With so much attention being paid to the game today, everything seems to be under scrutiny. Brilliant players and seasons can be reduced to the memories that one or two plays produce. Such is the case with Mark Andrews’ most recent game on the Baltimore Ravens‘ roster, a gut-wrenching loss vs. the Buffalo Bills during the AFC’s Divisional Round.
There isn’t a Baltimore citizen or member of the Ravens fan base who doesn’t remember Andrews’ fumble or his drop during the final two-point attempt. We apologize for bringing that up and any painful memories it may evoke. The point is this.
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No one feels worse about those mistakes than Andrews. He shouldn’t be judged solely on a bad game. His resume has proven that.
Dec 25, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely (80) celebrates tight end Mark Andrews (89) touchdown reception against the Houston Texans in the second half at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images
Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely are ranked among the NFL’s top tight ends by NFL executives.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler has offered an interesting series to help kick off the NFL summer. He has been polling coaches, scouts, and front office personnel and using the information gathered to rank the top ten players at every position.
Recently, the topic shifted to tight ends. Two Ravens, Andrews and Isaiah Likely, cracked the list at six and eight, respectively.
“Elite instincts. A QB’s best friend. (He) Dominates the middle of the field (and) understands zones and man-to-man better than anyone outside of Kelce. Baltimore is a totally different team without him. Bummer about the playoff game thing because this guy is a total G.”
That was an unnamed NFL coordinator’s take on Andrews. A veteran head coach said the following about Mr. Likely.
“He’s a matchup guy. Very loose… (He) can separate… Big catch radius… Pretty diverse route tree…”
Andrews and Likely sandwich T.J. Hockenson on this ranking. Both land behind Brock Bowers, George Kittle, Sam LaPorta, Trey McBride, and Travis Kelce. They land ahead of Dallas Goedert and David Njoku.
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One could make the argument that, based on the criteria, fellow Raven Charlie Kolar also could have landed in the top ten. He won’t catch many passes, not in this offense, but he provides value in so many other ways.
This is the NFL’s best trio at the position. All are in contract seasons. Decisions need to be made, but until then, Lamar has a wealth of talent at his disposal. No one needs scouts or front office personnel to tell them that.
This article originally appeared on Ravens Wire: Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely land in the top 10 of NFL TE rankings