Jacob Breeland 2020 NFL Draft Profile

Jacob Breeland is a redshirt senior out of Oregon. Breeland played quarterback in high school in addition to tight end and ultimately chose to stick with the latter. He was fairly productive in Oregon’s offense after sitting out his true freshman year with a redshirt. Breeland has the hands to make it as a pass-catching tight end in the NFL but is going to need to work on his blocking skills. Furthermore, Breeland did not participate in the workout portion of the combine. Unfortunately, he tore his ACL midway through October of last year.

After Breeland’s initial red-shirt season, he saw limited action in his first year on the field. He saw six receptions for 123 yards, which was good for 20.5 yards per catch. For his sophomore campaign, Breeland made a jump in production. In 11 games, he caught 18 passes for 320 yards and five touchdowns. He followed that up with another good season his junior year. In 10 games, Breeland hauled in 24 passes for 377 yards and two touchdowns in his penultimate season. Unfortunately, his senior season was cut short due to the ACL tear. However, in just six games it was Breeland’s most productive year in college. He caught 26 passes for 405 yards and six touchdowns. Without the injury, Breeland was on his way to over 800 receiving yards and likely ten plus scores.

Strengths

Prototypical size for an NFL tight end at 6’5” and 250 pounds;

He’s a skilled pass catcher, meeting the catch point with his hands ready;

Can be a match-up nightmare with the ability to line up in multiple spots and crisp route running;

Physical with the ball in his hands and will employ stiff arms to add yards after catch;

Solid yards per reception, averaging 16.6 over his college career

Weaknesses

Blocking technique is lacking despite experience at h-back and other places on the line;

Lower body strength isn’t up to par, which could be exacerbated by ACL tear;

Offensive scheme at Oregon benefited him greatly;

Will have a hard time getting open against man coverage;

Inability to separate from blocks in the middle of the field

NFL Comparison: Jacob Hollister

Projection: Fifth round to undrafted free agent

Bottom Line on Jacob Breeland

The projections for Breeland’s potential in the NFL is underwhelming to say the least. While he’s got great hands, speed, and motivation; he’s frequently knocked for his lower body strength, blocking acumen, and explosiveness. Luckily for Breeland, the 2020 draft class for tight ends is not the greatest.

Solak from the Draft Network went so far as to say that Breeland should be a wide receiver in the NFL. If anything, he can take solace in the fact that his strengths should be good enough for a team to work with him. If drafted as a tight end, he will need development in the blocking game. Improving that aspect of his game would make Breeland a more complete player. Even though he wasn’t able to go through the battery of physical tests at the combine, Breeland is on track to be ready for training camp assuming they happen on schedule this year.