Zach
Davidson.
Zach
Davidson.
Central Missouri St.· 6'7"· 245 lb
"A 6'7", 245 Central Missouri basketball convert who doubled as the Mules' punter, with 15 D-II touchdowns in 2019 and no combine invite — a Round-5 developmental TE gamble on frame and untapped movement."Pre-draft read
The tight end aligns as a flex or move player, leveraging his length and long stride to separate on seam and corner routes with pace changes and a smooth, gliding stride. His frame creates a natural boundary, particularly on back-shoulder throws and red-zone fades, contributing to high 2019 touchdown production. He effectively plucks clean throws but often defaults to body catches when defenders contest the catch point, indicating late hands.
His Central Missouri route tree featured vertical routes, drags, and basic option breaks; complex NFL routes like outs and whip routes remained underdeveloped. As a run blocker, high pad level, narrow base, and inconsistent hand placement made him a liability in in-line blocking, pushing his projection towards a detached alignment.
Spread RPO passing attacks that utilize speed and space to create vertical passing lanes and isolation matchups for pass-catching tight ends.
A Year-1 red-zone and seam specialist, developing into a starting flex TE by Year 3.
Gap/duo power run game where he'd be asked to consistently block in-line.
Davidson projects as a pass-catching specialist with rare length and vertical ball skills, but limited route tree and in-line blocking concerns limit his scheme versatility.
The MOST UNIQUE Player in the Draft — Zach Davidson Highlights
Central Missouri highlight reel showcasing the vertical-seam and red-zone fade catalog that built his 15-TD 2019 season.
Zach Davidson, TE, Central Missouri | 2021 NFL Draft Official Highlights
Official pre-draft cut: length as a red-zone weapon, gliding stride on seams, and the basketball rebound instincts at the catch point.
Film Room: How Punter-Turned-TE Zach Davidson Can Make an Impact
All-22 breakdown of alignment fit and route-tree projection into Minnesota's play-action flex tight-end role.
Davidson projects as a developmental flex/move tight end, primarily valued for his rare combination of height, length, and movement skills. A team drafting him at 6'7" aims to leverage his ability to create matchup problems in the red zone and vertically, hoping that a full professional offseason can refine his technique and expand his limited route tree beyond the foundational elements observed in his college play.
His pre-draft evaluation relied heavily on his 2019 breakout season, where he recorded 40 catches, 894 yards, and 15 touchdowns, as his 2020 season was canceled. Competing at the MIAA D-II level, his usage was largely vertical, and he frequently faced overmatched defenders. He also served as the team's starting punter, signaling unusual coordination and lower-body flexibility for his size, a trait that gave evaluators reason for optimism regarding his athletic upside.
The consensus view identified a significant developmental curve: the MIAA competition level, a thin route tree, and significant in-line blocking deficiencies were notable flags. While his raw physical tools and touchdown production offered upside, evaluators largely placed him as a late Day 3 pick or priority undrafted free agent. He was selected 168th overall by Minnesota.
- 01
Height and Length
6'7" frame with a long wingspan creates a natural boundary, especially on back-shoulder throws against smaller defenders.
- 02
Red-Zone Production
15 receiving touchdowns in the 2019 season provide a baseline for a red-zone specific role.
- 03
Vertical Stride
Uses his length and stride to gain separation on seam and corner routes with pace changes.
- 04
Dual Role Coordination
Serving as the starting punter indicates unusual coordination and lower-body flexibility for his size.
- 05
Clean Ball Plucker
Effectively plucks clean throws away from his body, demonstrating good hand-eye coordination.
- 01
Competition Level
Played against MIAA (D-II) competition, frequently facing overmatched defenders at the catch point.
- 02
Limited Route Tree
Route tree at Central Missouri largely featured vertical routes, drags, and basic option breaks.
- 03
In-Line Blocking Liability
High pad level and an inconsistent hand placement make him a liability as an in-line run blocker.
- 04
Body Catch Tendency
Defaults to body catches when defenders contest the catch point, indicating late hands.
| Yr | Team | G | Rec | Yds | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Kansas State | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career | — | — | 0 | 0 | 0 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
Small-school (Ashland) 6'6"+ TE drafted on frame and traits, whose in-line limitations and thin route tree kept him a rotational body — the more probable Davidson outcome.
Basketball convert TE who grew into a functional flex/red-zone piece — the exact developmental arc Davidson's frame and dual-sport background were drafted to chase.
Length/athlete TE who never carved out a receiving role and survived on special teams before washing out — the floor when a project TE cannot separate at NFL speed.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
Pre-draft context. Zach Davidson arrived at the 2021 draft as one of the strangest bets on the board: a 6'7", 245-pound Central Missouri tight end who had come to football late from basketball and still moonlighted as the program's starting punter. His 2019 tape at the Division II level was legitimately gaudy — 40 catches for 894 yards and 15 touchdowns for the Mules — but the MIAA schedule and a canceled 2020 D-II season meant every evaluation ran into the same wall: no Power Five reps, no combine invite in a COVID cycle, and only a private pro day workout for scouts. Boards had him scattered across Days 3 and priority free agency, sold entirely on height-weight-length and a smooth mover's frame that basketball had already sanded down.
NFL fit — Minnesota Vikings. Minnesota, with Kyle Rudolph gone and Tyler Conklin ahead of a contract year, spent pick #168 on Davidson as a swing-for-the-fences TE3 project behind Irv Smith Jr. The bet was pure ceiling: give him a full pro offseason with an actual position coach, tap the movement skills that let him play punter and receiver in the same game, and see if the flashes against overmatched D-II corners could translate to slot/flex looks in Klint Kubiak's play-action offense.
Retrospective. It never took. Davidson spent most of his rookie year on Minnesota's practice squad without a regular-season snap, was released in 2022, and bounced through Buffalo's practice squad and offseason rosters without earning a helmet. Through 2025 he had yet to appear in an NFL regular-season game — a Round-5 D-II project that ultimately confirmed the pre-draft flag: the developmental gap from Central Missouri to NFL Sundays was simply too wide, and the frame never grew into the technique the tape demanded.