Brandon Pettigrew Scouting Report

Brandon Pettigrew's receiving numbers are nowhere near as prolific as some other tight ends in the pass happy Big 12, but Pettigrew might be the best overall tight end in the conference. As a freshman he started nine games and caught 11 passes for 128 yards and a touchdown. The following year he tallied 24 catches for 310 yards and four touchdowns. It was in 2007 when Pettigrew emerged as more than just a target in the red zone and caught 35 passes. His senior season should be just as productive as the 2007 campaign.

What Brandon Pettigrew has that some other tight ends in this class lack is the ability to block. Players like Missouri's Chase Coffman are better pass catchers and have a lot more experience in that department thanks to the Tigers' offense, but nobody has the full package like Pettigrew. At 6-6 and 260 pounds, Pettigrew is big, but he is also strong and that helps him out a lot as a blocker. He will also use that strength and his amazing body control to catch difficult passes with ease.

The higher profile pass catching tight ends and overall strength of this tight end class is keeping Pettigrew under the radar so far. That will change by the time the draft is upon us and Pettigrew should be one of the first off the board.

11/24 Update: Pettigrew has only played in seven games so far this season, but he has already matched the 35 receptions he had last year. Those receptions have gone for 383 yards, but the big problem is his lack of touchdowns. In his first three seasons with the Cowboys he caught a total of nine touchdown passes. Through 11 games in his senior year he has zero. For such a big target in the red zone that is very surprising and that could end up hurting his draft stock.

2/12 Update: Pettigrew used senior week to let everybody know that he is the most complete tight end in this class. His blocking still needs to improve, but he is better in that department than many of the other tight ends available who are also coming from schools that spread out their offense. At 6-6, he has the size, not to mention the will, to turn into a solid blocker and that will make him the first tight end to come off the board.

4/16 Update: Pettigrew did not have a great combine and that did drop his stock down a little bit. However, he is still the unquestioned top tight end in the draft. His average combine made it very clear that Buffalo would not take him with the 11th overall pick, but he should still be gone by the end of the first round and will almost certainly be the only tight end taken in the first round.