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TE David Njoku, CLE (1 Viewer)

Faust

MVP
Move The Sticks notebook: Two potential Senior Bowl risers

Excerpt:

Draft buzz legit for TE prospect: When my podcast partner released his initial Top 50 list this week, there were plenty of surprises within the rankings but the insertion of Miami TE David Njoku among the top 15 prospects caught many by surprise. I must admit that I even gazed at the list with a raised eyebrow when I noticed the Hurricanes pass-catcher ranked ahead of some of the more notable names at the position, particularly Alabama's O.J. Howard. However, there are several scouts in the Southeast region who believe DJ nailed his assessment on the 6-foot-4, 245-pounder.

"He's a more athletic Bubba Franks," said an AFC scout. "He's big and athletic. He can run routes and block at the point of attack. Plus, he has some dog (nastiness/aggressiveness) in him. ... I would take him high. I love the kid!"

When I sat down and looked a Njoku's tape while compiling my positional top-5 list, I was impressed with his size, athleticism and movement skills. You rarely see a big tight end move with that kind of suddenness, which makes him a rare find at the position.

As a pass-catcher, Njoku displayed strong hands and outstanding tracking ability. He easily adjusted to off-target tosses and expanded the strike zone for quarterbacks with his length and leaping ability. Njoku excelled as a blocker at the point of attack. He effectively seals the edge and finishes blocks with his relentless effort. Overall, I thought Njoku was a quality prospect with the potential to blossom into a Martellus Bennett-like playmaker as a "Y" tight end.

Considering how valuable tight ends are in today's passing game, the thought of nabbing a big, athletic "Y" with legitimate blocking skills could help the Hurricanes standout go from relative anonymity to household name by draft day. -- Bucky Brooks

 
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Rotoworld:

Miami redshirt sophomore TE David Njoku's 2.09-meter leap ranked No. 1 among college football players in the high jump during the indoor track season.
Folks, we're talking about a 6-foot-4, 240-pounder. Njoku's athletic exploits are nothing new. He won the high-jump national championship at the 2014 New Balance Nationals Outdoor in his last year of high school, for instance. The raw but uber-gifted Njoku had 21 catches for 362 yards and one touchdown last season as a redshirt freshman. With Brad Kaaya improving and the TE-friendly Mark Richt in town, Njoku could be in line for a big breakout.

 
 
Source: U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Assoc
Mon, Jun 13, 2016 05:37:00 PM


Miami redshirt sophomore TE David Njoku will enter the 2017 NFL Draft.
It was a great year for Njoku, who was only on the field for two seasons at Miami while totaling 64 catches for 1,060 yards and nine touchdowns in that span of time. We have heard some crazy numbers in terms of Njoku's athletic testing scores, and a sub 4.5 forty is possible for the 6-foot-4, 245-pound tight end. He is a comfortable receiver with possible inline ability.

 
 
Source: Christy Chirinos on Twitter
Thu, Dec 29, 2016 09:31:00 AM


Speaking with CBS Sports' Dane Brugler, one NFL scout passed along word from his team's TE coach that Miami TE David Njoku has "the most upside he's ever seen in a prospect" at the position.
Just wait for the love Njoku is going to receive after the NFL Combine. Njoku split time with talented tight ends at Miami, which is one reason why his production might be lower than other prospects at the position. However, he boasts an inline frame and unreal athleticism and does not turn 21 years old until July. Upside, high ceiling, potential... he has it all.

 
 
Source: Dane Brugler on Twitter
Feb 2 - 11:05 AM


Quote

ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. writes that "f [Miami TE David Njoku] shows out for scouts at the [C]ombine, he could be the top tight end off the board."




 




Njoku's draft stock is as sizzling as that of any player in the country. Earlier this month, an NFL scout told CBS Sports draft analyst Dane Brugler that the 6-foot-4, 240-pounder has more upside than any tight end prospect he has ever evaluated. Kiper slots Njoku into his latest Big Board at No. 22. Fittingly, his No. 21 prospect is Alabama TE O.J. Howard. Should Njoku not be selected as the first tight end off the board in April, then it will almost certainly be Howard who earns that initial call. The Giants are one team reportedly salivating over Njoku.
 




