With the 21st pick the Bengals select Tyler Eifert

[Bengals1181]

Kiper: Steelers, Bengals among winners

 

The AFC North had a strong start to the NFL draft. That's not the AFC North homer in me saying that. ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. named three teams as winners in the first round, and two of them came from this division: the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals. 

It's an Insider piece, so you'll need a subscription to view the whole article. But here are some excerpts ... 

On the Steelers taking Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones at No. 17, Kiper wrote: "Jones was No. 1 on my Big Board for much of the year, but dipped some during the evaluation process after not working out in Indy and then not running well at his pro day. Well, turns out he's better wearing football pads than Under Armour. Love the value here." 

On the Bengals selecting Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert at No. 21, Kiper wrote: "He finished the draft season as the No. 8 player on my Big Board, and the Bengals took advantage of a major value and the fact that they don't have a ton of needs." 

The Steelers and Bengals are winners mainly because of a domino effect started by West Virginia wide receiver Tavon Austin. The St. Louis Rams moved up to take Austin instead of drafting Texas safety Kenny Vaccaro. The New Orleans Saints then went with Vaccarro over Jones at No. 15. That allowed Jones to fall to No. 17 to the Steelers, who would've gone with Eifert otherwise. And that's how Eifert landed in Cincinnati.

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/post/_/id/69385/kiper-steelers-bengals-among-winners

[Bengals1181]

21. Cincinnati Bengals 

Pick: TE Tyler Eifert, Notre Dame 

DraftTracker: Eifert is an excellent matchup tight end. He can play in-line or flex, and what makes him interesting is that the Bengals have been looking for a quality No. 2 wide receiver to complement A.J. Green. Eifert may give them some of those matchup plays. Where he will really help this offense is in the red zone. In this new era of multiple tight-end sets, Eifert will allow the Bengals to get creative.

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/post/_/id/69382/friendly-reminder-about-drafttracker-2

[Bengals1181]

Brian Kelly Gives Bengals And Eifert A Rave Review

Posted by Dan Hoard on April 26, 2013 – 4:38 pm

When Brian Kelly was still the head coach at Cincinnati, he tried to convince Tyler Eifert to play for the Bearcats.  The tight end chose Notre Dame instead, only to have Kelly take over as head coach when Charlie Weis was fired before Tyler’s sophomore year.

“We were looking for this kind of player in our offense at Cincinnati and it just worked out that when I took the job at Notre Dame, he and Kyle Rudolph fell in my lap,” Kelly told me.  “They made me look pretty good.”

Rudolph was named the MVP of the Pro Bowl this year following his second season with the Minnesota Vikings.  The former Elder High School star was one year ahead of Eifert at Notre Dame and a more obvious NFL prospect.

“He came in his freshman year ready to play,” said Eifert.  “I came in at 210 pounds just happy to have a scholarship.  I obviously knew that there was a lot of work that I had to do.”

But Kelly could see Eifert’s pro potential.

“Obviously some kids have to grow and mature and he certainly did,” said Kelly.  “You knew that Kyle was a sure-fire NFL player and then you saw Tyler Eifert and some of the things that he did – I knew immediately that he was going to be a special player.”

Despite not having a catch as a freshman, Eifert left Notre Dame with the school’s all-time record for receptions by a tight end with 140.  When the Bengals contacted Kelly to discuss his tight end before the draft, they received a rave review.

“We was kind of glowing in talking about Tyler and what Tyler meant to their football team,” said Marvin Lewis.  “He really felt like he was able to use him in a lot of ways in a mismatch against the defense and that he would give us a lot of flexibility.”

“I told the Bengals that Tyler is smart – he got his degree from Notre Dame in three-and-a-half years,” said Kelly.  “He’s physically and mentally tough.  And he’s the best pass catcher that I’ve coached – whether it be a wide receiver or a tight end.

“I would think that making the contested catch is probably his strength when you come to all of the intangibles at the tight end position.  He will take the ball away from you when the ball is in the air.  He turns field goals into touchdowns in the red zone.”

Adding a red zone weapon is obviously one of the reasons why the Bengals used their first round draft pick on a tight end despite already having two-time Pro Bowler Jermaine Gresham on the roster.

