COLUMN: Hawkeyes are Tight End U

     As all of us Midwesterners anxiously wait for a break in the weather, the cold weekend did give me an opportunity to watch parts of the NFL combine. For those not familiar with the combine, it is a chance for invited college seniors and juniors who have declared for the draft to showcase their skills in hopes of being drafted.

     For the record, it is by invite only that players get this opportunity.

     Four Hawkeyes were invited to participate and two Cyclones, RB David Montgomery and WR Hakeem Butler. The four Hawks were TE’s Noah Fant and TJ Hockenson, S Amani Hooker and DL Anthony Nelson. All four Hawks declared for the draft with eligibility remaining.

     The focus for this column will be on the two tight ends. Both are projected to go in the first round. Both guys are thought to be the first two tight ends to come off the draft board.

     Most draft experts are predicting Hockenson to go number five and Fant around pick 24. If this happens in any form in the first round, it will be a first for TE’s in the history of the draft.

     Fant is considered the more athletic of the two. His combine numbers lived up to the hype. Fant’s only knock is his hands and maybe his blocking skills. He caught the ball well on Saturday.

     Fant was the fastest TE, running a 4.5 40-yard dash. That was faster than all the running backs at the combine. He also had the best vertical jump at 39.5 inches and broad jump at 127 inches for TE’s. His overall grade was a 5.86 and that is considered a chance to become a starter.

     Hockenson had good numbers too, running a respectable 4.7, jumping a 37.5 inches in the vertical, good for second. He also had the second best broad jump at 123 inches. He graded out at 6.35 and that is considered an instant starter.

     Both guys should expect to hear their names called in the first round. Of course, I would like to see one of them drafted by Green Bay. Hockenson will be gone before Green Bay picks first but the Packers do have a second pick in the first round, at pick number 30.

     I also do not see Fant lasting that long but maybe the Packers could trade up for a chance to select Fant. I can only dream. The NFL draft will take place in Nashville this year at the end of April. I wish it were a month earlier; I may be in Nashville that weekend.