Buccaneers can use O.J. Howard the way Alabama should have

O.J. Howard is 6’6 and weighs 251 pounds, but he runs like a tailback. That tantalizing mismatch potential made him the first tight end taken off the board at the 2017 NFL draft.

Howard will suit up with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers after being selected with the 19th overall pick Thursday night, giving Jameis Winston another weapon to work with. The former Alabama standout is a solid in-line blocker who can add immediate value to an NFL running game, but that’s not why he was viewed by some as “the most complete tight end prospect to enter the league in the past decade.” Instead, Tampa will hope he can use his massive tools to fulfill the potential the Crimson Tide failed to capitalize on the last four years.

Howard is an athletic specimen with the physical tools to have a Rob Gronkowski- or Jimmy Graham-type impact from the tight end position. He is adept at catching passes over the middle, and has the size and speed to stretch the field vertically. Once he has the ball in his hands, he has the agility to make defenders miss and rip off big gains downfield.

He’s even athletic enough to move the chains in unorthodox gadget plays. A recurring comparison is Carolina Panthers tight end Greg Olsen, and similarly, the Bucs will be able to deploy Howard in multiple positions in pre-snap formations.

Despite concerns about his lack of production throughout college, Howard found a way to come up big when his team needed him the most. In two national championship games against Clemson, he hauled in nine catches for 314 yards. Three of his seven career touchdown receptions came in those games.

He only dropped three passes his past two seasons, showcasing the kind of hands that make him a low-risk prospect. Howard is also a strong blocker who engages blitzing defenders well and keeps his feet underneath him to fend off power rushes. He’s even better in run support, where he has the leverage to delay linemen and the speed to get to the second level and take linebackers and safeties out of the play.

That combination of athleticism, pass catching, and blocking laid the foundation to be a consistent starting tight end, even if he fails to fulfill his potential.

Howard has all the tools, but his résumé lacks the kind of consistent output to suggest he’s a surefire pick. He’s still a bit lean, despite weighing in at 250-plus pounds; he’s a long 6’6. Defensive ends and bigger linebackers engaging him will be able to get their pads underneath him and move Howard around as needed. Can he handle the pressure of an expanded receiving role while remaining an effective blocker?

He’s risen up from humble roots before. He played for a high school with just 273 total students and still found a way to put in the work that led Bama to come calling. The transition will be difficult, but it won’t be foreign to the young tight end.

Though Howard was an important piece of the Alabama offense, he wasn’t utilized like the mismatch machine he appears to be. After shredding the combine’s agility drills, it’s clear he has the size and quickness to leave opposing linebackers swatting at air. Despite that, he only averaged three receptions per game as an upperclassman.

Nick Saban doesn’t think that will be a problem, however. The Alabama head coach thinks Howard will be a great pro, even if Lane Kiffin’s offense failed to make him a star.

After earning a first-round grade, he’ll be expected to contribute much more with the Bucs. He showed flashes of that ability at the Senior Bowl, where he dazzled scouts and made some NFL executives — and Howard himself — wonder why he wasn’t used more in Tuscaloosa.

Howard will add a dynamic weapon to the Bucs’ depth chart, joining a group of receivers that includes Mike Evans, DeSean Jackson, and Cameron Brate. Brate was surprisingly decent last year, but Howard offers a much higher ceiling as a playmaking tight end for Jameis Winston.