Sleeper Alert! Jacksonville Jaguars Find Their Evan Engram Replacement
Updated: Jun 11, 2023
Brenton Strange was selected with the 61st pick of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jags haven’t taken a Tight End in the first two rounds since drafting Mercedes Lewis in 2006. Let’s go over the positives and negatives of Strange’s game, as well as the opportunity he has in the high-powered Jacksonville Jaguars offense.
Brenton Strange’s Attributes
Reliable hands. Strange only dropped 2.6% of his passes in his four year career at Penn State.
Ability to break tackles. Strange shows off his strong stiff arm in his tape. He has good burst and enough agility to get a defender off balance. Once the defender is thrown off center, he does not hesitate to run through a shoulder. He rarely is tackled by the first defender and never by arm tackles.
High football IQ. He’s shown great awareness of where to position himself during scramble drills
Above average run blocker. He will struggle against Defensive Ends in the NFL but he can take out Linebackers in the run game. He does a good job of squaring his feet and driving through a block on the move.
The Upside Of The Jaguars’ New Weapon
Target Share is a statistic that measure’s the percentage of pass attempts that go to a certain position. The Jaguars Head Coach and offensive play caller, Doug Pederson, is known for utilizing his Tight Ends.
He coached the Philadelphia Eagles for five seasons from 2016-2020. The Eagles during Doug Pederson’s tenure finished in the top four of Tight End Target Share every season he coached them. Here are their finishes in TE Target Share during that time.
2016: 30.7% – Second in the NFL
2017: 29.7% – Fourth in the NFL
2018: 35.9% – First in the NFL
2019: 38.9% – Second in the NFL
2020: 30.2% – Second in the NFL
Last year when Pederson took over as the Head Coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars, the targets towards the TE position dropped from his time in Philadelphia. The Jaguars finished 14th in the league last season with a 21.4% TE Target Share. During the last six weeks of the season, that number jumped up to 27.1%, good for sixth in the league during that span.
Pederson seemed to have found a winning formula on offense, and one that he’s already very comfortable implementing. I believe that to be one of the reasons the Jaguars prioritized taking a TE with their second-round pick when they still had plenty of positional holes in their defense to fill.
29-year-old Evan Engram received the Franchise Tag this offseason. He still hasn’t signed it yet but assuming he does, he is only under contract for one more season. He will be 30 years old heading into next season and likely will not return to the team.
Calvin Ridley is also in the last year of his contract and will be 30 years old next season. He hasn’t played football in a year and a half so his production this year will be vital to their decision to resign him.
With these players potentially leaving the team in 2024, there will be an opening for Brenton Strange to be leaned on in this offense.
The Downside
On average it does take rookie Tight Ends longer to break out. We see rookies starting to produce in their third year in the NFL so this is not going to be the guy you draft to start immediately. That being said most dynasty leagues have a Taxi Squad so hopefully Strange isn’t eating up a valuable roster spot on your team.
Brenton Strange also didn’t have great production in college. His best season at Penn State in his four-year career was his last season where he put up 32 receptions, 362 yards, and five touchdowns.
There is a chance the Jaguars resign Evan Engram. I believe they would have done that this off-season if they believed in his longevity but the Jaguars have done stranger things…
Dynasty Value
Overall, Brenton Strange is worth the risk because he isn’t going to cost you much in Dynasty. At this time his Average Draft Position (ADP) in Superflex Rookie Drafts is 42.5. His ADP in Single Quarterback leagues is 39.5. In your standard 12 man league, Strange is a early to mid fourth round draft pick.
This is easily worth the cost you’re paying for him even if you sit him on your bench or taxi squad until his opportunity presents itself next year. Evan Engram has also had his own troubles staying healthy so there is a chance Brenton Strange could fill in as the primary Tight End at some point this season.
If you’re struggling at Tight End but are looking to spend your early round draft capital at more pivotal posistions, consider Brenton Strange in the fourth round.
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