2015 NFL Combine: Tight ends take part in the bench press

The bench press might not be the most important drill for receivers or running backs at the NFL Combine, but it’s typically a big deal for offensive and defensive linemen. There is another position where it matters how many times players can put up 225 pounds, and that’s the tight ends. While today’s tight ends are often considered giant receivers, the majority of the best tight ends in the league are also very good blockers.

For those tight ends who aren’t going to get drafted to be receivers, many NFL teams carry dedicated blockers, and that’s where strength comes in. There’s quite a bit to blocking, and although lower body strength and leverage are just as important as anything, how many reps a blocker can bench press is always worthwhile information for NFL scouts.

On Thursday, the tight ends assembled for the drill, and there were some impressive results. Many of the tight ends put up bigger numbers than the offensive linemen, though none of them managed to break 30, which multiple offensive linemen did. Louisville’s Gerald Christian recorded 28 reps, the most of any tight end, while Blake Bell of Oklahoma had just 14.

Maxx Williams of Minnesota and Clive Walford of Miami put up 17 and 20 reps, respectively. Those two are the consensus top tight ends coming out this year and those numbers are just about average for the position.

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We’ve got the full list of tight end bench press results below: