4 tight end draft prospects the Carolina Panthers should monitor in 2022

Carolina Panthers should monitor Dalton Kincaid

Every year there is a mid-round tight end prospect that works his way to being consistent workhorse for an NFL franchise. The Carolina Panthers certainly hope that Tommy Tremble can be a productive player at his position. However, if this isn’t the case, the front office can look at other potential options in Day 2 of the NFL Draft.

This brings us to Utah Utes tight end Dalton Kincaid, who is currently a projected mid-round prospect going into the 2022 college football season. For someone with this type of projection, he is a fun player to watch on film.

Kincaid showcases his athletic basketball background often with natural ball skills. He will blockout defenders in jump-balls situation like he would be going for a rebound. The prospect’s catch radius is superb with great body control and consistently wins in contested situations.

While he does need more technical growth as a route runner, the flashes are already there for the fifth-year senior from San Diego. Kincaid shows the ability to attack all levels of the field and runs a diverse route tree.

Kincaid still has some growing to do as a prospect if he wants to enter top-50 consideration in 2023. He lacks true elusive and acceleration traits, which hurts him in run-after-catch opportunities. This is why the tight end needs to continue developing as a route runner to help better position himself for yards after the catch.

The All-Pac-12 honorable mention also has more development needed as a blocker. While he is willing and flashes with hand placement and a firm base, improved consistency and adding more mass and power at the point of attack would help Kincaid’s draft stock in 2022.

Kincaid is no-doubt a talented individual, especially with his background as a basketball player in high school. Even so, he has the ceiling to be one of the better tight ends in the upcoming draft class with more growth this season.