My favorite draftee Jack Kuntz 10.0 RAS

[32EBoozer]

2 minutes ago, Lith said:

He is a project.  Maybe he works out, maybe he doesn't. He was certainly worth the roll of the dice in the 7th round.  But lets not kid ourselves.  He is raw.  He is not ready to contribute right now.  He will be going up against much bigger, stronger and faster guys than he played against at ODU.  I love the pick, but the kid needs to make a huge leap.  I will be shocked if he is anything other than 4th on our TE depth chart this season. 

Do you think he can be hidden on the PS without being poached? If not, I would wonder if JD would cut/trade CJ to keep ZK on the team? A lot will depend on camp & how he looks. 
Remember, he’s probably going to line up outside of the LOS where he’ll be matched up against Safeties & LBs. There’s a chance 

[Barry McCockinner]

1 minute ago, 32EBoozer said:

Do you think he can be hidden on the PS without being poached? If not, I would wonder if JD would cut/trade CJ to keep ZK on the team? A lot will depend on camp & how he looks. 
Remember, he’s probably going to line up outside of the LOS where he’ll be matched up against Safeties & LBs. There’s a chance 

I forget how many it is but you can protect a certain number of guys on the PS each week.

[32EBoozer]

1 minute ago, Barry McCockinner said:

I forget how many it is but you can protect a certain number of guys on the PS each week.

Since most of our PS sucks… then my vote is for Kuntz (I love posting that) & Ogbuehi. 

[Lith]

6 minutes ago, 32EBoozer said:

Do you think he can be hidden on the PS without being poached? If not, I would wonder if JD would cut/trade CJ to keep ZK on the team? A lot will depend on camp & how he looks. 
Remember, he’s probably going to line up outside of the LOS where he’ll be matched up against Safeties & LBs. There’s a chance 

 

5 minutes ago, Barry McCockinner said:

I forget how many it is but you can protect a certain number of guys on the PS each week.

4 guys can be protected.  I am not sure if there is a limit to how many weeks you can protect an individual.

[chirorob]

1 hour ago, Alka said:

You can teach someone to catch.  You can't teach them to not have alligator arms when they are getting ready to get blasted as they cross the middle of the field.  You can teach someone how to block, but you can't teach them to have the killer instinct and finish the block to the whistle.  That is all about effort and willingness.  

From the very small amount of information I have gleaned, he seems to be able to do all of these things.  Plus, he seems capable of having the moves to pivot and run away from defenders after the break in his routes.  

It's very early, but I think that many of us have high hopes.

Obviously he is a project,  or he would have been a top 15 talent.

I love taking a shot on a guy like that in the 7th than some slow guy who can't do anything. 

Hell, if nothing else put him on special teams.  That height and jumping ability, maybe he can block some field goals/extra points.

[Larz]

Hey so guys, I told the family about the jets draft at dinner tonight. Turns out, his name is pronounced kooontz.  Anyone know a home remedy for bruises?

[JoeNamathsFurCoat]

1 hour ago, jetstream23 said:

with those hops at 6’7” he should at least be a fixture on the FG block team 

[Cyberjet]

1 hour ago, Lith said:

From Dane Brugler (The Athletic) .

STRENGTHS: Freaky athletic traits … turned heads with his combine testing and workout (his 40-inch vertical, 10-8 broad jump, 6.87 three-cone and 23 bench press reps all were No. 1 among tight ends) … easily gets over the top of coverage (seam or outside) when he stretches out his stride … willing to secure throws and take punishment over the middle … exceptionally long with the frame to pack on more muscle … very few drops on his film, and he has a catch radius that makes his quarterbacks appear more accurate than they are … able to seal on down blocks and shows the potential to be an asset in the run game … voted a senior captain … described as a “blue-collar kid” and the “vocal and emotional” leader of the tight end room.

WEAKNESSES: Lacks desired bulk on his stretched-out frame, especially in his lower half … struggles to leverage the point of attack as a blocker, especially in pass protection, because of a narrow base … subpar play strength and needs better utilize his biomechanics to access his power potential … relies too much on his body and wrists to finish catches … inconsistent using his big body to shield defenders … his tape should have more explosive plays for a receiver with his athleticism (only 48.2 percent of his receptions resulted in a first down or touchdown at Old Dominion) … relies more on speed than technique as a route runner … missed the second half of his senior season because of a dislocated knee cap (October 2022), which required surgery; missed the first half of his junior season in high school because of a preseason broken foot (August 2016).

