Tag: TEU

Chargers’ Tre’ McKitty attends ‘Tight End University’ ahead of critical make-or-break season

Tre’ McKitty spent last week attending “Tight End University,” a three day summit for tight ends in the NFL.

Chargers tight end Tre’ McKitty spent last week attending “Tight End University”, a three-day summit for tight ends in the NFL.

The TEU camp was originally founded by Travis Kelce, George Kittle, and Greg Olsen in 2021.

McKitty is entering his third year in a prime position to show some development going forward. Assuming the Chargers keep the same group together that’s currently on the depth chart, his role will probably have to be expanded.

Gerald Everett is entering a contract year for Los Angeles in what could be his last season with the team. While Donald Parham Jr. has performed well when healthy, he’s only been able to play 18 out of a possible 34 games in the last two seasons due to injuries. If the Chargers don’t sign another tight end, they’ll need McKitty to take a decent step forward as a blocker.

McKitty unfortunately took a step back in multiple respects last season. While functional enough as a pass blocker, McKitty ranked 68th out of 72 qualified tight ends in PFF run blocking grade.

As a receiver, it’s even worse. He was last place out of 49 eligible tight ends in receiving grade. McKitty had a drop rate of 14.3% and averaged 0.4 yards per route run. For context, Cameron Brate is last place on PFF’s 2022 tight end rankings in yards per route run at 0.7. Had McKitty hit the eligible number of snaps, he would’ve finished last by a significant amount.

Once the pads come on in camp, the Bolts will know if they’ve seen some improvement or development from the formerGeorgia product this offseason. If they don’t see a step forward from McKitty early on, one has to wonder if the free agent market would be an option with blockers like Geoff Swaim, Kyle Rudolph, Marcedes Lewis, etc. available.

Hopefully, TEU in addition to McKitty’s other offseason activities proves fruitful in what is probably a make-or-break season for the third-year tight end.

WATCH: Trey Lance throws to George Kittle at Tight End University

WATCH: Trey Lance gets some throws in at Tight End University.

Tight End University, an annual gathering of NFL tight ends hosted in part by 49ers TE George Kittle, got underway this week at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn.

While more than 70 tight ends attend the event, a host of quarterbacks are also present to help with some of the on-field portions of the session. 49ers QBs Trey Lance and Sam Darnold were among the signal callers invited.

The NFL’s Twitter account, along with NBC Sports Bay Area both posted a couple clips of Lance throwing to Kittle as part of one of the on-field drills the TEs took part in.

It’s a good sign that Lance is healthy enough to be out at TEU, and that he appears to be having a good time with his teammate who’s putting on the event.

Any reps Lance can get leading into camp could be valuable for the QB since he’ll be locked in a battle with Sam Darnold in training camp. The 49ers will evaluate who their starter will be in the event Brock Purdy isn’t healthy by Week 1, or who the QB2 will be if Purdy is healthy and ready to go.

Trey Lance, Sam Darnold to throw at Tight End University

Trey Lance and Sam Darnold will both be at Tight End University with George Kittle.

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George Kittle, Travis Kelce and Greg Olson are continuing their annual tradition of putting on an offseason tight end clinic called Tight End University. This year’s workouts will take place at Vanderbilt University. Among those in attendance will be 49ers quarterbacks Trey Lance and Sam Darnold according to Kittle, who spoke with NFL Network’s Good Morning Football on Tuesday.

Kittle said 75 players in all will take part in the session that includes two days of classroom work and on-field drills designed specifically for TEs. A slew of other QBs will also attend including former 49ers CJ Beathard, Nick Mullens and Kurt Benkert.

Lance and Darnold aren’t likely to be a ton of help in the fundamentals of the TE position, but they can both offer a QB’s-eye view of things. They should also get some opportunities to throw during the on-field sessions.

Any reps Lance can get are valuable at this point, especially since he and Darnold are in a race for the QB2 job on the 49ers’ depth chart. With virtually all of his first two years as a pro getting derailed by injuries, the ability to get out and throw to different pass catchers will be helpful for Lance heading into training camp.

For Darnold the value is more likely to come in any direct conversations he can have with Lance or Kittle about the 49ers’ offense. He has 55 NFL starts under his belt so he may not need the same type of refinement as Lance, but he’ll need to absorb as much about Kyle Shanahan’s offense as possible to hit the ground running in camp.

