All Bengals

NFL Draft Film Breakdown: Is Jelani Woods Exactly What the Bengals Need at Tight End?

Woods is one of the best athletes in this year's draft class.

Mike Santagata

Bengals fans have fallen in love with Jelani Woods and it’s easy to see why—He’s a monstrous tight end with elite measurables and testing. 

The former high school quarterback started his career in Oklahoma State where he didn't get much opportunity to catch the ball. After transferring to the University of Virginia, he finally got that opportunity. He made good on it by catching 44 passes for 598 yards and eight touchdowns. It’s only one year, but he demonstrated that he can play tight end at the collegiate level. Let’s dive into the film and see who he is as a player.

What He Does Well

Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
  • Woods' elite size makes him challenging to cover. He's an gigantic target when he boxes players out and has a pretty good catch radius to go with it. He’s a matchup problem and it will lead to defensive penalties and easy gains.
  • He gets physical with the defense while running his routes and will constantly attack defenders that try to reroute him by pushing and running through contact.
  • Powerful ability to run after the catch. He consistently runs through defenders by lowering his shoulder and staying on his feet. He’s a tough player to bring down.
  • Good ability to drive defenders on run blocks. When he puts himself in the right position and drives his feet, he can really move defensive linemen and linebackers.
  • Has pretty good pass protection chops to be able to hold up in these situations. Not just as a chip player, but also on his own against defenders.
  • Woods tested like the most athletic tight end even. He earned a 10 relative athletic score and was one of the most impressive tight ends in the pre-draft process.

Areas of Concern

Jamie Rhodes-USA TODAY Sports
  • He doesn’t look like an elite athlete on film. He’s not extremely fast, he doesn’t sink on his routes, and he doesn’t change direction all that well. He looks like an above average athlete not an elite one.
  • Woods has a lot of difficulty in breaking jams from defenders. If a defender can get his hands on Woods’s big frame, he can typically knock him off of his route, ruin the timing, and stick tight to his hip.
  • He plays too high after initial contact on his blocks. He doesn’t sink his hips all that well and will pretty consistently pop up after the initial contact. You want him to stay lower blocks like the one below.

Overall Thoughts

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Woods is a humongous ball of clay for an offensive coordinator and tight end coach to mold into what they want him to be in the NFL. 

Overall I think Woods can be an awesome tight end, but he’s far from it. Some people believe he would be a mismatch nightmare, but he currently struggles to pull in balls away from his frame, double catches, bobbles, and drops balls. 

He doesn’t break jams at the line of scrimmage well, he rounds all of his routes and comes out of his breaks away from his quarterback, and he plays less athletic than his testing. He has some ability when it comes to catching the ball because he does have a giant frame, can make contested catches, is powerful after the catch, and plays physical to stay on the right track. 

I’m listing his physicality as a positive, he almost always extends his arm when trying to “push off” and there are other situations where he plays too physical and will draw offensive penalties. Overall he’s probably three to four years away from being a really useful tight end in the passing game and if he’s that far away, then he won’t really have much effect as a player until he’s 28 or 29 years old and at the end of his first contract.

When it comes to his blocking, he actually does a pretty nice job for a tight end. No one will confuse him for Rob Gronkowski or George Kittle, but he can get good initial movement on players, drives his feet, and has some pass protection chops. He struggles to keep his 6-foot-7 frame low to the ground and doesn’t bend all that well, but that’s a common issue with tight ends. When he does start to get real playing time in the NFL, he should be able to play in-line and block defenders adequately.

Scheme Fit

Provided that the skills he displayed in college are portable to the NFL, he’s a pretty versatile fit among NFL offenses. He can play in-line, but also teams are going to want to use him on the backside of trips or as a big slot as well because of his size and tested athleticism. He’s a few years away from being a finished product, but he seems to have the potential to fit just about any offense as a tight end.

Grade

Fourth Round

NFL Comparison

C.J. Uzomah

Check out the rest of our NFL Draft breakdowns here. For more on the Bengals' draft plans, watch the video below and subscribe to our YouTube Channel.

Make sure you bookmark All Bengals for the latest free agency news, exclusive interviews, film breakdowns and so much more!

You May Also Like:

Tyler Linderbaum Posts Elite Numbers at Pro Day

Cincinnati Adds Top Players at Multiple Positions in Mock Draft 2.0

Bengals Bring in Alec Pierce for Top-30 Visit

Bengals Request to Built Temporary Practice Facility Near Paul Brown Stadium

NFL Draft Film Breakdown: Andrew Booth is a Menace at Cornerback

Tre Flowers Returning to Bengals on One-Year Deal

Bengals Bolster Pass Rush in Latest Mock Draft

Bengals Hire New Head Athletic Trainer

Analyzing Veteran Cornerback Options Ahead of 2022 NFL Draft

Film Breakdown: Is Florida CB Kaiir Elam a Good Fit in Cincinnati?

Mock Draft 1.0: Bengals Take Best Player Available

Bengals Offseason Workouts: Key Dates and Details

Film Breakdown: Kenyon Green an Intriguing Option for Bengals

Bengals Meet With Three Tight Ends Prior to 2022 NFL Draft

Bengals "Actively" Looking Into Building Practice Facility

Tyrann Mathieu Praises Joe Burrow

Chad Johnson Praises Ja'Marr Chase and Jaylen Waddle

NFL Draft Film Breakdown: Analyzing Zion Johnson's Fit With Cincinnati Bengals

Film Breakdown: Tyler Linderbaum Shines Despite Size Concerns

La'el Collins' Contract is Bargain for Bengals

Door Still Open in Potential Larry Ogunjobi Return

Film Breakdown: Here's What La'el Collins Brings to the Cincinnati Bengals

Joe Burrow Helped Seal the Deal With La'el Collins

Film Breakdown: Analyzing Ted Karras' Strengths and Weaknesses

Film Breakdown: Alex Cappa is Huge Upgrade in Trenches for Bengals

-----

Be sure to keep it locked on All Bengals all the time!

Subscribe to the All Bengals YouTube channel
Follow AllBengals on Twitter: @AllBengals

Like Our FaceBook Page

Subscribe and follow the ONLY Daily Bengals Podcast

Published
Mike Santagata
MIKE SANTAGATA

Mike Santagata is an offensive line and film expert. He's written and analyzed Bengals film for the past four years. He also hosts the Always Gameday in Cincinnati podcast and is a regular guest on the Locked On Bengals podcast.

Home/AllBengals Insiders+