“How about a guy that I think middle of the draft, maybe late in the draft, could be a good steal at tight end?” As Joel Klatt teased, tossing a name into the NFL Draft convo that hasn’t been buzzing nearly enough. This year’s tight end class has largely been a two-man discussion—Tyler Warren and Colston Loveland soaking up most of the spotlight. But there’s another prospect flying under the radar, a guy who fits the mold of a modern NFL TE: big, athletic, and ready to make an impact. Hailing from Ohio, he was a dominant two-way player at Grandview Heights High School. And now, after showcasing his skill set in Indianapolis, he’s knocking on the door of an NFL opportunity—one that could be a perfect fit for a team looking to reload at the position.
The son of former NFL All-Pro Jim Lachey. That’s his junior, Luke Lachey. And while his last name carries weight, it’s his tape and testing numbers that are doing the talking. Klatt didn’t hold back in his assessment of the Iowa Hawkeyes product on The Joel Klatt Show. “How about Iowa’s Luke Lachey?” he asked. “Lachey is a really good player, folks, and he’s got these Iowa bloodlines as it relates to the tight end position. We’ve seen these guys time and time again go out there and succeed at the next level.” And he’s right—if there’s one program that knows how to develop NFL-ready tight ends, it’s Iowa. The Hawkeyes have sent names like George Kittle, T.J. Hockenson, and Noah Fant into the league, and Lachey could be next in line.
But what makes Luke Lachey such a compelling prospect isn’t just his pedigree—it’s how his game translates. “In a lot of ways, for exactly the same reason as I was talking about earlier with Caleb Johnson, their running back, he did at Iowa exactly what they’re going to ask him to do in the NFL,” Klatt said. “Good route runner; I like his ability at the catch point. Need him to stay healthy, but if he does, I think he can be a really good contributor at the next level and a solid NFL tight end.” That’s the key—availability.
Lachey suffered a leg injury early in his final season, but when he was on the field, he was a difference-maker. He understands leverage, attacks soft spots in coverage, and has the kind of hands that make quarterbacks trust him in traffic.
And then there’s the measurables. If you were looking for a late round 7 version of Travis Kelce, Lachey checks a lot of the boxes. At 6-foot-6 and 251 pounds, he showed impressive athleticism at the Combine, posting a 35-inch vertical, a 4.47-second 20-yard shuttle, and a 7.18-second 3-cone drill. Those numbers turned heads, and suddenly, his stock started creeping up.
What was once a name buried in the mid-to-late rounds now has a legitimate Day 2 upside. His performance at Iowa’s annual pro day on Monday only solidified that belief—teams walked away impressed, and the idea of Lachey becoming a draft-day steal became more of a certainty than a possibility.
And Kelce? He is rolling into his 13th season with the Chiefs, putting those retirement rumors to bed, saying, “I’m not leaving. The show goes on.” But, let’s be real, the twilight of his career could hit anytime, and the Kansas City Chiefs gotta start planning for life after No. 87. The Draft Countdown by Miranda Wilhelm even speculated that the Chiefs could pull the trigger on Lachey at the very end of the first round, taking him with the 32nd pick. That might seem ambitious, considering most projections have him going later, but then again, Kelce himself was a third-round pick once upon a time. Sometimes, the best tight ends aren’t the ones taken early—they’re the ones who find the right system.
He could be one of the best values in the entire draft. “If he stays healthy, he can be a really good contributor at the next level,” Klatt said. And if that next level includes catching passes from Patrick Mahomes? Then so be it.
Luke Lachey with a dash, a shuffle, and a statement at a time
Lachey finally ran the 40-yard dash—and he’s feeling pretty good about it. After opting out of the event at the NFL Combine, the Iowa tight end took to the turf in Iowa City and clocked a 4.77-second time. While that would have landed him in the middle third of combine participants, Lachey isn’t complaining.
“I’ll take it,” he said. “I was going for somewhere in the sevens.” Mission accomplished.
But the real headline? His 20-yard shuttle time at Hawkeyes Pro Day. Lachey turned in a 4.16-second effort, a major improvement from the 4.47 he posted at the combine. That’s the kind of quick-twitch movement NFL scouts love to see from a TE. While he didn’t put up eye-popping numbers, Lachey’s game tape already speaks volumes. He’s a big-bodied, reliable pass-catcher who can move, and with his steady improvements, he’s showing teams exactly what they want—growth, determination, and a competitive edge.
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