7 tight ends the Vikings could select in the 2022 NFL Draft

Jalen Wydermyer (Texas A&M)

Measurements:

• Height: 6-foot-4 | Weight: 255 pounds

2021 Stats:

• 40 catches
• 515 yards
• 4 touchdowns

Once again, we shift to a prospect that is the complete opposite of the player ahead of him on this list. Heading into the 2021 season, Jalen Wydermyer was one of the top prospects in the entire class and easily a top tight end to watch.

He was mocked as high as the first round prior to the season thanks to a lot of flashes on film in his first two seasons at Texas A&M, but he failed to take a leap in 2021, and his testing was atrocious during the pre-draft cycle.

Out of 998 tight end prospects to test since 1998, Wydermyer put up a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) that ranked 899th. His final accumulative score was a 1 out of a possible 10.00 points, which is incredibly frustrating for a player with so much hype just a year ago.

Now, while that is alarming and is going to turn a handful of you away from him as a player, I simply do not see that on his tape. At the end of the day, the product on the field matters so much more than the testing and measurements, and Jalen Wydermyer plays such a better game than those numbers indicate.

He shows up on film as an athletic tight end that can stretch the field vertically, win with his hands, and use his speed to create yards after the catch. He routinely put up 50+ yards receiving against SEC opponents with the occasional big play.

There was a reason Wydermyer was valued so highly prior to the season. Production from tight ends in college is not a huge factor in projecting their NFL careers because college offenses simply do not utilize them how the NFL will.

If Wydermyer makes it to Day 3 of the NFL Draft, he would be a viable target for the Vikings with massive upside in the passing game.