Tyler Warren, TE Penn State: 2025 NFL Draft Profile

Warren was a three-star recruit from Atlee High School in Mechanicsville, Va. in the class of 2020

Penn State’s Tyler Warren is an early candidate to be my top tight end in the 2025 NFL Draft. His athleticism and route running would make him the second-best tight end if he had declared for the 2024 NFL Draft.

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Tyler Warren, TE Penn State: 2025 NFL Draft Profile

Classification: Redshirt junior tight end from Mechanicsville, Va.

Background: Warren was a three-star recruit from Atlee High School in Mechanicsville, Va. in the class of 2020. He was the No. 554 recruit according to 247Sports and No. 548 for On3.com. Warren was an unranked three-star recruit for Rivals and an unranked four-star recruit for ESPN with an 80 grade out of 100. He originally committed to Virginia Tech before flipping to Penn State. Warren lettered for four years in high school, leading the program as a team captain three times. He earned All-Region honors three times and All-State honors twice. Warren was an All-Metro selection for the Touchdown Club of Richmond in 2017 and 2018. He was Atlee’s team MVP in 2017 and 2019. As a senior, Warren threw for 1,149 yards and 14 touchdowns and ran for 677 yards and ten touchdowns. He passed for 881 yards and ran for 553 yards as a junior. Warren produced 891 passing yards and 722 rushing yards as a sophomore and 733 passing yards as a freshman. He also lettered in basketball four times and baseball three times. Warren was a four-time All-Region selection in basketball and was an All-State baseball player. His father, Terry, played football at the University of Richmond from 1987-90, and his sister, Kelly, played softball at East Tennessee State. Warren’s aunt, Tracey George, played soccer at the University of Delaware. His grandfather, Steve Warren, played football at Wake Forest, and his grandmother, Julia Warren, played basketball at Carson-Newman University.

Injuries & Off-Field: Missed 2022 Northwestern game, limited in spring of 2023

Awards: 2021-22 Academic All-Big Ten, 2023 Third Team All-Big Ten (Coaches)

Pros: Special teams experience on the kick return, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal units, experience taking snaps in-line, H-back, and in the slot, room to add weight to his frame, athletic testing will be his friend, quick off the line, speed to threaten up the seam, separates from defenders on shallow crossers, smooth lower body and hips strengthen his route running, impressive use of leverage to manipulate the defender and open space, sells shoulder and hip fakes, stutter-go route, good examples of hands catches through contact, competitive in contested catch situations, several jump ball TDs in the red zone, enough burst to generate good YAC in the open field, steps out of low arm tackles by DBs, competitive blocker, doesn’t shy away from big contact as a blocker, counters long-arm moves with downward swipe, effective backside blocker on run plays, quality seals for C-gap run lanes, displaces slot defenders

Cons: Enters 2024 with one season of significant production, needs to fill out frame a bit, arm length is solid but not great, six drops in 2023, jumps for the ball when he doesn’t have to, examples of body catching, too willing to take on contact early in route, gets stuck on contact early in routes, lacks impressive long speed, some man coverage reps with little to no separation, feel for pockets in zone is still developing, limited examples of breaking tackles with power, likes to block with his shoulder instead of being square, inconsistent blocking power, doesn’t generate much vertical displacement against box defenders, struggles to maintain run blocks against larger defenders

Overview: Warren has special teams experience on the kick return, punt return, punt coverage, and field goal units and takes snap for Penn State in-line, in the slot, and at H-back. Considering his build and versatility, he might even be able to fill the modern role of a fullback in addition to playing tight end. Warren has a good frame but probably needs to fill out a little more. His arm length appears to be acceptable but not exceptional. Warren enters 2024 with one season of significant production but has the athletic tools to test off the charts during the summer. He is quick off the line and has the speed to threaten defenses up the seam. The redshirt junior pulls away from defenders on shallow crossers. His smooth lower body and hips make him a dangerous route runner. Additionally, he already understands how to use leverage to manipulate defenders and open space at a high level. Warren sells shoulder and hip fakes and gets defenders to bite on his stutter-go route. He was credited with six drops in 2023 but has plenty of examples of making natural hands catches through contact. Warren is a competitive pass catcher in contested situations as shown by his several 50-50 ball red zone touchdowns. There are some body catches on tape and instances when he jumps unnecessarily. As a route runner, the Virginia native is too willing to take on contact early in his route, which leads to him getting stuck. He doesn’t have high-end long speed on vertical routes, and there are plays where he struggles to separate from man coverage. His feel for pockets in zone coverage is still developing. Warren has the burst to create chunk plays after the catch in the open field. He steps out of arm tackles but doesn’t break many head-on tackle attempts with power. The All-Big Ten selection is a competitive blocker who is frequently asked to pull and be a lead blocker. He is a better run blocker and a smoother route runner than former teammate Theo Johnson, who will probably be a top 100 pick this spring. Warren doesn’t shy away from big contact as a blocker, but he likes to block with his shoulder instead of being square. His blocking power is inconsistent, and he doesn’t generate much vertical displacement against linebackers or edge rushers. He establishes a decent-sized C-gap in the run game. Warren struggles to maintain run blocks against larger defenders. In pass protection, he uses a basic downward swipe to break long-arm moves.

Overall, Warren is a terrific athlete who runs smooth, well-planned routes that create separation in a way many other tight ends can’t match. While exciting, his route running is still a little inconsistent, but there’s a strong foundation for Warren to become a higher-volume target and NFL-caliber starting tight end. He is a competitive blocker, but his blocking strength and technique are average.  

Role & Scheme Fit: True alignment versatile weapon in a gap or inside zone scheme

Round Projection: Second Round

Size: 6'6", 257 lbs. (Unofficial)

Submitted: 03-15-24