Feb 11 - 6:11 PM






Source: ESPN Insider











 


 
My #1 TE. A bigger Shannon Sharpe. Hope he goes to a team that will know how to use him correctly.

 

Catching Technique


Njoku does a good job of consistently putting his hands out in front of him and attempting to use proper catching technique to bring in passes. This is something that a lot of guys at his size struggle with, especially at the college level. But with that said, drops were a problem for him. Over the course of his career, Njoku failed to come away with the catch at an 11 percent clip. By comparison, Eric Ebron, who led all NFL tight ends in drops in 2016, posting a drop percentage of 8.2, per sportingcharts.com. Of the Hurricanes alums that he’s being compared to, Graham dropped passes at a rate of just 4.2 %, while Olsen was nearly perfect with a stellar 0.8%. 

The above quote is HUGE and MUST NOT BE OVERLOOKED!!! I just recently realized how many times I saw him fighting to catch footballs or simply dropping catchable balls. Seeing this article is in tune with what I was seeing and should not be ignored.

Tex

 
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Good info on the drops and how he looked catching the ball. I do think that it is not a coincidence that the more athletic TEs tend to have higher drop rates (Ebron, Vernon Davis), because the more athletic guys are probably being deployed to stretch the field more than a Witten, for example. 

I think if Njoku checks out like Davis, NFL teams will be able to live with the drops like they did with Davis. 

 
David is still young and has room to develop but that drop rate is alarming.

Tex

 
Eh ... re: drop rate, that might suck for his NFL team but how much impact will that really have on FF? (Or has it in past for guys with high drop rate?) I mean, if he is a big time RZ threat and goes 90/2 but with the game on the line drops a 10 yard out on 3&7 do we really care? It's not like they will write him out of the game plan. 

I still think this kid has The Look and can develop into a dominant offensive chess piece. Depending on where he lands I'll be targeting him over OJ.

 
Eh ... re: drop rate, that might suck for his NFL team but how much impact will that really have on FF? (Or has it in past for guys with high drop rate?) I mean, if he is a big time RZ threat and goes 90/2 but with the game on the line drops a 10 yard out on 3&7 do we really care? It's not like they will write him out of the game plan. 


If his QB doesn't trust him that's a huge problem. It means given his athletic ability that his FF production is likely to be wildly variant rather than consistent. 

9 of the top 12 ppg FF TEs last year were not athletically dominant specimans.   They were reliable targets for their QBs.

.

 
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Eh ... re: drop rate, that might suck for his NFL team but how much impact will that really have on FF? (Or has it in past for guys with high drop rate?) I mean, if he is a big time RZ threat and goes 90/2 but with the game on the line drops a 10 yard out on 3&7 do we really care? It's not like they will write him out of the game plan. 

I still think this kid has The Look and can develop into a dominant offensive chess piece. Depending on where he lands I'll be targeting him over OJ.
He's often compared to Eric Ebron. Athletic, big, drafted high but has mental errors during his career. His drop rate is much higher than Ebron's too.

The Combine is this weekend so let's see how he looks before we hit the "warning" button plus we have the draft, rookie mini camps, and preseason to take a closer look.

Tex

 
Anyone know what Ebrons drop percentage was coming into the league?  I remember reading somewhere that he has improved every year or maybe it was announcer saying it but I'm curious if that's true and a relatively similar arch we could expect from Njoku

 
Anyone know what Ebrons drop percentage was coming into the league?  I remember reading somewhere that he has improved every year or maybe it was announcer saying it but I'm curious if that's true and a relatively similar arch we could expect from Njoku
I have those numbers somewhere I will try and find them.

For the record last year Eric was #5 in dropped passes last year behind Crabby, Marshall, Howard, and Evans.

