Jaguars Projected to Land Pitt TE

The NFL Draft is still more than a month away, but Gavin Bartholomew continues to be projected as a selection within the seven rounds as opposed to becoming an undrafted free agent.

In a recent seven-round NFL Mock Draft from The College Football Network, Bartholomew was penciled-in to the Jacksonville Jaguars with the 252nd selection in the seventh round.

The former three-star recruit from Blue Mountain High School in Pennsylvania immediately made an impact for the Panthers. Below are his statistics beginning in his freshman season in 2021. 

• 2021: 27 receptions, 317 yards, 4 touchdowns
• 2022: 21 receptions, 283 yards, 2 touchdowns
• 2023: 18 receptions, 326 yards, 1 touchdown
• 2024: 38 receptions, 322 yards, 4 touchdowns

Bartholomew earned an All-ACC Honorable Mention nod in 2023.

His versatility - which was displayed particularly well in Kade Bell’s offense last year - as an in-line, in H-Back roles, out of the slot, split out wide, and other positions stands out. That represents important versatility. 

Bartholomew is considered a quality blocker, and he’s certainly built for it. He checked in at 6-foot-5 and 246 pounds at the NFL combine. The Pennsylvania native also proved impressive baseline speed with a 40-yard dash at 4.70 seconds.

According to NFL Draft rankings per position from CBS Sports, Bartholomew rates No. 15 at tight end behind Jackson Hawes of Georgia Tech (#14) and Ben Yurosek (#13) while Colston Loveland of Michigan (#1) and Tyler Warren out of Penn State (#2) lead the position.

This latest mock pick is in line with a pair of projected drafts from The Athletic published on January 10 via Mike Fefabo, and on Zac Jackson on February 14. The former had Bartholomew selected in the seventh round by the Pittsburgh Steelers while the latter pegged the Pitt tight end to the Cleveland Browns in the sixth round.