The Cincinnati Bengals made bold decisions on the first two days of the NFL Draft, and that mindset continues on Day 3 with the selection of Iowa tight end, and Cincinnati native, Erick All with the 115th overall pick.
All comes from a program that consistently produces quality tight ends in the NFL and has the size, speed, and production of a future starter. When he's on the field, All looks every bit of the part.
It's staying on the field that he struggles with, and it's why he lasted until the fourth round.
Bengals go for it All with Erick All
All spent two years as a reserve for Michigan before emerging as a starter in 2021, which ended up being the most productive season of his college career.
After just two games into the 2022 season, All suffered a spinal injury that required major "life-changing" surgery according to The Athletic's Dane Brugler. Those would be the last two games All played for the Maize and Blue.
In 2023, All transferred to Iowa in hopes of becoming the next great Hawkeye at the position, and it was going great through seven games. He averaged 2.62 yards per route run, which ranked second among draft eligible tight ends.
Then the injury bug struck hard again as a torn ACL ended his season and college career altogether.
All's recovery prevented him from performing athleticism testing over the past two months, but his on-field athleticism is extremely evident. All is ranked as the 122nd overall prospect, and the fifth overall tight end, in this draft class by A to Z Sports NFL Draft analyst James Foster. Here are his top attributes:
- Crisp & efficient footwork in-out of breaks
- Breaks ankles on option routes
- Smooth strider with good top speed
- Nuanced route runner that adjusts tempo & sets up breaks
- Flashed contact balance & elusiveness after the catch
All is also an aggressive blocker and was a team captain at Michigan. He'll need to provide value as an all-around player in order to stand out in a crowded tight end room in Cincinnati.
Mike Gesicki and Drew Sample are entrenched as the top two on the depth chart, and Tanner Hudson is a solid reserve behind Gesicki as the move option. All having experience and usefulness as an inline option makes him an ideal backup behind Sample for 2024, and with Gesicki and Hudson only in town for one year, there's room for him to ascend in 2025 and beyond.
All met with the Bengals at least twice during the pre-draft process, but he's very familiar with the area. His family moved from Indiana to Fairfield, OH when he was a child and stayed 25 miles north of downtown Cincinnati until going to college. He was also high school teammates with current Bengals offensive lineman Jackson Carman.
Bringing All home to develop into the do-it-all tight end of the future makes perfect sense, and the fourth round is about the right time to take this swing.
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