Tony Gonzalez: Dallas Goedert is the best tight end in the NFL right now
Whenever Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez talks about tight ends, we listen. Especially when it pertains to the Eagles own Dallas Goedert.
As a member of Amazon Prime’s Thursday Night Football coverage, Gonzalez made a bold claim during the postgame show for the Bengals-Dolphins game Thursday night.
Gonzalez: Goedert is the best TE in the league right now
With all the talent at the TE position right now, this statement from Gonzalez certainly falls under the ‘bold’ category.
Through three weeks this season, here’s a look at where Goedert’s stats stack up against his fellow tight ends:
- Receiving yards: 168 (4th)
- Yards per reception: 15.3 (1st among starting TEs)
- Receptions: 11 (T-7th)
- Touchdowns: 1 (T-3rd)
DraftKings Sportsbook: Bet $5, Win $200
- Sign up for a new DraftKings account
- Make Your First Deposit
- Place a $5 money line bet on any NFL game
- Get $200 In Free Bets Instantly
The only category Goedert leads the pack in is yards per reception, which isn’t too surprising since he led all starting tight ends in that statistic last season as well.
Statistically speaking, Goedert is far from the most productive tight end in the league right now, but as we all know, stats don’t always tell the whole story.
Goedert has proven to be one of the best vertical tight ends in the league since being drafted in 2018 and he’s also become arguably the best blocking TE in the game not named George Kittle. Per Pro Football Focus, the Eagles tight end has recorded a 70.64 run blocking grade since entering the league, a top-10 mark for the position during that time.
He’s caught nearly every ball that’s been thrown at him through three games, hauling in a career-best 84.6 percent of his targets. TE1 has moved the chains on eight of his 11 receptions and Jalen Hurts has a 144.4 passer rating when throwing Goedert’s way, better than Travis Kelce, Mark Andrews, Darren Waller, and Kyle Pitts.
If Goedert was the No. 1 receiver for his offense — like Kelce, Andrews, and Pitts — he’d see much more volume on his targets and receptions. He’s just another cog in the Eagles’ offensive machine right now and he’s still managing to thrive in it.
Goedert is often overlooked among the best TEs in the game right now, mostly due to his status as Zach Ertz’s backup for the majority of his career.
Gonzalez may be the first national pundit to give Goedert his due, but he’ll be far from the last.