Tex

 
So he drops 1 out of 10 catchable passes and his catch rate is 55% on total targets? That's Ben Watson and Mercedes Lewis type rates.

Walker catch rate is around 67% at Tennessee and Vernon Davis had a catch rate of 74.6% this season that's a pretty good rate.

I'm a fan of Njoku but we need to dive into this a little further.

Tex

 
LOVE this guy.  LOVE this TE class.

The top heavy stars will allow the middle level studs to go undervalued.

Needs a QB who can help him maximize his physical assets by being accurate, timely and throwing with proper touch. While this may be true of all pass-catchers, I think he gains more then most anyone else at the rookie TE spot (and also loses more then anyone else) by being paired with a better/lesser QB. 

 
So he drops 1 out of 10 catchable passes and his catch rate is 55% on total targets? That's Ben Watson and Mercedes Lewis type rates.

Walker catch rate is around 67% at Tennessee and Vernon Davis had a catch rate of 74.6% this season that's a pretty good rate.

I'm a fan of Njoku but we need to dive into this a little further.

Tex
I feel the same way but drop rate is cause for concern.  Probably still have him as my top TE but would drop him lower in my overall rankings.

 
11% isn't a bad drop rate.  He'll make up for it with explosive plays.  Delanie Walker and Vernon Davis don't have great hands and they did fine. https://www.profootballfocus.com/drop-percentage-tight-ends/


Wait.  What?  Those are 2008-2010 numbers.  The only FF impact bottom 10 TE on that list at that time was Davis, and that was because the WRs leading SF at that time were Ted Ginn, Josh Morgan, and Crabtree when he sucked.  Look at the reception numbers of the bottom 10 droppers compared to some of those in the top 10.  The opportunities aren't close for the top TEs.

So in other words, if Njoku goes to a team where the only other receiving options suck badly, then it won't matter if he drops 1 of every 9 passes?  Great.

.

 
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Wait.  What?  Those are 2008-2010 numbers.  The only FF impact bottom 10 TE on that list at that time was Davis, and that was because the WRs leading SF at that time were Ted Ginn, Josh Morgan, and Crabtree when he sucked.  Look at the reception numbers of the bottom 10 droppers compared to some of those in the top 10.  The opportunities aren't close for the top TEs.

So in other words, if Njoku goes to a team where the only other receiving options suck badly, then it won't matter if he drops 1 of every 9 passes?  Great.
It's a sample of what I could find with a quick search.  Davis and Walker have never had good hands, but they still produce despite it.  Jimmy Graham had horrible hands as a Rookie (obviously learning the position at the time).

I'm saying I don't care about drop rate. Yards Per Target is more important.  It actually measures "efficiency".

 
Just not seeing it.  I don't think he looks that fast on the field until he's got time to build up that speed in the open field.  Doesn't look as fluid/coordinated/comfortable as some of the other top guys both in his routes and then after the catch.  And his hands definitely look suspect and he seems to fight the ball coming in a lot of what I've seen.  He looks like a physical freak but he doesn't look like as much of a football player, IMO.

 
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Just not seeing it.  I don't think he looks that fast on the field until he's got time to build up that speed in the open field.  Doesn't look as fluid/coordinated/comfortable as some of the other top guys both in his routes and then after the catch.  And his hands definitely look suspect and he seems to fight the ball coming in a lot of what I've seen.  He looks like a physical freak but he doesn't look like as much of a football player, IMO.
He reminds me of Ansah.  He was a physical beast who owned the combine but people had questions about his play.  He turned out well, but there's also dozens of players who likewise had 1 good year, tons of athleticism, then flopped.  Njoku will probably end up being a solid but not spectacular TE.

 
If youre gonna be an NFL TE of any value you gotta block in a scheme to make the defense choose on you or have that ungodly basketball-rebounder's seal-off ability to present a target within 5-6 yards of LOS with the leverage to turn it into more. Otherwise, you're a big slow WR who most DCs can easily figure coverages on. Waste o time...

