Bye: Iowa’s T.J. Hockenson could be the Travis Kelce of the Broncos

Mar 5, 2019, 12:32 PM Updated: Mar 6, 2019, 7:36 am

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It’s been since the days of Julius Thomas, a half-decade ago now, since the Denver Broncos truly had a consistent dynamic pass-catching tight end on its roster.

But, if general manager John Elway and company hold to their “longstanding philosophy” of addressing glaring roster needs in free agency ahead of the NFL draft, 104.3 The Fan’s Sandy Clough said Tuesday the “tight end’s a good place to start.”

“You really don’t have a single tight end on the roster, at the moment, about whom you can be sure,” Clough said.

However, if “Stokley and Zach” co-host Zach Bye were to persuade the Broncos to his line of thinking, Denver would target its next top-tier tight end in the first round of this year’s draft.

“I’ve got my guy. The 10th-overall pick. He’ll be there, and he’s going to change this offense,” Bye said. “He’ll be there, and he’s going to change the way that we look at the Denver Broncos offense.”

Bye’s “guy”? Iowa tight end T.J. Hockenson.

“This dude is Travis Kelce,” Bye said.

Coming in a 6-foot-5 and 251 pounds, Hockenson not only stood out on film, Bye said, but also with his performance at the NFL Scouting Combine last week.

Hockenson ran a 4.7-second 40-yard dash and finished No. 2 in his position in the vertical jump (37.5 inches), broad jump (123.0 inches), and three-cone drill (7.02 seconds).

“This dude right here is going to come in and leave an impression on some NFL offense in a way that Travis Kelce has, and I really hope that it’s the Broncos,” Bye said.

In two seasons for the Hawkeyes, Hockenson caught 73 passes for 1,080 yards, and nine touchdowns to go with one rushing touchdown.

Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @JohnnyHart7.