* - How well does his skill set carry over
to the fantasy game? For receivers, a player needs to be a realistic
threat for 70 catches and 1,000 receiving yards at some point
early in their career to be a candidate for a perfect grade. Positional
scarcity at the pro level is also a part of the equation.
Positives
Plays and moves like an oversized wide receiver;
explosive off the line of scrimmage for a tight end and a very
fluid mover (ran a few whip routes, which is uncommon for a
tight end); his route tree is more diversified than most tight
ends.
Likely runs in the low 4.5s and has much more upside
as a seam-stretcher than he was allowed to show in college (10-for-13
on deep targets over the last two seasons, including 7-for-7
in 2023).
Big frame and long arms (32 3/4") and likely a
vertical jump in the mid-30s gives him a catch radius not many
tight ends have.
Significantly improved his drop rate in 2024 (3.4 percent)
after back-to-back seasons of 10 percent or more.
Shows the requisite toughness for the position and is
a willing downfield blocker.
One of the youngest tight end prospects in the draft
(just turned 21 in early April).
Negatives
Will likely be limited mostly to slot and move tight
end usage in the NFL.
Goes down on first contact far too often.
Was extremely poor in contested-catch situations in
2024 (2-for-10) and throughout his college career (40 percent).
A decent blocker for what he was usually asked to do
at Michigan (block second- and third-level defenders), but he
lacks the strength and technique to anchor or drive against
a defensive lineman as an in-line blocker and will probably
always struggle with that.
Unlikely he will be able to add much bulk to help him
as a blocker/after the catch without hurting some of his athleticism.
Bottom Line
The term "oversized receiver" sometimes gets overused,
but it fits with Loveland. This is a 6-foot-6 and 248-pounder
who lined up in the slot about half of the time and out wide about
19 percent of the time over his final two seasons in college.
He did not test at the Combine, but he probably would have run
in the high 4.5 to low-4.6 range. He is an easy mover, which makes
him a weapon on out or slant routes. At 6-foot-6 with almost 33-inch
arms and demonstrated vertical explosion, he is the quintessential
"too big for defensive backs and too fast for linebackers"
tight end.
Unfortunately, the "oversized receiver" moniker also
applies to other parts of his game in a bad way. For a player
that is nearly 250 pounds, his run-after-catch ability is shockingly
poor - especially when he is contacted. If he catches the ball
in open space, he can do some damage. However, he only forced
three missed tackles on 56 catches in 2024 and eight missed tackles
on 117 catches over three seasons. (To put that number in some
perspective, eight of the other 12 tight ends who were targeted
at least 70 times last season forced at least eight missed tackles
in 2024 alone.
He was also surprisingly ineffective in contested-catch situations
in 2024 (2-for-10). Loveland put some good downfield blocks on
tape, but there is little evidence at this point of his career
that he will be very helpful at the line of scrimmage in the running
game if he has to occupy an edge defender for very long.
Assuming the team that drafts him is comfortable with him being
a "Joker" in the passing game (much like what the Broncos
are hoping to do with Evan Engram) and limits his blocking responsibilities
to second- and third-level defenders, he should be a team's No.
2 option in the passing game for the better part of the next 8-10
years. He is not for everyone, but a team that sees him as a mismatch
weapon will create headaches for defenses.
Doug Orth has written for FF Today since 2006 and joined the
Fantasy Points website before the start of the 2024 season. He is
also a highly successful high-stakes player who often appears as
a guest analyst on Sirius XM. Doug is also a member of the Fantasy
Sports Writers Association. Please check him out on "The Football
Diehards" podcast with co-host JJ Wenner.
