Kalen DeBoer encouraged by health of Alabama football’s tight end room

Kalen DeBoer is encouraged about the state of Alabama football’s tight end room and the trajectory it’s headed in heading into the 2025 season.

This encouragement comes after the Tide were bit by the injury bug at the tight end position this spring, causing Danny Lewis, Josh Cuevas, and Marshall Pritchett all to be sidelined. DeBoer and company have since overcome this issue with proper rest and recovery over the summer as the Crimson Tide opened its doors to kick off fall camp on Wednesday.

These precautionary measures taken are why the second-year Alabama head coach feels the Tide’s tight end group is in a “good spot” and will continue to improve ahead of this season.

“It will continue to get better and better,” DeBoer said. “It’s in a good spot. This was going to be how it was when the injuries happened. (Josh) Cuevas is gonna continue to add volume. I think that’s the best word to use, because he’s practicing. Danny Lewis, the same thing. They’re adding volume and the number of reps from start to finish. It’s not just the team, it’s not just the individual. But they’ve had a really good summer, and their progress is as we had hoped, as we expected. And the rest of the guys, Marshall (Pritchett), I know, didn’t practice at the end of the spring with what he had. A couple of other guys, too, they’re all full-go. We got more tight ends out there now, all of a sudden, than we could have ever imagined. They’re all competing, working together and doing a good job.”

Alabama football now has the services of all its tight ends after completing the first of several fall camp practices on Wednesday. The hope is now that this particular position group will continue to take steps in the right direction in terms of health and availability as the 2025 season inches closer.