Iowa’s tight end T.J. Hockenson is going to be one of the most polarizing players in the 2019 NFL Draft. Hockenson is widely regarded as the top tight end in this class, and a few national evaluators even have him inside of their top 10 players.
However, where he lands is far more interesting. This tight end class is very deep, and as of late, the tight end position has been somewhat ignored early in the draft. In the 2018 NFL Draft, the first tight end wasn’t selected until the 25th pick, where the Ravens picked Hayden Hurst from South Carolina. The next pick at tight end wasn’t until pick No.42 when Mike Gesicki came off the board.
While I certainly don’t expect that type of fall for Hockenson, it will be interesting to see just how high he goes. In Pete Prisco’s first mock draft of the year at CBS Sports, he had the Raiders selecting Hockenson with the 27th overall pick. Take a look at all three of his picks for the Raiders in the first round:
No.4 – Rashan Gary, DL, Michigan
No.24 – Nasir Adderley, S, Delaware
No.27 – T.J. Hockenson, TE, Iowa
If I were a betting man, I would guess that Hockenson is closer to a top-10 pick, rather than falling down to pick No.27. But the NFL Draft can be a crapshoot at times and players can rise or fall without any apparent reason. However, if the Raiders want to grab the top tight end in the class, they will likely need to trade up into the teens to do so.
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