Tag: Brayden Willis

Is a position change in store for TE Brayden Willis?

Is TE Brayden Willis eventually going to find a different position with the 49ers?

The 49ers used their first of three seventh-round picks on Oklahoma TE Brayden Willis. However, there could be a position change in his future.

Willis is a bit undersized at 6-3, 241 pounds. If he stays at TE it’s likely he’d be an H-back or move TE. That’s where a position change comes into play.

There’s a chance the 49ers view Willis long-term as a fullback in their offense. FB Kyle Juszczyk is 32 and has three years left on his contract. Willis’ athleticism and size could make him a perfect fit as a do-everything FB like Juszczyk.

In the meantime, it’s easy to see why the 49ers took a flyer on him as their second TE selected in the draft. He caught 13 touchdowns and racked up 998 receiving yards at Oklahoma, and he’s very good at finding space after the catch.

It’s not out of the question he sticks at TE, but with third-round pick Cameron Latu also in the mix, the 49ers could be looking to eventually replace Juszczyk with a converted tight end.

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Bay Area Brayden Willis: Sooners tight end selected by the San Francisco 49ers

One of the program’s most beloved players and former captain, Brayden Willis was selected in the seventh round by the San Francisco 49ers.

Oklahoma’s final selection of the 2023 NFL Draft is last year’s captain and fan favorite, tight end Brayden Willis. Willis heads west to the Bay Area where he will look to secure a spot on one of the NFC’s best teams, the San Francisco 49ers.

San Francisco chose Willis with the 247th pick in the draft. He’ll begin his career as a corespecial teams player early on as he integrates into the offense and learns from one of the league’s best tight ends, George Kittle.

 

San Francisco also represents a perfect scheme fit for what Willis does best.

He came back to school for the 2022 season to show he could be a meaningful target in the passing game. He led Oklahoma with seven touchdown receptions in 2022. However, his best skill on the field is as a blocker, where he shows excellent athleticism, effort, and power as he displaces defenders.

For a team like the 49ers who run the ball as frequently as they do, his blocking ability could help him see the field sooner than many may expect for a seventh round pick.

The journey to this moment was a long one for Willis, but each year as a Sooner, he continued to grow and attack every game with, max effort. From his early seasons where he played H-back filling in for various roles in Lincoln Riley’s offense to Willis’ ascension as a leader and a 2022 second-team All-Big 12 selection, Willis gave his all to the Oklahoma Sooners. His work paid off. Now he’s in the NFL, where he will get to join another Sooner and one of the NFL’s best players in Trent Williams.

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WATCH: Best Brayden Willis highlights from Oklahoma

Willis was a standout Sooner last season, and put together a great highlight reel to warrant his selection by the #49ers in the seventh round

The San Francisco 49ers finally have a plethora of draft picks in the seventh round, with three selections set to take place in short order, barring a trade. They spent their first pick of the round on Oklahoma tight end Brayden Willis, who should have fun learning his craft under one of the best players at his position in the NFL, George Kittle.

Willis isn’t likely to be leaned on in San Francisco’s offense early in his career but could become a guy for the 49ers in the long-term. Check out his best plays at Oklahoma below to get a better sense of what he brings to the table as a rookie:

49ers add another TE, pick Oklahoma’s Brayden Wills at No. 247 overall

The #49ers added another TE with Oklahoma’s Brayden Willis in the 7th round.

The 49ers added another tight end in the draft. This time they selected Oklahoma’s Brayden Willis with the 247th overall pick.

Willis was connected a lot to the 49ers in the pre-draft process. He’s a good athlete at 6-3, 241 pounds, and he caught 75 balls for 998 yards and 13 touchdowns in 58 college games. He had a lot of open space in Oklahoma’s offense and took full of advantage of after-the-catch opportunities.

He could wind up projecting long term as a fullback with third-round choice Cameron Latu already in the mix as a tight end. The 49ers don’t have a ton of quality depth at the TE spot though so it’s not out of the question both of them make the team as rookies.

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One TE for Titans in every round of the 2023 NFL draft

A look at one tight end the Titans could target in every round they have a pick in the 2023 NFL draft.

It’s no secret that the Tennessee Titans’ offense needs a lot of help at the moment. Most people focus on the obvious holes out wide and along the offensive line, but the tight end position can’t be forgotten completely.

Yes, the Titans already have a budding star in Chig Okonkwo, but the team also has to ensure it has someone who can adequately complement his explosive skill set.

The team signed Trevon Wesco earlier this offseason to help out with the blocking aspect of their offense, but that’s hardly the type of addition that would prevent Tennessee from drafting someone they’re interested in.

This article is going to discuss one realistic tight end for each round of the draft in which the Titans have a pick. Tennessee has a pick in every round except the fourth.

We already covered the wide receiver position on Wednesday, and we will be doing the same concept going forward for each major position of need until they have all been covered.

This tight end group is considered one of the best crops in quite some time, so let’s dive right into it and see which prospects could be potential targets for the Titans throughout draft weekend.

5 things we’re watching for at Oklahoma’s spring game

Oklahoma has its spring game this weekend, and we’ve got five things we’ll be looking at for Oklahoma’s spring debut of team 129.