SUMMARY: A two-year starter at Old Dominion, Kuntz was a hybrid tight end in head coach Ricky Rahne’s balanced offense, lining up mostly detached. After struggling to make headway on Penn State’s depth chart, he became a pass-catching weapon, when healthy, at ODU and put together a dominant combine performance (testing and position drills). With his long strides, Kuntz creates separation when given any type of runway, and he provides a sizeable target for his quarterback (his wingspan was larger than 43 of the 51 offensive linemen at the combine). However, he struggles to answer power and physicality, as both a receiver and blocker, because of his linear body and frenetic movements.

Overall, Kuntz is unrefined as a route runner, blocker and pass catcher in traffic, but he has rare size/speed tools waiting to be cultivated. He is a developmental No. 3 tight end. GRADE: 4th-5th Round

Thx. 

[Reasonable Jets Fan]

16 hours ago, chirorob said:

Line him up outside in the red zone.  Have Rodgers throw a fade, "go get it giant freak!"

I mean, he fell to the 7th. So there's something wrong.

Of course Antonio Gates was undrafted.

He was hurt last year... Dropped a lot of passes... Who knows... Worth the 7th rounder

[LIJetsFan]

13 hours ago, Lith said:

From Dane Brugler (The Athletic) .

STRENGTHS: Freaky athletic traits … turned heads with his combine testing and workout (his 40-inch vertical, 10-8 broad jump, 6.87 three-cone and 23 bench press reps all were No. 1 among tight ends) … easily gets over the top of coverage (seam or outside) when he stretches out his stride … willing to secure throws and take punishment over the middle … exceptionally long with the frame to pack on more muscle … very few drops on his film, and he has a catch radius that makes his quarterbacks appear more accurate than they are … able to seal on down blocks and shows the potential to be an asset in the run game … voted a senior captain … described as a “blue-collar kid” and the “vocal and emotional” leader of the tight end room.

WEAKNESSES: Lacks desired bulk on his stretched-out frame, especially in his lower half … struggles to leverage the point of attack as a blocker, especially in pass protection, because of a narrow base … subpar play strength and needs better utilize his biomechanics to access his power potential … relies too much on his body and wrists to finish catches … inconsistent using his big body to shield defenders … his tape should have more explosive plays for a receiver with his athleticism (only 48.2 percent of his receptions resulted in a first down or touchdown at Old Dominion) … relies more on speed than technique as a route runner … missed the second half of his senior season because of a dislocated knee cap (October 2022), which required surgery; missed the first half of his junior season in high school because of a preseason broken foot (August 2016).

SUMMARY: A two-year starter at Old Dominion, Kuntz was a hybrid tight end in head coach Ricky Rahne’s balanced offense, lining up mostly detached. After struggling to make headway on Penn State’s depth chart, he became a pass-catching weapon, when healthy, at ODU and put together a dominant combine performance (testing and position drills). With his long strides, Kuntz creates separation when given any type of runway, and he provides a sizeable target for his quarterback (his wingspan was larger than 43 of the 51 offensive linemen at the combine). However, he struggles to answer power and physicality, as both a receiver and blocker, because of his linear body and frenetic movements.

Overall, Kuntz is unrefined as a route runner, blocker and pass catcher in traffic, but he has rare size/speed tools waiting to be cultivated. He is a developmental No. 3 tight end. GRADE: 4th-5th Round

Good article. thanks.  So now we know why he fell so far.  Forget about 2023.  1st shot he's got at seeing the field is after lots of conditioning 2024, IMHO.  I suppose it's now safe to PS him this year.  

[32EBoozer]

[Lith]

31 minutes ago, LIJetsFan said:

Good article. thanks.  So now we know why he fell so far.  Forget about 2023.  1st shot he's got at seeing the field is after lots of conditioning 2024, IMHO.  I suppose it's now safe to PS him this year.  

I would think he is probably safe to stash.  When someone is poached they have to go to the active roster, if he is not ready to contribute it is unlikely that anyone will be prepared to use a roster spot for him.  If they thought he was that valuable, he would have been picked before 220.  He will have to clear waivers to get through to the PS, so there is always a risk, but I will worry about that in August, not now.

