The sentiments of the title reflect my own in more ways than one after watching the Chiefs select TE Brad Cottam with their second pick in the third round of the NFL Draft last week. In fact, I think my exact words went something like this:

“A tight end? Are you serious? What the heck are the Chiefs thinking taking a tight end here?”

After making close to 500 or so mock drafts during the time leading up to the draft, I had a pretty good idea that Brad Cottam would be available in round 3. And although I couldn’t knock his talent, size, or speed, I would have never guessed that the Chiefs would choose to use a valuable third round pick to take him, especially when we already have a future Hall of Famer in tight end Tony Gonzalez still in the prime of his career.

But after further reflection, I stand corrected on the need for another solid tight end on the Chiefs roster. Not only does Cottam possess outstanding size (6′8″), strength (24 reps @ 225 lbs.), and speed (4.63 seconds - 40 time), but he also has excellent hands to go along with solid blocking ability, which is something the Chiefs sorely need after the departure of Jason Dunn. And in Chan Gailey’s run-heavy/play-action pass offensive scheme, having a tight end with Cottam’s skills in both blocking and receiving will be invaluable to this team.

The biggest knock on Cottam is his lack of collegiate experience, although it’s pretty safe to say that if he hadn’t been injured for as many games in his career at Tennessee, he would have easily been a top 20 pick in round one, so his loss could very well be the Chiefs gain.

As I mentioned before, I truly think Cottam will be a weapon right from day one for the Chiefs, as he’s clearly capable of putting up huge numbers if he stays healthy over the course of an entire season. It also can’t hurt to line up opposite of a 10 time Pro Bowl player in Tony Gonzalez, or to have a player the caliber of WR Dwayne Bowe stretching the field, so if anything, Cottam should find himself lined up against slower footed linebackers more often than not. And that is exactly what the Chiefs and Brodie Croyle needs to have if they want to improve their 31st ranked offense from a season ago.

So even if you were like me and couldn’t understand why the Chiefs would take a tight end while they still had so many other needs, especially along their offensive line, I think you’ll be pretty surprised and excited to see what he is capable of bringing to this offense once he hits the field this summer in River Falls.

If you’d like to get a sneak peak at Cottam’s skill set, feel free to check out this highlight video from his days in Knoxville. Enjoy!

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