The tight end position has become synonymous with Georgia Football over the last several seasons.
The Dawgs have had a tight end drafted in every single NFL Draft since 2019. Isaac Nauta, Charlie Woerner, Tre’ McKitty, John FitzPatrick, Darnell Washington, and Brock Bowers have all been selected as pros after their time at Georgia. Bowers, Washington, and Woerner have been the most successful out of that group. Bowers was first-team All-Pro as a rookie and had 112 receptions, 1,194 yards, and five touchdowns in his first season for the Raiders. Washington and Woerner are both major factors in the run game for the Steelers and the Falcons, respectively.
With that said, the production from the Georgia tight end position took a step back last year. Now, anytime you lose players like Washington and Bowers in back-to-back offseasons, there is going to be a natural dip, but the numbers weren’t expected to fall off of a cliff.
Receiving yards from the tight end position were down 27% from the 2023 season and 47% from the 2022 season. Receptions dropped to just 62, a 29% decrease from 2023 and a 36% decrease from 2022. Yes, in 2021, 2022, and 2023, Bowers produced a lot of those yards and receptions, but even when Bowers was injured in 2023, Oscar Delp produced at a higher rate than he did in the 2024 season.
Look for a returning Delp, a very talented and now veteran Lawson Luckie, who led Georgia tight ends in receptions and yards in 2024, and a combination of Jaden Reddell and Ethan Barbour to allow Georgia to live in 12 and 13 personnel. This will not only help the Georgia running game, which struggled a year ago, but it will also open up the play-action passing game.
Delp and Luckie are very close with the likely Georgia starting quarterback, Gunner Stockton. That chemistry should play a major factor in 2025. Also, Reddell and Barbour are showing out according to spring practice reports. Both are highly athletic, and Reddell, now a second-year player, has the benefit of a year of growth in the system.
With Delp and Luckie both looking to be selected in the NFL Draft a year from now, I’d expect an elevated sense of urgency and higher production from the tight end group in 2025.
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Ken Murray/Icon Sportswire
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