Payne Durham, TE Purdue: 2023 NFL Draft Profile

Durham was a three-star recruit from Peachtree Ridge High School in Suwanee, Ga. in the class of 2018

Purdue tight end Payne Durham impressed evaluators at the Senior Bowl. The redshirt senior is one of the best blocking tight ends in the 2023 NFL Draft and should hear his name called early on Day 3.

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Payne Durham, TE Purdue: 2023 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Redshirt senior tight end from Suwanee, Ga.

Background: Durham was a three-star recruit from Peachtree Ridge High School in Suwanee, Ga. in the class of 2018. He was the No. 1,763 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 1,722 for On3.com. Durham was an unranked three-star recruit for Rivals and an unranked three-star recruit for ESPN with a 71 grade out of 100. He committed to Purdue over offers from Duke and Missouri. As a high school senior, Durham caught 22 passes for 330 yards and five touchdowns earning All-County and All-Region honors. He played lacrosse prior to switching to football. Durham was born on June 15, 2000.

Injuries & Off-Field: N/A

Awards: 2019, 2020, & 2021 Academic All-Big Ten, 2020 Honorable Mention All-Big Ten, 2021 Honorable Mention All-Big Ten (Coaches), 2022 Second-Team All-Big Ten

Pros: More than 550 career special teams snaps split between the kick return, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal units, significant experience lining up in-line and in the slot, motor runs hot, battles until the end of the play as a blocker and pass catcher, ideal size for a tight end, long arms to extend his catch radius and establish blocks, ball tracking, high points the ball in contested catch situations, ball skills, comfortable working along the sideline, finds his way to space in zone coverages, stiff arm, rumbles for yards after contact, breaks arm tackles, contact balance, size and bulk to bully defensive backs, blocks in-line for the run and on the perimeter for screens, aggressive and willing to punish defenders as a blocker, seals defenders as a blocker, will drive defensive backs into the sideline, reliable clamp strength, strength to stall edge rushers in pass pro

Cons: Four drops and six penalties in the past two years, lacks ideal agility, lacks impressive top speed, labored mover, lacks quick twitch reaction speed, slow to accelerate off the line, won’t generate much natural separation, not a downfield threat, struggles to sink at the top of routes, not sudden or quick going into or out of his breaks, bumped off his route by linebackers, very limited YAC threat, caught from behind easily, aggressive on blocks but doesn’t always make full contact, struggles to mirror defenders as a blocker, sometimes defaults to blocking by throwing a shoulder, high pad level when blocking

Overview: Durham took official measurements at the NFL Combine. He’s 6055 and weighs 253 lbs. He has 9 6/8-inch hands and 33 3/8-inch arms. Durham had an 80 3/4-inch wingspan at the Senior Bowl. He played more than 550 career special teams snaps split between the kick return, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal units at Purdue. The Georgia native has significant experience lining up in-line and in the slot. His motor runs hot as he finishes plays as a blocker and works to get open in the passing game until the play ends. He has ideal size for a tight end with long arms to extend his catch radius and establish his blocks. Durham has excellent ball tracking skills. He high points the ball in contested catch situations and rarely drops it. The redshirt senior is comfortable working along the sideline and consistently finds the soft spot in zone coverage. He rumbles for yards after contact, throwing stiff arms and breaking arm tackles. Durham has good contact balance but lacks the elusiveness, speed, and high-end power to be a significant YAC threat. The former three-star recruit has the size and bulk to bully defensive backs as a blocker. He is aggressive and willing to punish defenders. He seals defenders in the run game and drives linebackers and defensive backs out of plays. Durham displays reliable clamp strength and enough power to stall edge rushers in pass protection. However, he doesn’t always make full contact on his blocks because he lunges or ducks his head into them. He struggles to mirror defenders and sometimes defaults to blocking by throwing a shoulder. Durham plays with a high pad level, which surrenders leverage. He lacks the ideal agility, top speed, and movement skills to dominate in the passing game. The Purdue product is a labored mover who doesn’t generate much natural separation. He struggles to sink at the top of routes and isn’t sudden or quick going into or out of his breaks. Linebackers bump Durham off his routes and can stick with him in man coverage.

Overall, Durham is a large, physical tight end who excels as an in-line blocker and contributes as a blocker on the perimeter. He offers limited physical upside when it comes to agility and speed, but he finds the soft spots in zone and works hard to provide his quarterback with an open target. Durham is a blocking tight end who could become a full-time starter depending on his ability to manage a heavy workload as a pass catcher.

Role & Scheme Fit: In-line Y TE2 with TE1 developmental upside

Round Projection: Early Fourth to Late Fourth

Player Comparison: N/A

Submitted: 03-15-23