“I think the Bengals are going to have so many different opportunities with Gresham as the other tight end,” said Kelly.  “Now you force teams to drop down to single safety and single coverage because they have to defend the run.  I think that tight end package is something that a lot of NFL teams have looked at and found that they can get some favorable matchups.  At Notre Dame, we used that a lot last year and really think that it gave us some great opportunities.”

In addition to thinking that Eifert will be a good fit for the Bengals offense, the Notre Dame Coach says that the 22-year-old from Fort Wayne, IN will fit in nicely in Cincinnati.

“He loves country music and will golf every day if he can,” said Kelly with a laugh.  “I told him, ‘You’re a perfect fit for Cincinnati.  If those two things are on your wish list, you can’t get a better city than Cincinnati.’  He’s a pretty casual guy.  Flip-flops and shorts is generally how he is seen around campus.  He’s got a great personality, big smile, but he’s really a laid-back kind of guy.”

And while Eifert hasn’t spent much time talking about Cincinnati with his former college coach, he did discuss his new home with Kyle Rudolph.

“He said, ‘Welcome to the Nasty ‘Nati’ or something like that,” said Eifert.  “He was telling me about the hangouts and he said that his parents live here if I need anything.  I told him that I might just rent from his parents and stay in his room.”

I’d love to hear from you at Dan.Hoard@Bengals.nfl.net

If you Twitter, you can follow my tweets at http://twitter.com/Dan_Hoard

And I’m on Facebook at www.facebook.com/dan.hoard.1

http://blogs.bengals.com/2013/04/26/brian-kelly-gives-bengals-and-eifert-a-rave-review/

[Khatmandude]

Where do you honk eider was on our list. They didn't seem to waste much time on taking him.

 

Dude, That's racist! 

[Zins30]

Kiper: Steelers, Bengals among winners
 
The AFC North had a strong start to the NFL draft. That's not the AFC North homer in me saying that. ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. named three teams as winners in the first round, and two of them came from this division: the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals. 

It's an Insider piece, so you'll need a subscription to view the whole article. But here are some excerpts ... 

On the Steelers taking Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones at No. 17, Kiper wrote: "Jones was No. 1 on my Big Board for much of the year, but dipped some during the evaluation process after not working out in Indy and then not running well at his pro day. Well, turns out he's better wearing football pads than Under Armour. Love the value here." 

On the Bengals selecting Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert at No. 21, Kiper wrote: "He finished the draft season as the No. 8 player on my Big Board, and the Bengals took advantage of a major value and the fact that they don't have a ton of needs." 

The Steelers and Bengals are winners mainly because of a domino effect started by West Virginia wide receiver Tavon Austin. The St. Louis Rams moved up to take Austin instead of drafting Texas safety Kenny Vaccaro. The New Orleans Saints then went with Vaccarro over Jones at No. 15. That allowed Jones to fall to No. 17 to the Steelers, who would've gone with Eifert otherwise. And that's how Eifert landed in Cincinnati.
 
http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/post/_/id/69385/kiper-steelers-bengals-among-winners
 

 
When it happened I was really hoping the StL move helped us land Vaccaro, but now I think we can still get a quality player at S and wouldn't have been able to get a playmaker (am I projecting a bit here?) like Eifert in rounds 2+.  Plus with our perennial roblems with TE I would have hated to see them nab him.  Really like the pick.
 
It's funny that the Stealers have had positions of needs like us the last couple years (DDC vs Zeitler last year & TE this year) and I feel like we've made out better both times in round 1.

[The PatternMaster]

Kiper: Steelers, Bengals among winners

 

The AFC North had a strong start to the NFL draft. That's not the AFC North homer in me saying that. ESPN's Mel Kiper Jr. named three teams as winners in the first round, and two of them came from this division: the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Cincinnati Bengals. 

It's an Insider piece, so you'll need a subscription to view the whole article. But here are some excerpts ... 

On the Steelers taking Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones at No. 17, Kiper wrote: "Jones was No. 1 on my Big Board for much of the year, but dipped some during the evaluation process after not working out in Indy and then not running well at his pro day. Well, turns out he's better wearing football pads than Under Armour. Love the value here." 

