Each week this offseason, we’ll be focusing on one position and how the Panthers may choose to address their needs; whether they’re in the market for an upgrade at starter or just a reliable backup, every player on the 53-man roster is going to be important in 2018.
This is Tight End Week.
Although the Panthers are unlikely to find a replacement for Greg Olsen beyond the third round of this year’s draft, should they look to add a potential secondary tight end on the final day of the draft, there would be a number of options for them to consider. Their choice would likely be influenced by whether they want somebody more focused on being a receiver, a blocker or a combination of the two. However, if they do look for a mid-to-late round option to come in an contribute early on then they should look no further than Ryan Izzo.
Run Blocking
Izzo is actually one of the better run blockers in the 2018 draft class, but as with Mark Andrews, he is able to be effective through technique and body position rather than with raw power. On each of the following plays, he shows the ability to locate his hands well inside the frame of his defender and keep a wide base which allows him to hold his position effectively or even drive his defender backwards in some cases.
On each of the plays above, he is essentially lined up as an extra offensive lineman and tasked with simply blocking down on the man in front of him; while he doesn’t show dominant power in this style of run blocking, his solid base and good arm placement allow him to still remain highly effective. Where he is best, however, is out in space being asked to create a lane for the running back. On the following play, he moves up to the second level defender and using the same skills he showed above in combination with good body position, he is able to seal the inside running lane, thereby allowing for a big play.
Izzo isn’t an enormous run grader, but he is a solid run blocker with the potential to become even better with some time in a weight room. Given that he has shown an ability to be effective as an in-line blocker, he could well feature early on in short yardage and red zone sets as an additional blocker. Where he really stand out, though, is in pass protection.
Pass Protection
Izzo is hardly the next Joe Thomas, but he is almost certainly the best and most experienced pass protector in the 2018 draft class. While this isn’t the fundamental of the tight end’s game in the way it might have been in the past, if he is to feature in these heavy sets, he will need to be able to protect because it is in such situations that teams are most likely to use additional blockers. A core skill for anybody looking to pass protect is the lateral agility required to shadow rushers around the edge; on both of the following plays, Izzo shows at least decent lateral agility both around the edge and on a spin move.
What Izzo also demonstrates on these plays is a reasonable degree of hand usage; on the first, he times his punch well to force the defender wide, and on the second, he uses a number of quick hand moves to regain control when initially beaten by the spin move. When lined up directly against a pass rusher, this hand control is extremely useful as on the following play, he is often able to use good hand placement and pad level to counter a defender with more strength and momentum.
When facing blitzers from the second level, this is also a useful skill, as these players will likely have enough momentum to make it hard to stop them outright. What Izzo shows the ability to do here is use good hands and an awareness of where the quarterback is likely to be to harmlessly guide the rusher around the play. This not only demonstrates good technique, but also some intelligence as a pass protector, something that would undoubtedly be useful in an NFL scheme.
Finally, he shows both a feel for when to disengage and, once again, the hand technique to do so. On the following play, Izzo is meant to initially block before disengaging and rolling out as a short dump-off option. Here, he shows both good blocking technique and understanding of when to disengage, with the hand usage and strength to make it happen.
All of these factors combined are not guaranteed to make Izzo an elite pass protector at the NFL level, as schemes and protections will become significantly more complicated, but he certainly has the best chance of being an effective pass protector of any of the tight ends in this class.
Receiving Ability
Many college tight ends (almost all in fact) are used as either glorified offensive linemen or oversized receivers in college; in Izzo’s case, it was the former. While he was occasionally asked to run routes and catch the ball, it was almost always either on simple drop-off routes or from hard run fakes; while this will mean that he is unlikely to contribute significantly as a pass catcher at the NFL level early on, he did enough on tape to have an idea of what he might become as a pass catcher
A fairly core skill for any tight end looking to become involved is the ability to catch the ball, and Izzo certainly meets that particular criteria.
He even shows some ability to make plays on balls away from his frame, even if he does appear to double-clutch it.
This play also shows a reasonably sharp change of direction. This could hardly be described as a complicated route, but that ability to change speed and directions is the basis for much of what tight ends will be asked to do as route runners. While the following play is also a simple route, he again shows some understanding of what he is meant to be doing as a route runner and is able to come up with the ball for a first down.
The other base skill that Izzo shows on tape is some degree of deep speed. While he is largely left alone on this play, he is still able to get down the field at a decent speed.
Again, Izzo doesn’t stand out as a pass catching tight end, but he at least has some core skills to build upon and theoretically could become a decent second option next to Olsen in the future. Finally, let’s take a look at Izzo’s ability after the catch; from the few times he was asked to run after the catch in college, it is hard to identify anything particularly special about Izzo as a ball carrier, but at least he seems aware that his best tactic is just to charge straight ahead:
All-in-all, Izzo is far from being an elite tight end, but his good blocking and foundation receiving skills could be intriguing for a team like the Panthers, looking to add a blocking tight end with the ability to make the occasional play as a receiver.
NFL Best Case Scenario: Austin Stefarian-Jenkins
NFL Worst Case Scenario: Richie Brockel
Summary: “A good blocker in both run and passing games, but will need to develop as a receiver to be anything more than a rotation piece. “
Grade: C