[PepPep]

In the 7th Round this is an absolutely no risk move. I like the pick. Its a good roll of the dice. Dude has a fantastic athletic profile.

But he slid for good reason. 

1. Coming off major injury (dislocated knee). 

2. Small school prospect playing against small school competition.

3. Lack of strength and physically as a blocker AND receiver.

4. Hands need work. 

So again, I like the pick.  This is where you take these guys with high upside who are raw and may have injury concerns. 

I'm not as worried about his ability as a blocker. Let's be real, he is practically a receiver and will not be asked to block. I am not that concerned about his 'physicality' as a receiver. His size and athleticism alone should make up for a lot of that. Also- just put him in an NFL weight room. 

I am a bit concerned that he played against small school competition. He played well but didn't dominate. There could be many reasons for that. But again, its a concern. And I am concerned about his dislocated knee injury. I'm not a doctor but that sounds BAD. It did not affect his combine performance but its a red flag for me. 

The other thing is this note I keep seeing that he needs to improve his hands. I think some of that has to do with his physicality as a receiver and he will definitely improve on that. But if he simply doesn't have good hands its concerning. You can't have a 'receiving' TE who can't block contribute much if he also doesn't have good hands. lol.  

[Barry McCockinner]

2 minutes ago, PepPep said:

In the 7th Round this is an absolutely no risk move. I like the pick. Its a good roll of the dice. Dude has a fantastic athletic profile.

But he slid for good reason. 

1. Coming off major injury (dislocated knee). 

2. Small school prospect playing against small school competition.

3. Lack of strength and physically as a blocker AND receiver.

4. Hands need work. 

So again, I like the pick.  This is where you take these guys with high upside who are raw and may have injury concerns. 

I'm not as worried about his ability as a blocker. Let's be real, he is practically a receiver and will not be asked to block. I am not that concerned about his 'physicality' as a receiver. His size and athleticism alone should make up for a lot of that. Also- just put him in an NFL weight room. 

I am a bit concerned that he played against small school competition. He played well but didn't dominate. There could be many reasons for that. But again, its a concern. And I am concerned about his dislocated knee injury. I'm not a doctor but that sounds BAD. It did not affect his combine performance but its a red flag for me. 

The other thing is this note I keep seeing that he needs to improve his hands. I think some of that has to do with his physicality as a receiver and he will definitely improve on that. But if he simply doesn't have good hands its concerning. You can't have a 'receiving' TE who can't block contribute much if he also doesn't have good hands. lol.  

He caught 73 passes in '21. How bad can his hands be? 

Hoping he can bulk up some - has Gronk like measurables if he does.

[PepPep]

13 minutes ago, Barry McCockinner said:

He caught 73 passes in '21. How bad can his hands be? 

Hoping he can bulk up some - has Gronk like measurables if he does.

I don't know. I haven't seen enough of him where I actually saw this. It's just what I keep seeing in draft profiles and analysis. Probably overblown. But there are natural pass catchers and there are guys who only make the easy ones and drop those sometimes as well. 

73 catches could be good or could be bad. He played at Old Dominion. 73 sounds like a great number and yes, I think he has good hands despite some of the criticisms. But for a guy with his size and athletic profile, you would think he would have had more than 73 catches and 5 TDs playing for Old Dominion.

But who knows. Maybe they ran the ball a ton. Maybe their QB was crap. Maybe their o-line was crap. 

He's not like Gronk at all. He really does remind me Mike Gesicki or Tyler Eifert. Long, lean, athletic, fast, receiving TE/WR hybrid. Gronk was a tall, athletic in-line TE who could really block. But what made him special was his great hands and immense power. He wasn't that fast and he certainly wasn't lean. 

[slats]

On 4/29/2023 at 4:44 PM, mrcoops said:

A prototype hmhertz pick!

Right down to his name. 

[Sammybighead]

He's a 7th round pick.

I'm intrigued 

Hope he turns into a stud, not holding my breathe. 

Regardless, no bid deal. He's a 7th rd pick.

[PS17]

Move over Old McDonald

 

[Green Ghost]

Great pick by the NYJ!

[chirorob]

2 hours ago, Sammybighead said:

He's a 7th round pick.

I'm intrigued 

Hope he turns into a stud, not holding my breathe. 

Regardless, no bid deal. He's a 7th rd pick.

Exactly.  

7th round picks are going to have questions, other wise they would have been picked long before the 7th round.