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Watch: Kyle Pitts gets lesson from Travis Kelce at TEU summit

For the second year in a row, Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts attended the Tight End University summit down in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Falcons selected Kyle Pitts with the fourth overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft and after one season in the league, the former Florida star looks every bit as promising as he was advertised to be coming out of college.

Being a great player isn’t just about having elite physical skills, though, it takes discipline and a dedication to the craft to achieve consistent success in this league. For the second year in a row, Pitts is in attendence for Travis Kelce’s Tight End University summit down in Nashville, Tennessee.

Pitts is one of 24 tight ends in attendance getting a masterclass on the ins and outs of playing the position from some of the best to ever do it. The three-day event concludes Friday, but the NFL’s Twitter account released a clip of Kelce giving Pitts some one-on-one instruction.

“You always want to be moving forward,” Kelce said. “There’s always a time and place to dance with somebody at the line (of scrimmage), but you (want to come forward) instead of just coming sideways because that’s not going to threaten anyone.”

Atlanta added two new starting wide receivers over the offseason, so Pitts is already the team’s most accomplished pass-catcher. Expect the second-year tight end to put up even bigger numbers in 2022 as he will likely be the Falcons’ No. 1 option on offense.

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List of players set to attend Tight End University includes Panthers’ Tommy Tremble

Among the many players attending this year’s Tight End University is Panthers’ 2021 third-round pick Tommy Tremble.

Carolina Panthers great Greg Olsen is a busy bee these days, even in retirement. Heck, he’s even created a hive for his fellow tight ends.

From June 22 to June 24—Olsen, Travis Kelce and George Kittle will run their second annual go of Tight End University in Nashville, Tenn. The summit hosts many of the league’s top and upcoming tight ends, for a time of learning and refining.

Here, with another name that should be familiar to Panthers fans, are the players who’ll be attending this week:

  • Kyle Pitts (Atlanta Falcons)
  • Dalton Knox (Buffalo Bills)
  • O.J. Howard (Buffalo Bills)
  • Jalen Wydermyer (Buffalo Bills)
  • Tommy Tremble (Carolina Panthers)
  • Cole Kmet (Chicago Bears)
  • Drew Sample (Cincinnati Bengals)
  • Hayden Hurst (Cincinnati Bengals)
  • David Njoku (Cleveland Browns)
  • Dalton Schultz (Dallas Cowboys)
  • Jakes Ferguson (Dallas Cowboys)
  • Albert Okwuegbunam (Denver Broncos)
  • T.J. Hockensen (Detroit Lions)
  • Eric Saubert (Detroit Lions)
  • Brock Wright (Detroit Lions)
  • Dominique Dafney (Green Bay Packers)
  • Tyler Davis (Green Bay Packers)
  • Josiah Deguera (Green Bay Packers)
  • Robert Tonyan (Green Bay Packers)
  • Brevin Jordan (Houston Texans)
  • Mo Alie-Cox (Indianapolis Colts)
  • Dan Arnold (Jacksonville Jaguars)
  • Evan Engram (Jacksonville Jaguars)
  • Blake Bell (Kansas City Chiefs)
  • Jody Fortson (Kansas City Chiefs)
  • Noah Gray (Kansas City Chiefs)
  • Foster Moreau (Las Vegas Raiders)
  • Darren Waller (Las Vegas Raiders)
  • Kendall Blanton (Los Angeles Rams)
  • Tyler Higbee (Los Angeles Rams)
  • Brycen Hopkins (Los Angeles Rams)
  • Mike Gesicki (Miami Dolphins)
  • Durham Smythe (Miami Dolphins)
  • Irv Smith (Minnesota Vikings)
  • Jonnu Smith (New England Patriots)
  • Matt Sokol (New England Patriots)
  • Daniel Bellinger (New York Giants)
  • Tyler Conklin (New York Jets)
  • C.J. Uzomah (New York Jets)
  • Adam Trautman (New York Jets)
  • Dallas Goedert (Philadelphia Eagles)
  • Tyree Jackson (Philadelphia Eagles)
  • Tanner Hudson (San Francisco 49ers)
  • Charlie Woerner (San Francisco 49ers)
  • Noah Fant (Seattle Seahawks)
  • Codey McElroy (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
  • Tommy Hudson (Tennessee Titans)
  • Chig Okonkwo (Tennessee Titans)
  • John Bates (Washington Commanders)
  • Logan Thomas (Washington Commanders)

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WATCH: Behind-the-scenes look at Tight End University

Tight End University, put together in part by 49ers TE George Kittle, was a huge success according to a video released by the NFL.

