Arizona Tight End Improvement Assessments in Fall Camp

Burnett has been with the Wildcats for three years now and has made his return after a brief stint in the transfer portal during the spring.

At 6-foot-6, 248 pounds, Burnett possesses the size and reach to be the top tight end in a spread system. He proved to be the leading pass catcher last year with 18 receptions, 217 yards and a touchdown.

He is regarded by Miller as one of the tight ends with the most natural pass catching skills and has dipslayed that so far in practice by the reps he has had.

Burnett has demonstrated tremendous growth in his ability to run block during fall camp. His Physicality as a whole have greatly improved in the short time he has been back.

Should he stay healthy, he could show off more of those skills throughout the season. For now, he will have to keep battling for a starting role amongst the other tight ends.

"What I've been most pleased with, with his opportunities, was his mentality and really enhancing that and making sure he's doing everything as violent as he can," Miller said. "He's going to block violently, he's going to run violently. He's going to drop his hips violently. He's going to attack the ball violently. There is nothing that he's going to do that is passive."

Sam Olson

Olson has displayed a much different set of skills throughout fall training camp that he has learned over the offseason and spring practice.

The San Jose State transfer brought experience and consistency as a pass catcher and run blocker to the Wildcats room. Olson appeared in 11 games and started in 10 of them, amassing 13 receptions for 196 yards and two touchdowns

Although Olson does not possess the physical attributes that Burnett has, he makes up for it by being the most consistent and experienced. Miller commented on Olson's work ethic by calling him "The most meticulous" of the group.

Olson has clearly worked on his route running, showing a deliberate approach and high spatial awareness, which allows him to play faster than what his frame suggests.

Olson's improvements as a receiver have really shown in practice. His work in that range, paired with his blocking ability, only makes him a more complete tight end.

 "He's very intentional with what he's doing," Miller said. "He understands his limitations as far as his size and his weight, and that he's not going to be the tallest and/or biggest in the room. But with his intentionality, he's done a great job of understanding the leverage that he can get and how to play longer within his frame... He's a high football IQ guy, which allows him to play faster than what he really is and naturally navigate space and holes to find himself to be open more times than not."

Tyler Powell

Powell was a part of the 2022 recruiting class along with Burnett. At 6-foot-7, 248 pounds, Powell has the size and frame of a true tight end that has tremendous upside when it comes to pass catching and run blocking.

Powell has shown a ton of growth in polishing his route running and technique in blocking and catching passes. Powell will be a big contributor during the season if he keeps improving on his skills.

His improvements as a pass catcher have also been evident during 11-on-11 scrimmages over two weeks.

Powell's route running has become a lot cleaner during fall training camp. His ability to use his size to his advantage when coming out of routes will come in handy on Saturdays.

"He's been awesome, he's got the natural size and ability of what you want," Miller said. "He's got great vertical speed, and now getting him tools to understand how to reduce his shoulder, to get out of a speed cut a little bit better, or give him a different break, a 5-10-5 break to allow him to transition a little bit better down stem...I know he catches over 150 balls a day on the judge machine to try to make sure that he's improving in that skill set. And then, obviously, as big as he is, he's done a great job of becoming a much higher contributor in the running game as well."

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