Cleveland Browns draft profile: Penn State tight end Mike Gesicki
By Mike Lukas
If there are any knocks on Gesicki’s game, it’s in the way he often has difficulty staying with his blocking assignments. His game film is filled with partial and poorly sustained blocks, but a typical example of his blocking shortcomings happens in the second quarter of the game against Rutgers.
On a first-and-10 quarterback keeper, Gesicki looks completely off-balance coming out of his three-point-stance. Then it becomes obvious that his blocking mechanics are off when he gets manhandled by a cornerback half his size. Against USC in 2016 (and all through the 2017 season for that matter) his missed blocks repeatedly force running back Saquon Barkley to do a lot of incredible improvisations.
No doubt whatever team drafts him will make it a priority to beef up his “lanky” frame a bit and teach him some better blocking basics. With his naturally long and lean body, though, squaring up against NFL-sized defensive ends will likely always be a difficult challenge. Because of that, Gesicki may never be a full double threat like Gronkowski or Witten.
But with 10 1/8-inch hands so capable of catching and hanging onto the ball, Gesicki should have no trouble convincing an NFL team to ignore his blocking limitations and snag him by the predicted second round.
Next: Browns draft profile: Mike McClinchey
And with his 48 receptions for 679 yards and five scores last season for Penn State, this naturally gifted athlete has proven that he’s got what it takes to make life difficult for whichever smaller NFL safety has to inevitably step up and cover him.