49ers tight end George Kittle was an integral cog in the formation of the inaugural Tight End University – a summit for tight ends to work together and improve during the down-period of the NFL offseason.

Kittle, along with Chiefs TE Travis Kelce and recently-retired TE Greg Olsen helped put together the workouts for 49 NFL tight ends in Nashville, Tenn.

A few videos from the sessions surfaced, but the NFL posted a longer behind-the-scenes look at what went on at TEU both on and off the field. While the summit was for NFL tight ends, the group also helped out the local Boys and Girls Club and offered youth activities.

Kittle hasn’t been afraid to help lead the charge to get more recognition for his position, and the first ever TEU was a rousing success. He told ESPN he was anticipating around 20 players showing up. It wound up landing at 49, and the goal according to Kittle is to expand the event going forward.

In a time when the tight end position is becoming a more valuable weapon in NFL offenses, an annual offseason session like this one could be helpful across the league.

Kyle Pitts learning from NFL’s best at Tight End University summit

Pitts will learn from some of the NFL’s best tight ends at Tight Ends University summit.

The Atlanta Falcons looked to be focusing on talent over need with the No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 NFL draft, selecting tight end Kyle Pitts out of the University of Florida. But now that Julio Jones is out of the picture, the decision to draft Pitts makes a lot more sense.

Atlanta will look to the 6-foot-6, 245-pound rookie to help carry the load offensively, with Calvin Ridley stepping in as the team’s No. 1 receiver.

Aside from Ridley, Pitts is currently learning from other NFL greats as he attends the Tight End University summit, a three-day event in Nashville created by Travis Kelce, George Kittle and Greg Olsen. Pitts joined a huge list of veteran players from around the league at the start of the summit on Wednesday.

Pitts projects to be the next great receiving tight end, but the expectation for him to be an instant-impact player may be slightly unrealistic. First-year tight ends have struggled historically and the position generally takes a few years to get acclimated to the NFL.

At the same time, once you see the potential matchup nightmare the rookie presents — particularly in the red zone — it’s easy to get carried away with Pitts’ upside.

The Tight End University summit wraps up on Friday.

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George Kittle on why he didn’t invite Tim Tebow to Tight End University

Jacksonville Jaguars TE Tim Tebow wasn’t one of the tight ends invited to Tight End University. George Kittle explained why on ESPN.

George Kittle, the creator of National Tight End Day, has never been shy about his love for his fellow tight ends. That admiration of his positional brethren manifested in the inaugural Tight End University – a cousin to the annual pass rush summit held by Broncos DE Von Miler – where players from a particular position group all get together in the offseason to collectively hone their craft.

Kittle began TEU with Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and now-retired tight end Greg Olsen. In an appearance on ESPN’s First Take, Kittle said he originally planned for 20-to-25 TEs to show up. That number ballooned to upwards of 50 as word started to spread of TEU’s existence.

One player not among those invited was newly-minted Jaguars TE Tim Tebow. While it makes sense a back-end of the 90-man roster player who just started playing the position wouldn’t be in attendance, Kittle was nevertheless asked about the omission. He said a lack of space and Tebow’s lack of experience at the position were key reasons he wasn’t invited

“If I can’t invite every tight end, how do I not invite a second- or third-string guy on a team that’s been playing tight end since he was 18 years old in high school?” Kittle said via ESPN. “Nothing against Tim Tebow. I hope that he has incredible success this year. I hope he has 10 touchdowns. I hope he has a great year, but it’s hard for me to invite someone to this that just started playing the position when I can’t invite a guy that’s been playing it for eight to 10 years. That’s just hard for me.”

While the inaugural TEU might’ve run out of space, Kittle said his plan is to make it an annual event where he eventually has enough room for any TE that wants to come.

“Hopefully in the next coming years I can make it available to every single person and then any tight end that wants to come can show up, learn, get better and just take another step forward,” the 49ers TE said per ESPN.

Should Tebow go on to make the Jaguars and find a new long-term NFL role as a TE, there’s an extremely good chance he’s one of the players at the positional summit next year regardless of how much it expands. Given his rather rapid move from quarterback to tight end though, it makes sense that he wouldn’t be there in 2021.

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