Lammey: Broncos hope Jake Butt can be the team’s top tight end in 2018
Mar 27, 2018, 7:27 PM
The Denver Broncos have to find help at the tight end position.
Denver hasn’t had an impact player at the position since the days of Julius Thomas, and with the game evolving to become more pass-happy than ever, tight ends are no longer just blockers. They’re weapons who can create mismatches.
Last year, the Broncos may have found just such a weapon in fifth-round pick Jake Butt.
Head coach Vance Joseph said on Tuesday he hopes Butt can be the team’s top tight end after he missed his entire rookie season recovering from a knee injury suffered in college.
“We drafted him to be that guy. Obviously (Jeff) Heuerman has made some strides, but we are hoping Jake Butt becomes that guy that we hoped he was going to be,” Joseph said.
Butt is a talented player, but how and why can he make an impact in 2018?
Let’s take a look:
First-round tools
Had it not been for the knee injury suffered in the Orange Bowl during his final game at Michigan, Butt may have been selected in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft. He could have gone off the board after first-round picks O.J. Howard (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and Evan Engram (New York Giants).
“Obviously, before the injury in college, he was a guy who was going to be a top two-or three-round player,” Joseph said. “We are hoping he gets back to that.”
He is a big target, measuring in at 6-foot-5 and 246 pounds, and Butt knows how to use his frame to box out smaller defenders. He’s fearless when running routes over the middle and shows great concentration when passes are coming in with defenders draped all over him.
Butt puts forth great effort as a blocker, although his technique should become more refined as his pro career continues. His ability as an in-line blocker makes him a “Y” tight end.
Last year, before the draft, Broncos general manager John Elway told me the team was looking for a “Y” tight end. But though the 2017 draft class was historically chock full of talented tight ends, Elway pointed out to me that many players in that class were more “F” tight ends.
A “Y” tight end can do everything and be on the field all three downs. An “F” tight end is more of the big-bodied receiver who should not be on the field as a blocker.
High football intelligence
Not only is Butt talented physically, but he understands the game on a different level mentally
He loves football, something that shows up during the week of preparation and in games.
Defenses try to confuse players as each down unfolds, but Butt has no problem diagnosing coverage as he is running through his route. He can find the soft spot in a zone regularly, and he’s subtle when it comes to the nuances of getting open.
And it’s Butt’s work ethic and love for the game that caught Joseph’s attention.
“Just being around the kid for a year, he is a pro’s pro. He gets it,” Joseph said. “He works at it, he studies, and he loves it.”
Butt’s pro comparison
Butt has the upside to be one of the most reliable tight ends in the game today. His best pro comparison coming out of Michigan last year was Minnesota Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph.
It’s interesting to note that Rudolph’s quarterback last year, Case Keenum, is now the starter in Denver. Rudolph was targeted 81 times (mostly by Keenum) in 2017, hauling in 57 passes for 532 yards and eight touchdowns.
Like Rudolph, we should see Butt become a favorite target of Keenum in OTAs, minicamp, and training camp leading up to the regular season. Having that reliable target as a relief valve will greatly benefit Keenum as he begins his career as the Broncos starter.
“He will do everything he has to do to be a great player,” Joseph said. “If I’m betting on Jake, I’m betting it’s going to happen.”
