NFL Draft class, but it's a deep class with the inclusion of players like Austin Seferian-Jenkins (Washington), Jace Amaro (Texas Tech), Troy Niklas (Notre Dame) and C.J. Fiedorowicz (Iowa).
We asked our experts which tight end in this draft they considered to have the highest ceiling.
I have Ebron over Seferian-Jenkins with a little bit of a margin between the two, and the difference is what Ebron can do after the catch. I don't think it's close. I can throw a shallow cross to Ebron and he can take it up the sideline and go. Seferian-Jenkins can catch the football, he's great in the red zone, but he doesn't bring that excitement like a Vernon Davis-type does, a guy who can really stretch the seam and give me something after the catch.
Seferian-Jenkins is 6-foot-5, 262 pounds, and reminds me of Rob Gronkowski. The X-factor for me between Seferian-Jenkins and Ebron is in the red zone. Seferian-Jenkins in his career has 21 red-zone touchdowns. Ebron? Eight. In the red zone you can throw it up to the big 6-5 guy, he can post guys up and get it. People like to talk about his drop-off in production last year (36 receptions for 450 yards vs. 69-852 in 2012), but Washington went to a different style of offense that didn't feature him as much, and he still had eight touchdowns.
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- Chase Goodbread College Football 24/7
Ebron has best chance to be special on Sundays
Ebron brings the highest ceiling at the position in this draft with a combination of athleticism and receiving skills that are tough to match. There are better blockers than Ebron available at this position, to be sure, but the team that makes Ebron the first tight end off the board -- most likely among the top 15-20 picks -- won't be making that investment for his blocking. He'll be counted on right away as a downfield threat, and even among athletic pass catchers like Amaro and Seferian-Jenkins at this position, Ebron has the best chance to be a special player on Sundays.
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- Bryan Fischer College Football 24/7
Little-known, highly troubled Lyerla has most upside
I'm a big fan of what kind of weapon guys like Ebron and Seferian-Jenkins can become, but if we're talking ceiling, nobody in the draft has the upside of Colt Lyerla. He's had a number of off-the-field issues, but if he can get his head right, the potential is certainly there. Not only can he catch and run like the best of them, he had some impressive reps at running back when he was at Oregon. He's a freak athlete and definitely could be a third-day steal for some team.
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- Mike Huguenin College Football 24/7
Ebron is only first-round-worthy tight end
I like Eric Ebron the best, though I'm not sure I would take him in the top 20. He has good speed and can get deep -- becoming more and more important for tight ends these days -- and I think he is a better blocker than a lot of analysts give him credit for. He also is the only tight end I would take in the first round. I have concerns about the maturity of Seferian-Jenkins and the blocking ability of Amaro. And while Amaro was amazingly productive at Texas Tech, he won't be playing in that type of offense again. I think Niklas has a chance to be a big-timer because he's the best "dual threat" (blocker and receiver) among the tight ends.
