It’s 5 o’clock somewhere…
The 5 o’clock club is published from time to time during the season, and aims to provide a forum for reader-driven discussion at a time of day when there isn’t much NFL news being published. Feel free to introduce topics that interest you in the comments below.
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Ben Sinnott
Ben Sinnott was the only TE taken in the 2nd round of the NFL draft this year; he was selected 53rd overall. Here are the 2nd round tight ends taken in recent drafts along with their offensive snap counts for their rookie seasons.
2023
- Sam La Porta (34) – 981
- Michael Mayer (35) – 602
- Luke Musgrave (42) – 468
- Luke Schoonmaker (58) – 368
- Brenton Strange (61) – 307
2022
- Trey McBride (55) – 599
2021
- Pat Freiermuth (55) – 683
Colson Yankoff
Yankoff’s journey to the NFL has been anything but ordinary. For details, read the spotlight profile that was published on Hogs Haven shortly after the draft.
The team website lists Yankoff at 6’4”, 225 pounds, and he has a lot of special teams experience, which may make him an intriguing roster possibility.
My highest graded non-Combine prospects by position (offense):
QB: Carter Bradley, South Alabama
RB: Blake Watson, Memphis
WR: Mason Tipton, Yale
TE: Colson Yankoff, UCLA
OT: Travis Glover, Georgia State
iOL: Dalton Tucker, Marshall pic.twitter.com/ZhmI2X58Jp— Dane Brugler (@dpbrugler) April 12, 2024
Part of our chat with #UCLA running back and special teams ace Colson Yankoff on the Bruin Insider Show.
In this clip, his gratitude, humility, genuineness come shining out as does his uplifting outlook on life. pic.twitter.com/b2313pAlFJ
— Bryan Fenley (@BryanFenley) October 18, 2023
It seems unlikely that Yankoff makes the 53-man roster this season, but he seems like a strong candidate for a practice squad spot, and with Zach Ertz seeming to be fairly brittle at this point in his career, that could lead to some time on the regular season roster.
John Bates
| Games | Receiving | Rushing | Total Yds | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age | Tm | Pos | No. | G | GS | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Y/R | TD | 1D | Succ% | Lng | R/G | Y/G | Ctch% | Y/Tgt | Att | Yds | TD | 1D | Succ% | Lng | Y/A | Y/G | A/G | Touch | Y/Tch | YScm | RRTD | Fmb | AV |
| 2021 | 24 | WAS | TE | 87 | 17 | 8 | 25 | 20 | 249 | 12.5 | 1 | 11 | 68.0 | 32 | 1.2 | 14.6 | 80.0% | 10.0 | 0 | 20 | 12.5 | 249 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||||||||
| 2022 | 25 | WAS | TE | 87 | 16 | 7 | 22 | 14 | 108 | 7.7 | 1 | 4 | 50.0 | 20 | 0.9 | 6.8 | 63.6% | 4.9 | 0 | 14 | 7.7 | 108 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| 2023 | 26 | WAS | TE | 87 | 17 | 4 | 28 | 19 | 151 | 7.9 | 0 | 6 | 50.0 | 35 | 1.1 | 8.9 | 67.9% | 5.4 | 0 | 19 | 7.9 | 151 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||
| Career | 50 | 19 | 75 | 53 | 508 | 9.6 | 2 | 21 | 56.0 | 35 | 1.1 | 10.2 | 70.7% | 6.8 | 0 | 53 | 9.6 | 508 | 2 | 2 | 4 | ||||||||||||
John Bates is more of a blocker than a receiver, but he has been targeted between 22 and 28 times in each of his first 3 seasons in the NFL. How will this change under Kliff Kingsbury, who will be Bates’ 3rd offensive coordinator in a 4-year career?
Zach Ertz
- In 2020, Ertz’s final season in Philadelphia, he played in 11 games due to an ankle sprain.
- In 2021, he played a full season (6 games for Philly; 11 for Arizona)
- In 2022, Ertz played 10 games due to a knee injury
- In 2023, he played in 7 games due to a quadriceps injury
- Ertz has a career yards-per-reception number of 10.5
- His yards-per-reception numbers in Arizona:
2021 – 10.3
2022 – 8.6
2023 – 6.9
Armani Rogers
Rogers played QB at UNLV and Ohio, but transitioned to tight end prior to playing in the 2022 East–West Shrine Bowl. He signed with the Commanders as an undrafted college free agent in 2022. As a rookie, he was on the 53-man roster for 11 games, catching 5 of 6 targets for 4 first downs. Then, he suffered knee and ankle injuries during a big Monday night win over the Eagles in Week 10, and was placed on IR, ending his rookie season.
In May last year, Rogers tore his Achilles tendon during a non-contact OTA session. He was placed on injured reserve, missing the entire 2023 season.
Rogers has worked hard to get himself healthy in readiness for the upcoming training camp. There is a lot to like about Rogers. He’s athletic, boasts assured hands, and makes people miss in the open field. Still, he will face a genuine challenge to make the 53-man roster, which is likely to have no more than 4 tight ends.
Cole Turner
| Games | Receiving | Rushing | Total Yds | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age | Tm | Pos | No. | G | GS | Tgt | Rec | Yds | Y/R | TD | 1D | Succ% | Lng | R/G | Y/G | Ctch% | Y/Tgt | Att | Yds | TD | 1D | Succ% | Lng | Y/A | Y/G | A/G | Touch | Y/Tch | YScm | RRTD | Fmb | AV |
| 2022 | 22 | WAS | TE | 85 | 10 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 23 | 11.5 | 0 | 1 | 11.1 | 18 | 0.2 | 2.3 | 22.2% | 2.6 | 0 | 2 | 11.5 | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||||||
| 2023 | 23 | WAS | TE | 85 | 12 | 1 | 15 | 11 | 120 | 10.9 | 0 | 4 | 60.0 | 29 | 0.9 | 10.0 | 73.3% | 8.0 | 0 | 11 | 10.9 | 120 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ||||||||
| Career | 22 | 3 | 24 | 13 | 143 | 11.0 | 0 | 5 | 41.7 | 29 | 0.6 | 6.5 | 54.2% | 6.0 | 0 | 13 | 11.0 | 143 | 0 | 1 | |||||||||||||
Cole Turner’s stats for his 2-year career are shown in the table above.