Detroit Lions UDFA Tight End Compared to Dan Campbell

Tennessee Volunteers tight end Miles Kitselman (87) runs the ball against the Arkansas Razorbacks Randy Sartin-Imagn Images

Detroit Lions UDFA Tight End Compared to Dan Campbell

Originally posted on Detroit Lions on SI
By John Maakaron | Last updated May 4, 2026 12:21 PM ET

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The Detroit Lions surprised some by choosing not to target a tight end with one of their seven overall picks in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Following the conclusion of the three-day marquee NFL event, the team was able to ink Tennessee Volunteers tight end Miles Kitselman to the roster as undrafted free agent.

Recently, The Athletic compiled a list of one undrafted free agent to watch on each NFL roster.

For Detroit, the 23-year-old tight end was listed as a player to watch and was also compared to his new head coach.

As NFL draft analyst Nick Baumgardner explained, "My best NFL comp for Kitselman might actually be Lions head coach Dan Campbell. Kitselman isn’t the athlete Campbell was, but the 6-foot-5, 251-pounder is a former high school offensive lineman who is extremely serious about run blocking. He gets everything out of his body, and there’s no way the Lions won’t like him."

The 6-foot-5, 251-pound tight end started his collegiate career at Alabama, but transferred to Tennessee back in 2024.

In two seasons playing for the SEC squad, he secured 48 receptions for 554 yards and six touchdowns. In a handful of mock drafts, he was projected as a late-round prospect, but his testing was not all that great at the scouting combine.

“I’m a dual-threat guy,” Kitselman said during his media session with reporters in Indianapolis. “Obviously, I take a lot of pride in the run game. And a lot of the pass games kind of follows after that, but I’m excited to get out on the field and show you guys that I can move around for a big guy.”

In his position group, Kitselman was last in the 40-yard dash (4.90 seconds), the broad jump (9 feet, 8 inches) and the 10-yard split (1.71 seconds).

Kitselman is a player with solid size and many scouts noticed his play speed in space and route-running abilities.

At the next level, he will need to improve his ability to separate underneath and limit the drops, which were in issue in his final collegiate season.

Currently, Detroit also features Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright, Tyler Conklin, Zach Horton and Thomas Gordon on the depth chart at the tight end position.

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This article first appeared on Detroit Lions on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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