Will
Kacmarek.
Will
Kacmarek.
Ohio State· 6'6"· 260 lb
"Long-armed in-line Y with four MAC seasons of receiving traction and a plus run-blocking base, projected as a starting attached tight end who wins with size, hands, and route detail more than burst."Pre-draft read
As an in-line Y, he aligns attached and on the wing. He leverages size, length, and hand demeanor as a run blocker, folding and kicking out with balance. He locks defensive ends with a wide, sticky punch, maintaining inside leverage. His route tree, built off play-action, includes seams, glance overs, drags, and stick-nod out-breakers. He uses late releases through contact to stack corners on scrapes and rapidly turns his head against zone to settle in soft windows.
He displays calm body control at the catch point, high-pointing contested throws and playing through hand-fighting, securing the ball with strong wrists. His straight-line speed is functional rather than elastic, meaning separation late in routes and after the catch relies more on physical stacking than sudden footwork.
Pro-style power run game operating from 12 and 13 personnel looks that feature play-action rollout passes.
Immediate Year 1 starter as an attached run-blocking Y with a ceiling to develop into a reliable move-the-chains pass-catcher in the short-to-intermediate game.
A spread-option or Air Raid offense that demands explosive athletes who can stretch the field vertically and win with speed after the catch.
Kacmarek projects as an ideal fit for an NFL offense that prioritizes blocking and play-action concepts, emphasizing his strengths as an attached Y and short-to-intermediate pass-catcher.
2026 Senior Highlights: TE Will Kacmarek
Official Ohio State-produced senior season reel showing his Buckeye usage as an attached Y and play-action seam target.
Kacmarek vs Michigan — Top 3 plays
Signature rivalry-game cutups highlighting his run-blocking finish and contested-catch tracking against a top defensive front.
Kacmarek runs the 20-yard shuttle
Pre-draft testing footage from an Ohio State pro-day style setting; useful for verifying his short-area movement on the shuttle.
He projects as a starting-caliber, in-line tight end, providing a team with a reliable run-blocker and a dependable pass-catcher focused on move-the-chains receptions. His combination of size, length, and hand strength makes him a valuable asset at the point of attack, while his contested-catch ability offers a safe target for quarterbacks, particularly on critical downs.
His collegiate career spanned four productive seasons at Ohio in a 12-personnel heavy MAC offense, where he twice cleared 400 receiving yards, followed by a senior year at Ohio State. At 6-6 and 260 pounds, he was recruited primarily for his blocking, but developed into a consistent receiving option, excelling on play-action seams and boundary out-breakers. His final season as a Buckeye solidified his role as a veteran attached Y in a pro-style system.
Evaluators noted his limitations in short-area burst and route tree breadth, common flags for larger tight ends. However, the consensus placed him firmly in the Day-2/early-Day-3 range, recognizing him as a plug-and-play starter with a significant run-blocking contribution and consistent hands. The Miami Dolphins drafted him at pick 87, addressing a long-standing need for an attached tight end in their offense.
- 01
Attached run blocker
Fires off with a wide, patient base, locks and steers 5-techs on down blocks, and finishes to the whistle when he gets his hands inside the frame.
- 02
Length and hand strength
Long arms and heavy mitts; extends into defenders on the edge and rips at the wrist to reset contested reps in-line.
- 03
Play-action seam target
Reliable off boot and dagger concepts; stacks and shields linebackers up the seam and adjusts his frame to throws behind him.
- 04
Contested-catch tracker
Calm eyes at the top of the route, high-points fades and back-shoulders through contact, and secures away from his body with strong wrists.
- 05
Scheme versatility
Comfortable in-line, on the wing, and detached in condensed sets due to four MAC seasons of 12-personnel usage and a Big Ten year of pro-style alignments.
- 01
Long-speed limitations
Straight-line speed is functional but not elastic; struggles to threaten safeties vertically without a scheme runway or play-action clearing route underneath.
- 02
Change-of-direction burst
Shuttle and short-area quickness testing back up film; angles rounded on out-breakers and he settles for stacking rather than shaking man coverage.
- 03
YAC ceiling
Wins with size after the catch but rarely creates missed tackles in space; production tops out at first-contact yardage in the flat and drags.
- 04
Route tree breadth
Collegiate usage kept him on a short menu of seams, drags, and out-breakers; unproven on option routes or true middle-of-field open beaters.
| Yr | Team | G | Rec | Yds | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Ohio | 13 | 20 | 264 | 0 |
| 2023 | Ohio | 13 | 22 | 243 | 2 |
| 2024 | Ohio State | 12 | 8 | 86 | 0 |
| 2025 | Ohio State | 14 | 15 | 168 | 2 |
| Career | — | 52 | 65 | 761 | 4 |
A dash means the figure is not published by a source we trust — never a zero we invented.
- Julian SayinQB29%
- Jeremiah SmithWR14%
- Carnell TateWR13%
#6 of 18 tracked contributors · Produced in line with his snap share · Offense explosiveness 1.15 (p8) · CFBD — usage x PPA per tracked player
Move-the-chains attached Y who wins the run-game reps and picks up efficient targets on play-action and dump-offs.
Bigger, blockier version of the seam-and-boundary target Miami has cycled through; Kacmarek offers more attached run value with a lower separation ceiling.
Big-frame in-line body who blocks his way onto the field but tops out at low-teens receptions if the offense never asks him to win outside 12 personnel.
Everything above is the pre-draft evaluation. This section is what actually happened — updated year over year.
PRE-DRAFT CONTEXT
Kacmarek arrived in Athens as a lightly-recruited blocking tight end from Ohio and left as a four-year MAC starter with steady receiving traction, twice clearing 400 yards for an offense that lived in 12 personnel. A senior transfer to Ohio State moved him into a Big Ten spotlight next to a Sayin-led passing attack, where he was asked to be the veteran attached Y — the body next to the tackle on runs, the boundary target on play-action, and the calm third-down chain-mover on drags and out-breakers. The pre-draft file was consistent across the circuit: real run-blocking value, long arms, dependable hands, and a testing profile that backed up middling burst on tape. Board consensus put him in the Day-2/early-Day-3 range as a plug-and-play starter at Y rather than an ascending mismatch piece.
NFL FIT — MIAMI
Miami used pick 87 on the attached tight end profile the outdoor version of this offense has been chasing for multiple cycles. The immediate role is the in-line Y in 12 personnel — sealing edges on outside-zone, chipping and releasing on play-action, and working the boundary seam and stick-nod route family that fits a rhythm passing game. His length and hand strength give the run scheme a real anchor on the edge; his contested-catch tracking gives the quarterback a safe boundary target on money downs. The ceiling is capped by long speed and route breadth, so year-one production will lean on move-the-chains catches rather than explosives, with the receiving snap share tied to how quickly he wins the in-line blocking job.
RETROSPECTIVE
The evaluation was never about upside — it was about whether a big-body Y with real MAC production and a Big Ten finishing year could hold up as an every-down attached tight end in the AFC East. His pre-draft grade priced that in, and the fit in Miami rewards the parts of his game that showed up most consistently on tape: blocking, hands, and situational route detail.