Team 129 in Oklahoma’s illustrious football history takes the field publically for the first time on Saturday afternoon. It’s a game and weekend that means a lot to the team, staff, fanbase, and recruits.

Oklahoma comes into this spring off the heels of its worst season in over 20 years. The Sooners were a rough watch at times. Despite that, they still found themselves in a bowl game against a talented Florida State team.

Oklahoma lost the likes of [autotag]Brayden Willis[/autotag], [autotag]Eric Gray[/autotag], [autotag]Anton Harrison[/autotag], [autotag]Wanya Morris[/autotag], [autotag]Marvin Mims[/autotag], [autotag]Jalen Redmond[/autotag], and [autotag]DaShaun White[/autotag] to the NFL Draft process.

The Sooners saw players transfer out but also welcomed in a number of players from their top-five recruiting class. The Sooners attacked the portal with some serious intensity bringing in impact transfers on both sides of the ball.

It’s now time for the world to at least get a glimpse of some of these new Sooners while getting a chance to see how the returning players improved from last year.

Here are our top five storylines heading into the spring game.

49ers to host Oklahoma TE Brayden Willis on 30 visit

The #49ers are hosting Oklahoma TE Brayden Willis on a 30 visit per @JustinM_NFL.

The 49ers are working hard to find another tight end to bolster their depth behind George Kittle. Now they’re bringing in Oklahoma TE Brayden Willis on a 30 visit per the Draft Network’s Justin Melo.

Willis met with San Francisco at the combine and we highlighted him in our 49ers 2023 Prospect Watch series.

He’s an intriguing option because he has enough athleticism that could translate into him being a productive pass catcher in the NFL, but it’s how he can function in the offense that should have appeal for head coach Kyle Shanahan.

Willis lined up all over the field for the Sooners and had success as both an in-line and move blocker. That’s the first step for a TE getting on the field for the 49ers.

His pass-catching production wasn’t particularly notable. Willis caught 75 balls for 998 yards and 13 touchdowns during his career. What’s impressive though is how he finds space and sells blocks before sliding out and making himself an open target for his quarterback.

It’s unlikely the 49ers are going to find the next Kittle in this year’s draft, but Willis could quickly provide improved depth at the position for the cost of a late Day 3 pick.

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One tight end for the Vikings for every round of the 2023 NFL draft

Even with the top two solidified, @MattAnderson_8 identified a tight end in each round of the NFL draft that the Viking could target.

Last season, the Minnesota Vikings made a trade for tight end T.J. Hockenson at the trade deadline. That move solidified the starter at the position for the foreseeable future. They followed it up at the start of free agency by signing Josh Oliver.

With the NFL Draft approaching, teams frequently make unexpected picks. Although it’s unlikely that the Vikings will use their high draft picks on a tight end, it’s still worth examining the draft class. Therefore, I have chosen one tight end from each round of the draft who could potentially be a good fit for the Vikings.

49ers 2023 prospect watch: TE Brayden Willis does a little of everything

The #49ers met with a TE prospect who could be another successful late-round selection:

The 49ers need some help in their tight end room. George Kittle is still one of the NFL’s best, but San Francisco has long been in search of an effective, versatile TE to slot in alongside him. Ross Dwelley and Charlie Woerner are both capable, but there could certainly be some improvement there. It appears they’ll aim to unearth their next TE via the draft, and they met with Oklahoma’s Brayden Willis during the combine per the Draft Network’s Justin Melo.

Willis is an interesting player. His measurables don’t jump off the screen. He’s 6-3, 241 pounds and there’s not a ton of explosiveness to his game.

However, he’s a capable blocker as either an in-line TE or as an H-back. Willis isn’t likely to dominate as a blocker, but his effort is there and it stands to reason getting into the 49ers’ offense would help him improve in that area.

He also played in 58 games with 25 starts across his five seasons with the Sooners. In those contests he racked up 75 catches, 998 yards and 13 touchdown catches. He broke out during his final year when he put up 39 receptions for 514 yards and seven touchdowns.

There’s a fluidity and nuance to his route running that should make him a functional pass-catcher in an offense where he’s alongside so many other weapons. Plenty of his 75 catches came in instances where he’s flowing back against play action or fitting into a seam after a linebacker was cleared out with another TE or receiver. Those are the kinds of plays he’d be asked to make in San Francisco’s offense, and he proved capable of doing that at Oklahoma.

The 2023 draft class at tight end is deep and the 49ers may be aiming for a higher-rated prospect, but Willis still checks a lot of boxes if they want to try and find a TE late in the draft.

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Where did Oklahoma Sooners land in ESPN 7-round mock draft?

Led by Anton Harrison, five Oklahoma Sooners were selected in Jordan Reid’s seven-round 2023 mock draft for ESPN.

The 2023 NFL draft is a month away and the Oklahoma Sooners look like they’ll be well-represented throughout the seven-round selection process.

The biggest question is will they have a return to the first round of the draft? After CeeDee Lamb’s selection in the 2020 draft, Oklahoma’s gone two-straight without a first-rounder. Offensive tackle Anton Harrison could change that.

ESPN’s Jordan Reid produced a seven-round mock draft (ESPN+), and five Oklahoma Sooners were selected. Where did they land? Let’s check it out.