On the Bengals selecting Notre Dame tight end Tyler Eifert at No. 21, Kiper wrote: "He finished the draft season as the No. 8 player on my Big Board, and the Bengals took advantage of a major value and the fact that they don't have a ton of needs." 

The Steelers and Bengals are winners mainly because of a domino effect started by West Virginia wide receiver Tavon Austin. The St. Louis Rams moved up to take Austin instead of drafting Texas safety Kenny Vaccaro. The New Orleans Saints then went with Vaccarro over Jones at No. 15. That allowed Jones to fall to No. 17 to the Steelers, who would've gone with Eifert otherwise. And that's how Eifert landed in Cincinnati.

 

http://espn.go.com/blog/afcnorth/post/_/id/69385/kiper-steelers-bengals-among-winners

 

 

I'm sure Bill Tobin likes the fact that Kiper approves of the pick..http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pK_ABNHjbk4

[mgbrown66]

Give it a rest drama queen

The bengals sure piled up the points in the playoffs and the last onth of the season didn't they? You think this tight end just propelled them into top 10 status?

At this pointing would settle for an offensive touchdown in the playoffs.

[akiliMVP]

The bengals sure piled up the points in the playoffs and the last onth of the season didn't they? You think this tight end just propelled them into top 10 status?

At this pointing would settle for an offensive touchdown in the playoffs.

Tight end, Sanu and whatever RB we add today drastically improves the offense from the playoffs.

[Jason]

I mean the whole fake dead girlfriend who ended up being a gay guy thing kind of lends credence to the headcase accusation... at the very least he's on a level of naivety rarely seen.

He was a victim of a hoax. His culture and religion place importance on trust. Once the hoax came out he handled it well.

The interviews I have seen he doesn't strike me as a flake at all.

[Jason]

The bengals sure piled up the points in the playoffs and the last onth of the season didn't they? You think this tight end just propelled them into top 10 status?
At this pointing would settle for an offensive touchdown in the playoffs.

By himself? No.

But add in having Sanu for the whole year, growth from Marvin Jones ( not to mention Andy Dalton and the O-line), and whatever RB they get and it will get them a lot closer.

[Bengals1181]

By himself? No.

But add in having Sanu for the whole year, growth from Marvin Jones ( not to mention Andy Dalton and the O-line), and whatever RB they get and it will get them a lot closer.

 

 

and AJ, Gresham and Charles

[Bengals1181]

interesting nicknames so far on twitter.

 

 

So far I like OchoEifert and The Eifert Tower

[Bengals1181]

 

 He drew pre-draft comparisons to Todd Heap.

 

http://www.rotoworld.com/slide/cfb/300/2013-NFL-Draft

[Bgal]

I like The Eifert Tower

[HairOnFire]

The Eifert Tower is too Hobsonian.

I'm calling him Shaggy.

[Jason]

I like Touchdown Machine.

 

I hope he earns that one.

[T-Dub]

On the Steelers taking Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones at No. 17, Kiper wrote: "Jones was No. 1 on my Big Board for much of the year, but dipped some during the evaluation process after not working out in Indy and then not running well at his pro day. Well, turns out he's better wearing football pads than Under Armour. Love the value here." 
 

 

 

Hilarious..  "Based on actual facts I didn't have him graded as high, but since the Steelers took him I'm gonna strap on some kneepads and spit out my dentures"

[MichaelWeston]

So I just got back from a conference today and am catching up. Don't want to watch all the videos here but which is the video I really need to watch. Very close friend who is a Browns and ND fan said that Eifert is awesome that he will be nuts in the red zone, that their QB play was god awful, that the offense was just to throw it up to Eifert even if he was double covered.

[texbengal]

I like The Eifert Tower

X2

OchoEifert blows.

[Oldcat]

X2

OchoEifert blows.

 

How about TylerCinco?

[texbengal]

How about TylerCinco?

How about Touchdown Jebus?

Actually, I think Hayseed is fine.

[MichaelWeston]

Rewatched the video. I don't know who to compare him to. He doesn't seem like a rare athlete like Graham or Gonzo but his hands are ridiculous. Like catch everything, become one of your favorite players on the team ridiculous.

