TE Colston Loveland, Michigan

Michigan’s Colston Loveland should be one of first tight ends, if not the first tight end, off the board in the upcoming draft.

Although the Wolverines star is the highest-rated player at his position and the No. 13 overall prospect on the B/R Scouting Department’s big board, Loveland won’t be crossing Lake Michigan and heading to Green Bay for the event.

Loveland fits the mold of a prolific pass-catching tight end that many NFL teams are desperately searching for. At 6’6”, 248 pounds, he clearly has the size to be a chain mover and red-zone threat in the pros. He’s an elite athlete as well, showcasing plenty of burst and acceleration to torch most of the linebackers who try to mark him.

While he still needs to polish his route-running skills, Michigan’s coaching staff deployed him as a jumbo-sized wideout to great effect. He tallied up 1,231 yards and nine touchdowns on 101 catches over the last two seasons, reeling in plenty of contested balls and dominating mismatches against slower, less athletic defenders.

Loveland profiles as a weak blocker, but some fine-tuning could see him become serviceable in that area. He’ll need to add strength and continue bulking up to stand up to powerful NFL defensive linemen, but teams should be drafting him on Day 1 for his upside as a playmaker in the passing attack.

There’s a chance Loveland won’t come off the board until after fellow Big Ten tight end Tyler Warren —the No. 2 TE and No. 15 overall prospect on B/R’s big board—both were top-14 picks in B/R’s latest mock draft.