As the 2025 NFL draft approaches, the Denver Broncos are looking for that mismatch tight end, or that ‘joker,’ that Sean Payton covets. Payton has worked with some of the best tight ends throughout his years as a head coach and offensive coordinator.

Payton was with the New York Giants when they drafted Jeremy Shockey, who also played for Payton with the New Orleans Saints. The veteran coach was also with the Dallas Cowboys when they drafted Jason Witten and with the Saints when Jimmy Graham was plucked out of the draft. 

This draft class has a strong class of tight ends entering the NFL, and the Broncos have been looking hard at the group. The Broncos may be unable to obtain one of the top tight ends in the class, but it’s a deep group, and they can get a high-quality player somewhere on Day 2 of the draft.

With that in mind, let’s start finding some Broncos, starting with one tight end with local ties to Colorado and a history with Bo Nix — Oregon’s Terrance Ferguson.

Ferguson turned 22 at the beginning of February. He’s from Littleton, CO, where he attended Heritage High School.

Despite growing up in Colorado, Ferguson admitted at the NFL Combine that he grew up liking the Saints because of Payton. He spent all four of his collegiate seasons at Oregon, playing with Nix for two of them. 

Ferguson’s size and athleticism meet the standards you look for in a tight end. He has length but could use some work in the weight room to add a bit more bulk to his frame, but you don’t want to hinder his athleticism.

He displayed explosive athleticism at the Combine, which is what you’re looking at him for. 

Among 45 draft-eligible tight ends with at least 35 targets, Ferguson had the highest yards after the catch metric at nine yards per reception and ranked fourth in overall yards after the catch, according to Pro Football Focus.

Ferguson is a good athlete for the position, who can create mismatches with modern NFL linebackers and safeties. He has the speed and explosive athleticism to break from linebackers, with the size to handle safeties. 

Sometimes, the production may not match the tape, but that isn’t the case with Ferguson, who saw increased production each season in all stats except for touchdowns. In the 2022 and 2023 seasons with Nix, Ferguson had five and six touchdowns, respectively, compared to only three in 2024. 

Ferguson is a quality route runner, especially for a tight end, and he shows the nuance you look for at the position. He does a good job disguising his routes with his shoulder movements and can uncork extra bursts in and out of breaks for instant separation. 

When it comes to making the catch, Ferguson is clean and reliable. He only has seven drops in his career, with four coming this last season.

Ferguson’s size helps him box out from contested catches when necessary, but that doesn’t come naturally. His catch radius is excellent, and he has the body control to extend to make difficult catches while sustaining momentum, which helps when making a play with the ball in his hands. 

While there’s work to be done as a blocker, Ferguson has a good foundation with his hand technique and footwork. When it comes to tight-end blocking, a lot is placed where the thumbs point.

You want them pointing up, and Ferguson consistently sets his hands. His good balance and footwork help him stay in front of his assignment. 

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Ferguson’s issues center on blocking. While he has the proper base and balance, he has a bad habit of throwing himself off balance by leaning his shoulders ahead of his toes into blocks. This allows him to execute certain disengaging moves with ease. 

Ferguson isn’t the most aggressive blocker, and that shows when you watch his tape. He can be passive during blocks and seems to settle more on being in the way than winning them. You can teach the technical aspects of blocking, but you want the player to have the proper mindset, which is what will be questioned the most with Ferguson. 

On the receiving side, he can be a plodder through his routes. The Combine showed improvements in his smooth movements during drills, but the environment and not having pads on could have boosted that. So, it will need to be seen whether it can carry over to work in pads. 

There has been success after the catch with Ferguson, but the speed of the NFL game may create some issues here. He isn’t the quickest of players, and not running the short shuttle or 3-cone at the Combine didn’t provide answers. Those issues can make defenders miss, especially if he can get into space. 

Then there is Ferguson’s size and ability to box out defenders. As mentioned, he can do it, but it doesn’t come naturally. It also wasn’t something you saw a lot in college. Throughout his career, he only caught 8-of-22 contested catches, with 3-of-12 in 2024. 

Ferguson would be a great addition to the Broncos. He would be the mismatch player Payton covets, and his familiarity with Nix could help his transition to the NFL.

Sure, Ferguson’s blocking is a concern, as Denver also needs improvements there, but GM George Paton spoke on his belief that it’s easier to teach a receiving tight end to block than the other way around. There’s an immediate avenue to seeing the field as a rookie, even though the impact rookie tight ends make, historically, is minimal. 

Grade: Round 3

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