Thursday, April 13, 2000
Tight end crop thin
Franks, Becht only early picks from weak field
BY Neil Schmidt
The Cincinnati Enquirer
The NFL draft buffet for scouts seeking tight ends is franks-and-beans lean. Or rather, Franks and Becht.
Daniel “Bubba” Franks of Miami (Fla.) and Anthony Becht of West Virginia are the only potential high draftees.
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TOP TIGHT ENDS
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• 1. Daniel “Bubba” Franks, Miami (Fla.). Prototype size, speed and power for the hybrid position. If motivated, could be best tight end prospect in years.
; • 2. Anthony Becht, West Virginia. Might be more well-rounded than Franks but has been inconsistent. His strength is in run blocking.
; • 3. Erron Kinney, Florida. Started just 15 games in five years at Florida but played in four bowl games. Good size (6-foot-6, 272 pounds), balance and agility.
; • 4. Dave Stachelski, Boise State. Moved from defensive end to tight end, not blooming until his senior season. Caught 31 passes for a 14.6-yard average and six touchdowns.
; • 5. Joe Dean Davenport, Arkansas. At 6-7, 260 pounds, he has the right tools. He's not fast, but his background as a basketball player suggests agility.
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“It's Franks and Becht, then close the book,” said Jerry Jones, publisher of The Drugstore List.
Fortunately for the Bengals, tight end isn't a need. Tony McGee, Marco Battaglia and Steve Bush are proven performers here.
“We've got three here we like, plus a fourth, Damian Vaughn, is over in the European league (with the Barcelona Dragons),” Bengals director of pro/college personnel Jim Lippincott said. “We hear good things about what Damian's doing.”
Franks is the consensus top tight end but may be the only first-rounder. Becht is on the bubble there. No one else is expected to go before the third round.
Franks, leaving after his junior year, has great size (6-foot-5, 252 pounds), speed (4.7 in the 40-yard dash) and power. He fell a few spots in most mock drafts after losing 13 pounds in a week between the NFL combine and his on-campus workout.
“That was a little scary,” Jones said. “He tried to beef up for the combine. But forget the (weight). Look at the film. He's a complete tight end.”
Becht is comparable: 6-5, 262 pounds, 4.76 speed.
“Both Bubba and Becht can run the field vertically,” Lippincott said. “Both are pretty good blockers. Both can run after the catch. Those are the three things you need.
“Becht is probably stronger, and Franks is probably faster. That's the only difference.”
The only name that is a consensus for a middle-round pick is Florida's Erron Kinney. The ratings vary wildly after him.
Kentucky's James Whalen Jr. earned the first-team All-American spot at tight end on the strength of 90 catches — a national single-season re cord for his position — and 10 touchdowns.
But he's coming back from a dislocated elbow, and at 6-21/2 and 228 pounds, he's undersized.
“He's not fast enough to be a wideout and not big enough to be a tight end,” Jones said. “But he's got wonderful hands. He'd have to be looked at as an H-back (a mobile tight end).”
Jones thinks Whalen could be a fifth- or sixth-rounder.
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