Training Camp 2021: Previewing the Broncos tight ends

The Denver Broncos are trying to get back to relevancy – and the postseason – in 2021. They turned in a down 2020 season, going 5-11 under Vic Fangio, but the staff returns intact to give it one more try. Fangio is entering his third year as the Broncos head coach, and it’s win (a lot of games) or go home. The Broncos changed things up in a big way this offseason by moving on from former general manager John Elway and hiring new GM George Paton.

This is the first year under the guidance of Paton, and the team has done a good job of adding quality players via free agency and the NFL Draft. However, there are questions that need answers before the start of the regular season. In this series at DenverFan.com, we will go through each position group searching for those answers.

This is the latest part in our Training Camp Preview. Today, we’ll take a deep dive into the tight end position:

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Starter: Noah Fant

Noah Fant is the real deal. The team’s first-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft, Fant has steadily improved during his pro career. In 2020, Fant set career highs across the board in his second season, posting a 62/673/3 line in 15 games. Fant missed two weeks to injuries and was obviously less than 100 percent down the stretch.

This year, Fant is ready to take his game to another level. The team should use Fant as a key cog of the passing game because of his speed. His quickness gives him an advantage against linebackers in coverage. His size gives him an advantage when defenses choose to put a safety against him.

If there is an area Fant could see the most growth, it’s near the red zone. In two seasons as the primary tight end for the team, Fant has only six touchdowns. If used the right way, he may have six or more touchdowns this season. Part of this will be the way the game is called, but it also comes down to better quarterback play. Fant is quite capable of making plays near pay dirt, he just needs the chance to do more at that part of the field.

He’s got the potential to be one of the top-five tight ends in the NFL. The run-heave nature of the Broncos offense could hold his numbers down, but I’m expecting Pro Bowl-level performances from Fant in 2021.

It takes tight ends a few years to hit their stride. In year three of his career, we should see Fant look better than ever.

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Reserves: Albert Okwuegbunam, Eric Saubert, Shaun Beyer, Austin Fort

I’m concerned about the talent and the depth behind Fant. He’s a great starter, but there will be times when he needs a break. The Broncos have some interesting names, but they may not be either ready to play or good options when Fant comes to the bench here and there.

Albert Okwuegbunam is the primary backup to Fant, and he’s arguably just as talented as him. Okwuegbunam was a college teammate of Drew Lock, and that chemistry was instantly reestablished in 2020. It was only four games, and basically just his first two games, but Okwuegbunam was force-fed the ball by Lock – and produced from the increase in targets. In those first two games, Okwuegbunam played 55 snaps but was targeted 13 times, catching nine passes for 105 yards.

His snaps and targets plunged after those two games, and then Okweugbunam suffered a season-ending knee injury in Week 9 against the Atlanta Falcons. The timing of the injury is bad because he likely won’t be himself for 12 months, meaning he may not perform up to expectations until halfway through the 2021 season.

In fact, the Broncos are not confident that Okweugbunam will be ready for the start of training camp. He could begin camp on the PUP list, and that means he could begin the regular season on the PUP list. If that’s the case, Okweugbunam would be forced out of action for the first six weeks of the season. Okweugbunam is big, fast and physical – when healthy. Only time will tell if he’s able to get back to action Week 1 and if he’s lost any step/speed from the injury.

Eric Saubert gives the team valuable veteran depth at the position. He was a fifth-round pick of the Falcons in the 2017 NFL Draft. Coming out of tiny Drake University, Saubert performed well at the East-West Shrine Game that year. He was one of my favorite players to watch that week, and I was excited to see what kind of pro career Saubert could put together.

Well, here we are a few years later and he’s done little in the NFL. He was traded to the New England Patriots in 2019 but failed to make the team. He then signed with the (then) Oakland Raiders practice squad, but the Chicago Bears stole him away later in the year. Saubert ended up catching a couple of passes for the Bears, and in 2020 he was signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars. In 2020, Saubert caught just three passes for 16 yards. Overall, Saubert has appeared in 36 games over four years, has been targeted 16 times and has 10 catches for 85 yards. Those are far from impressive numbers.

So, why did the Broncos sign him? The answer is easy, familiarity. Broncos tight end coach Wade Harman coached Saubert with the Falcons and must have put in a good word for him. Saubert has not produced as a pass-catcher, but there’s more there if he gets more than special teams work. He has good concentration as a receiver and can make difficult grabs near the sideline. While not a mismatch nightmare, Saubert is a smooth athlete who can get open underneath. When Okwuegbunam is healthy, Saubert won’t be asked to do much. Before then, Saubert might get some offensive snaps here and there to spell Fant.

Shaun Beyer followed in Fant’s footsteps at Iowa, but he was not as productive as the Broncos starter during his time starting for the Hawkeyes. He converted from playing wide receiver to tight end back in his redshirt season in 2016. Beyer worked as a backup behind Fant and T.J. Hockenson and when they went pro, he got a chance to start. He started 14 games over his final two collegiate seasons and caught just 18 passes for 275 yards and one touchdown in his career. We’ll see if Beyer can do enough in training camp to earn a spot on the 53-man roster. His past play as a wide receiver helps him against inside linebackers or safeties tasked with covering him over the middle.

Austin Fort has been with the Broncos for a couple of seasons, but he’s never appeared in a game. Added as an undrafted free agent in 2019 out of Wyoming, Fort flashed talent during his first training camp with the team. However, it was a knee injury that year which kept him from making the team. Instead of playing for the Broncos, Fort was put on season-ending Injured Reserve. In 2020, Fort was on the comeback trail but aggravated the same knee injury and missed his second full year. The team must like him as he’s back for a third shot despite the fact he’s not yet played in a game or made the final roster. Fort is strong, has strong hands and knows how to box out smaller defenders. We’ll see if he can stay healthy and impress again.

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Summary

The tight end position has changed in recent years. It used to be that tight ends were primarily blockers and acted like extra offensive linemen who would catch some passes here and there. Now, tight ends are basically super-sized wide receivers who can attack defenders regularly.

Fant fits the new generation of tight end. While he’s a sound blocker, Fant is mainly dangerous as a receiving option. His trusted hands and athletic ability after the catch will come in handy for whatever quarterback is starting for the team.

I think the Broncos need to keep their eye on the waiver wire during training camp and the preseason in case an interesting tight end becomes available. I hope all these guys stay healthy, but we have injury history concerns with every tight end behind Fant on the roster. The team needs to be ready in case one of these guys gets banged up again. They do have Andrew Beck as well, but they list him as a FB/TE and I’ll write him up with the running backs preview later this week.

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