Blocking Ability
While Fant has probably the highest ceiling as a receiver of any tight end prospect in this draft, he also has one of the lowest floors – part of that is due to his inconsistencies as a blocker. In terms of his hand usage, he does show the ability to locate his hands well at times:
But too often, he ends up being largely ineffectual in this regard. This often comes in combination with poor pad level, where by failing to locate his hands effectively, he then rises up and ends up wasting most of the power he generates while also increasing the risk of giving away a hold:
The combination of these factors also leads to some issues in terms of his ability to control blocks:
Even though at times, he showed an ability to effectively locate and maintain blocks in space:
In short, Fant’s run blocking is less fundamentally broken and more in needs of development and consistency. This isn’t something that should be taken for granted, but also shouldn’t be dismissed as impossible. He even showed some ability as a pass protector, at least from an athletic standpoint:
As with his receiving ability, there is little reason to think that Fant can’t become a plus blocker with time, but he is still in need of development – a crucial part of evaluating Fant for teams will be how teachable they think Fant is. If they think he has a real chance of significant development as a pro, his grade will likely rise, but given how low his floor is, it is hard to grade him higher without the access that would allow me to assess his development curve further. Potentially great is appealing, but potential value does have its limits.
Grade: Third Round
Best Case NFL Comparison: Travis Kelce
