Eagles may be pondering Zack Kuntz as possible Tyree Jackson upgrade
The NFL Draft approaches, and regardless of the social circles you run in, whenever the Philadelphia Eagles have been brought up, you have to have had several conversations by now that we all have participated in with our friends and coworkers. You’re very much aware of what the popular topics have been.
Here’s what we haven’t talked about as often… the tight end position. Philly is set with Dallas Goedert, but behind him there are questions. You needn’t look any further than his five-game absence during the most recent regular season for evidence. Philly didn’t get much from their tight ends when he wasn’t available.
Behind Goedert is a guy that blocks very well but doesn’t catch very many passes (Jack Stoll). There’s also a guy we hope can develop into a playmaker (Grant Calcaterra). Dalton Keene is signed to a futures deal. Then, there’s Tyree Jackson. He’s Philly’s lone exclusive rights free agent. He’s also coming off of an injury, one that resulted in his
The former quarterback suited up for five games this past season and played 34 offensive snaps. He joined the special teams unit on the field for 23 snaps. That’s roughly nine and 16 percent of the overall total of snaps by both units respectively.
Meanwhile, Zack Kuntz finished his career at Old Dominion by collecting 12 catches for 122 yards and two touchdowns last season during five games. The former is no longer with Philadelphia. The latter spoke with them recently. The smoke here may not lead to fire, but this is still something interesting to talk about.
Might the Eagles be viewing Zack Kuntz as a possible post-draft addition and, dare we say, a Tyree Jackson upgrade?
Don’t interpret something that hasn’t been said. Some of you may view this as Tyree Jackson bashing. It isn’t. While we won’t deny that we’re glad the Birds have decided to move on for now, Tyree was in a no-win situation while trying to win a long-term job with an organization that, if we’re being honest, has a tendency to outthink itself.
We love their creativity. Heaven knows that we do, but sometimes the Eagles see it work against them. That’s okay. There’s nothing wrong with pushing the envelope. They turned a former rugby star into a left tackle by doing so, but occasionally we’ll be left scratching our heads over decisions like Doug Pederson’s decision to walk into the 2020 NFL season minus an offensive coordinator.
Regrettably, the attempt to transform Jackson from a quarterback and make him a tight end didn’t work out. We get it. At six-foot-seven and 249 pounds, he would have been an amazing weapon on third down and in the red zone, but Kuntz could be an upgrade.
Recently, he spoke with the birds by way of a Zoom call, and he could make sense as a post-draft addition if no one adds him sometime on day three of the selection meeting.
Kuntz is a former Penn State Nittany Lion/Old Dominion Monarch that stands at six-foot-eight and tips the scales at 245 pounds. He recently ran the 40-yard dash in 4.55 seconds. Here are some other measurables worth taking note of.
- 10-yard split – 1.57 seconds
- Vertical jump – 40 inches
- Broad jump – ten feet, eight inches
- Three-cone drill – 6.87 seconds
- Bench press – 23 reps
- 20-yard shuffle – 4.12 seconds
In all honesty, he feels like a potential Tyree Jackson upgrade, someone that can step in and excel in a role that Tyree couldn’t. First things first however. The NFL Draft hasn’t arrived yet, and there’s been no official word that Kuntz is someone Philly is interested in. Seeing as how he looks the part that the Birds tried to give to someone else, it stands to reason that he’s worth watching a little film on and having one or two conversations about.