[Bengals1181]

DRAFT ANALYSIS:

"The Andy Dalton thing is critical. Remember, they've lost two years in a row to Houston in the wild card. How do you get over that hump? You need another playmaker, and Dalton has to take another step up." -- Mike Mayock

 

• 6'6"HEIGHT
• 251LBS.WEIGHT

OVERVIEW

Some thought an average tight end class would push the tall, athletic Eifert into the 2012 NFL Draft as a redshirt sophomore. After all, it was the decision of Kyle Rudolph to leave a season early for the 2011 NFL Draft (he was picked in the second round by the Vikings) that opened the door for Eifert to become a star. And while a freshman at quarterback hurt his production as a junior, he still led the team in receiving in 2012 with a team-best 50 catches for 685 yards and four touchdowns, winning the Mackey Award as the nation's top tight end. Eifert decided to skip his final season of eligibility and enter the 2013 NFL Draft.

 

The son of former Purdue basketball player Greg Eifert led all FBS tight ends with 63 grabs for 803 yards in 2011, and his five touchdowns made him a nice red-zone complement to first-round receiver Michael Floyd. Even with Rudolph starting ahead of him in 2010, Eifert made enough of an impact (27 catches, 352 yards, two touchdowns) as a redshirt freshman to earn the team's Offensive Newcomer of the Year award.

 

ANALYSIS

 

STRENGTHS  Very tough in a crowd, showing strong hands to make contested catches and a physical demeanor to come down with the ball in tight spaces. Tall, lean frame. Lines up with his hand down, in an H-back role, in the slot and outside. Threatens the seam with his long strides off the snap, takes a lot of hits across the middle and bounces up. Nice job gaining position in coverage with very good footwork, taking pride in his routes and showing much improvement in this area. Elevates well to go up and attack the ball, just needs an opportunity and chances are he'll come down with it -- very good at mid-air adjustments, making a lot of catches with his feet off the ground. Uses his height, length and strong hands to snatch passes out of the air. Flashes quick feet on out-cuts to be an effective safety valve. Fights through arm tackles to get extra yardage. Gets off the line effectively from a three-point stance, can shimmy past a defender near the line to get into his route. Gives effort as an in-line blocker, uses his length to hold off defensive ends, uses agility to get angle and create outside running lane. Also works hard to prevent defenders from reaching teammates downfield. Productive in his three seasons, leaving Notre Dame with just about every school receiving record for a TE including catches (140) and receiving yards (1,840).

 

WEAKNESSES  Lean receiver-like build. Does not play with consistent explosiveness and leverage when blocking in-line, will get pulled down by NFL ends and miss reach-blocks against quicker ends. Still growing as a blocker and needs to use better angles. Stronger linebackers will rip off his blocks and ride him off his route when he does not use his hands effectively. Allows throws into his body on occasion, will drop the ball when trying to run before securing.

 

NFL COMPARISON  Greg Olsen

 

BOTTOM LINE

 Eifert was a 215-pound TE out of high school who didn't receive too many scholarship offers, but has developed into one of the top all-around tight ends to enter the NFL draft in recent memory. He was Notre Dame's No. 1 offensive weapon in 2012, lining up as a WR or as a traditional TE, and was a target defensive coordinators had to game-plan against. Eifert is a fluid pass-catcher with vacuum hands and the hand/eye coordination to make tough catches, and although he doesn't create a lot of space, he secures grabs in traffic, showing outstanding tracking and high-pointing ability. He is a soft-spoken guy, but an animal on the field and a much better blocker than advertised, improving in leaps and bounds the past three years with excellent effort. Projects as a starting NFL TE with excellent potential as both a receiver and blocker.

 

http://www.nfl.com/draft/2013/profiles/tyler-eifert?id=2540148

 

[Le Tigre]

The Eifert Tower is too Hobsonian.I'm calling him Shaggy.

No...that nickname belonged to a departed player whose name escapes me. Something about quitting is what I recall.

[|Numbers|]

No...that nickname belonged to a departed player whose name escapes me. Something about quitting is what I recall.

 

Andy Dalton and Tyler Too...

 

Since we now have Harrison on the team it makes some sort of sense ...

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tippecanoe_and_Tyler_Too

 

The song was wrote by someone from Zanesville, Ohio...

 

No other ideas but shaggy is not a fit.