Junior Tight End Jace Amaro has a special opportunity to become the not only the first Red Raider drafted since 2011, but also the first Red Raider drafted in the 1st round since Michael Crabtree. The Unanimous All-American has risen and fallen on the draft boards, and now we take a look at his chances to be drafted in the first round come next Thursday.
RECEIVERS | |
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JACE AMARO | TIGHT END |
HT/WT: 6-5/265 FORTY: 4.60 VERTICAL: 33" BROAD JUMP: 9'-10" SHORT SHUTTLE: 4.30 THREE CONE DRILL: 7.42 BENCH PRESS: 28 reps VIDEO: HIGHLIGHTS 1 | HIGHLIGHTS 2 | COMBINE POSITIONAL RANKING: 2nd by Position, 49th overall BEST POSSIBLE SCENARIO: Drafted 10th overall to Detroit WORST POSSIBLE SCENARIO: Drafted in 3rd round. |
If this were 5 years ago, hearing that multiple tight ends could be drafted in the first round would be a joke. However, with teams like the Patriots and Saints basing their prolific offenses around tight ends, all of a sudden everyone is jumping on the wagon. Luckily for Amaro, this only benefits him. Jace has many strengths, as all possible first rounders have. The best attribute I have heard about Amaro is his ability to be a security blanket. He positions himself well in coverage to where he can use his big body to create a bigger, easier target. It also helps that Amaro has soft hands that can catch the ball and runs his routes well, which is key in the NFL. Another attribute that will help at the next level is his athleticism. Amaro has the speed, vertical, strength and movement to make for a great receiving tight end in the NFL. It will still be difficult to bring down this tight end in the next level. A common comparison to Amaro in the NFL in Rob Gronkowski, and if you look at his draft profile, they are almost identical. In comparison, Gronk ran a 4.62 40 time, 33.5" Vertical, 9'-11" board jump and was the #2 tight end and 47th overall. Almost identical.
However, there are some down sides to Amaro's game. Teams will look at Amaro and give him the label they give all offensive players at Texas Tech: System player. The lack of blocking and putting his hands in the dirt could scare some teams from drafting him early on. Running based teams could want a tight end that could also block, and the fact they haven't seen Amaro done much of that could scare them. Another question that could scare some scouts are about Amaro's attitude. Before Kingsbury got there, he had been arrested off the field, and suspended for punching a player on the field. This last year however, Amaro seemed to have clean up the act and didn't make any headlines for the wrong reason. Teams will still look at the past marks and hold him against them though.
Here is what some other sites had to say about the Tight End. First off is CBSports explaining Amaro's strengths and weaknesses:
STRENGTHS: Lining up mostly in the slot, Amaro is a big, fluid athlete who uses his thick body to gain proper positioning in coverage and uses his large, soft mitts to attack the ball in the air. He is a balanced route-runner and collects himself when changing direction with smooth moves to create separation. Amaro is dangerous after the catch and isn't an easy ballcarrier to bring down, running with power and toughness. WEAKNESSES: Some maturity and attitude questions that will need to be addressed. Receiving tight end who won't be a fit for all schemes unless he can get in an NFL training program and bulk up.--Dane Brugler
Amaro's NFL Draft profile on NFL.com suggest that Amaro won't be drafted until the 2nd or 3rd round, and he won't have a huge role in the pros:
DRAFT PROJECTION
Rounds 2-3BOTTOM LINE
Very productive, finesse, detached tight end who racked up exceptional production as a junior when he was essentially deployed as an inside receiver for the Red Raiders. Will be best utilized in a similar role in the pros
Here is what an NFL.com Blog thought about Amaro's Pro Day performance
Jace Amaro, TE (6-foot-5 1/2, 266 pounds) — Amaro ran the 40-yard dash in 4.69 seconds against the wind and 4.68 with the wind. He had a 33 1/2-inch vertical jump and posted 24 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press. Former Texas Tech quarterback Seth Doege did a good job of throwing to Amaro, who looked smooth running routes. Amaro could be drafted as high as late in the first round of the 2014 NFL Draft.
And finally SBNation talked about the 3-head Tight End monster in the draft and what Amaro thinks about the competition
Then there's Jace Amaro. He's the quietest of the bunch and probably the least athletic of the big three. Still, his route running and hands make up for it.
"Everyone does things differently between the three of us," Amaro said. "They're all great players and they all bring something to the table. I feel like it's three great tight ends, so it's kind of hard to tell and I don't want to go into too many details about that."
Now let's take a look at what teams could be a good fit for Jace Amaro and who could be calling in the upcoming NFL Draft:
- New York Jets - Poor Geno. Last season he was stuck with the likes of Santonio Holmes, Stephen Hill and Chris Ivory. Now he's got Eric Decker and Chris Johnson to help him out, but he'll need another target to help the 2nd year QB out. With Dustin Keller leaving last season, the Jets need a TE again. Jace Amaro would be a good target for Geno if selected here. The Jets already have a great D, so offense is their greatest concern.
- Green Bay Packers - Although the Packers also need a secondary, they could a TE here to help compete in the NFC. With the under performing Jermichael Finley out, the Packers need a TE to fill his void. Amaro would be perfect in the Packers vertical offense, along with helping them finally establish a running game.
- New England Patriots - Tom Brady lost Welker last year, and Hernadez, and Lloyd, and Gronk (majority of the season). Even though the running game came alive again, Brady's new Bunch wasn't consistent, causing the offense to be a roller coaster ride throughout the season. Although defensive line is also a major need, they may choose Amaro is help out Brady in case the receivers struggle again. Patriots are likely to trade this pick though.
- Atlanta Falcons - The falcons will likely pick a defensive player in the first round, but they could be looking to fill a void left by Gonzales in the 2nd round. Amaro could help provide a nice pass catching tight end for Atlanta and help spread the field.
It'll be interesting to see where Amaro could end up next week, weather the Tight Ends will be taken early or they slip to the 2nd and 3rd rounds. Amaro will be drafted in the 1st, 2nd or 3rd round unless he gets in trouble (See Alfonzo Denard). No matter where Aramo ends up though, he will be given a shot to play and contribute to the offense right away. It'll be interesting to see how well Amaro performs next season compared to the rookie and elite Tight Ends in the league.
Coming up in the NFL Draft Profile Series
- April 3rd - Will Smith
- April 10th - Terrence Bullitt
- April 17th - Eric Ward
- April 24th - Kerry Hyder Jr
- May 1st - Jace Amaro
- May 8th - Draft Day updates and rumors