 
Just not seeing it.  I don't think he looks that fast on the field until he's got time to build up that speed in the open field.  Doesn't look as fluid/coordinated/comfortable as some of the other top guys both in his routes and then after the catch.  And his hands definitely look suspect and he seems to fight the ball coming in a lot of what I've seen.  He looks like a physical freak but he doesn't look like as much of a football player, IMO.
Who do you like better not named O.J. Howard?  I'm not a fan of Howard and also still not totally sold on Njoku, although he is currently my top TE.  I need to do some more watching though.  I've sort of neglected TEs so far this offseason.

 
If youre gonna be an NFL TE of any value you gotta block in a scheme to make the defense choose on you or have that ungodly basketball-rebounder's seal-off ability to present a target within 5-6 yards of LOS with the leverage to turn it into more. Otherwise, you're a big slow WR who most DCs can easily figure coverages on. Waste o time...
Unless you're Jordan Reed.  I don't think he does much blocking.  Could probably throw Graham in there too.  But yeah, I agree for the most part.  If you're not an elite pass catcher and route runner (Reed, Graham) you need to be able to block in the NFL.  That's precisely what makes Gronk THE elite TE, he is a superb blocker and receiver.

 
 

Miami TE David Njoku said that he believes he can beat the NFL Combine broad jump record set by former UConn CB Byron Jones.
Well, that would be impressive, as Jones' logged an unofficial world record of 12 feet, three inches in the broad jump during the 2015 Combine. The 6-foot-4, 246-pound Njoku has already interviewed with 25 teams in Indianapolis. Expect to hear his name called on Day 1.

 
 
Source: Chris Trapasso on Twitter 
Mar 3 - 3:51 PM

 
Miami TE David Njoku's broad jump of 11 feet, one inch stands as the fourth-best broad jump by any player at the NFL Scouting Combine this weekend.

Njoku's broad jump was impressive, but he had been hoping to top the unofficial world record of 12 feet, three inches put forth by UConn CB Byron Jones during the 2015 Combine. Virginia Tech TE Bucky Hodges actually put in the top broad jump among tight ends on Saturday, besting Njoku by one inch.


 
Source: Josh Norris on Twitter

 
Just not seeing it.  I don't think he looks that fast on the field until he's got time to build up that speed in the open field.  Doesn't look as fluid/coordinated/comfortable as some of the other top guys both in his routes and then after the catch.  And his hands definitely look suspect and he seems to fight the ball coming in a lot of what I've seen.  He looks like a physical freak but he doesn't look like as much of a football player, IMO.
This was a good call.  He looked sloooow out of the blocks but looked to have a good top speed.  4.70 was disappointing considering all the hype

 
 

Packers beat writer Bob McGinn spoke to one NFL scout who questioned how Miami TE David Njoku can be viewed as a top two round prospect.
Are you serious? "I don’t know how you can take an unproductive backup guy from an average team in the first or second round," the scout began. "As far as a football player, he is a long ways away." Where do we start... Njoku played in a very talented group of tight end at Miami, and the players he left will produce in his absence. Second, Njoku led the entire 2017 draft class of tight ends in yards after the catch. Third, he is just 20 years old, tested in the 93rd percentile, and boasts an inline frame and is already a willing blocker. The tight end position is the slowest developing spot in the NFL, but Njoku looks like a plug and play option. He is a first round prospect.

 
 
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 
Mar 9 - 11:27 AM

 
ESPN's Adam Caplan reports Miami TE David Njoku visited the Bucs earlier this week.
Our own Josh Norris recently mocked Njoku to the Bucs at pick No. 19 overall, so we would not be surprised by the fit. Njoku would add a new element to the Bucs offense and could dominate the seam or work inline. He is the best tight end in this class after the catch, averaging almost 12 yards per catch in that area. Plus he tested in the 93rd percentile in terms of athleticism.

 
 
Source: Adam Caplan on Twitter 
Mar 22 - 11:19 AM
 
 

Appearing on the Rich Eisen Show, Miami TE David Njoku said he has an upcoming visit with the Panthers.
The Panthers are interested in adding a tight end for two reasons. One, to add weapons for Cam Newton and possibly run more 12 personnel. And two, select Greg Olsen's eventual replacement. Njoku likely will be a first round selection as the second tight end off the board. He combines size and top end athleticism, testing in the 93rd percentile.

 
 
Source: Josh Norris on Twitter 
Mar 23 - 8:31 AM

 
I wonder how many people would rather have him more than Howard. Saw a video of the guys vertical and saying he will be a redzone threat is a understatement. 

 
I wonder how many people would rather have him more than Howard. Saw a video of the guys vertical and saying he will be a redzone threat is a understatement. 
It seems to be about 50/50 from fantasy "analysts" and podcasts.  They usually think Howard will be the better TE for the team, but Njoku will be better for fantasy.  Also, he definitely needs to work on his ability to high point catch.  He often jumps, then catches the ball in his chest, or mistimes his jump and the ball is just out of reach.  But that should come with more experience.  He's my #1 fantasy TE prospect over Howard and Engram.

 
It seems to be about 50/50 from fantasy "analysts" and podcasts.  They usually think Howard will be the better TE for the team, but Njoku will be better for fantasy.  Also, he definitely needs to work on his ability to high point catch.  He often jumps, then catches the ball in his chest, or mistimes his jump and the ball is just out of reach.  But that should come with more experience.  He's my #1 fantasy TE prospect over Howard and Engram.
I flip between the 3 of them. Howard scares me if he goes to say JAX with Coughlin running the show. I see him used way more than I like as a blocker

 
It seems to be about 50/50 from fantasy "analysts" and podcasts.  They usually think Howard will be the better TE for the team, but Njoku will be better for fantasy.  Also, he definitely needs to work on his ability to high point catch.  He often jumps, then catches the ball in his chest, or mistimes his jump and the ball is just out of reach.  But that should come with more experience.  He's my #1 fantasy TE prospect over Howard and Engram.
Situation seems to dictate TE's a little more than RB's or WR's.  Scheme fit is what makes TE's so great, not necessarily QB play.  The scheme in New England is Gronk and role players, and to add Gronk is just amazing at what he does which is everything.  But there are great TE's in the league that are in bad situations.  Witten comes to mind as steady but the offense hasn't been centered around him, Ertz is an unknown in that offense with a ceiling just as high.  Julius Thomas was great b/c of Manning in Denver.  As a pure talent OJ is better at practically everything, but Engram/Njoku have ceilings that are so mouth watering, we have to know where they land for them to be worthy of a late 1st.  

 
Miami TE David Njoku improved on his 37.5-inch vertical jump at the Combine with a 40-inch mark on pro day.

As if Njoku actually needed to retest. His Combine performance was a strong one, but he reran several events. Among them, the 40-yard dash (4.64 seconds on pro day) and the vertical jump (40 inches). He also went through positional drills. Along with Alabama's O.J. Howard, Njoku is in play to be the first tight end drafted later this month.

 
 
Source: NFL.com 
Apr 1 - 2:19 PM
 
Miami TE David Njoku improved on his 37.5-inch vertical jump at the Combine with a 40-inch mark on pro day.

As if Njoku actually needed to retest. His Combine performance was a strong one, but he reran several events. Among them, the 40-yard dash (4.64 seconds on pro day) and the vertical jump (40 inches). He also went through positional drills. Along with Alabama's O.J. Howard, Njoku is in play to be the first tight end drafted later this month.
He's a beast who really needs to work on his Routes.

 
The Titans worked out Miami TE David Njoku over the weekend.

While we think that the Titans might have bigger positional fish to fry with the Nos. 5 and 18 picks, Tennessee simply must add receiving weapons for Marcus Mariota and Njoku is one of the class' most interesting in that regard. NFL Media's Chad Reuter slotted Njoku to the Titans at No. 18 in his most recent mock draft.

 
 
Source: Ian Rapoport on Twitter 
Apr 3 - 6:18 PM
 

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