{"id":702241,"date":"2026-01-24T20:04:26","date_gmt":"2026-01-24T20:04:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/702241\/"},"modified":"2026-01-24T20:04:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-24T20:04:26","slug":"2026-shrine-bowl-3-tight-ends-3-different-skillsets-to-offer-chiefs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/702241\/","title":{"rendered":"2026 Shrine Bowl: 3 tight ends, 3 different skillsets to offer Chiefs"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Kansas City Chiefs<\/a> should be keeping tabs on the tight ends in the 2026 NFL Draft, regardless of the decision of future Hall of Famer Travis Kelce.<\/p>\n

The 2026 East-West Shrine Bowl is a good place to start. On Friday, members of the Arrowhead Pride staff took in practice and spoke with draft prospects afterwards.<\/p>\n

In general, the tight end position seems to be a strength among both teams\u2019 rosters.<\/p>\n

During the players\u2019 availability to the media, three tight ends from the West roster \u2014 each offering different strengths as a player \u2014 were kind enough to answer questions we had. We start with one of the most intriguing prospects at the showcase:<\/p>\n

\"BATON<\/a><\/p>\n

BATON ROUGE, LA – SEPTEMBER 20: Bauer Sharp #10 of the LSU Tigers in action against the Southeastern Louisiana Lions on September 20, 2025 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Gus Stark\/LSU\/University Images via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Sharp measured at just over 6 feet 4 inches tall and weighing 251 pounds at the Shrine Bowl weigh-in. He looks the part of a traditional, in-line tight end \u2014 but he was a quarterback in high school (like Kelce). He transitioned away from the signal-caller position early in his college career, but he acknowledged the benefits of having that perspective on pass plays.<\/p>\n

In Friday\u2019s practice, Sharp shows off the contested-catch ability as well.<\/p>\n

However, when watching Sharp play at LSU, his blocking stood out as sound and consistent. When asked about it, the tight end made it clear that it wasn\u2019t by accident.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve always had a physical part to my game, when I was quarterback, too,\u201d Sharp told me. \u201cObviously, it was just the technique for me when I first started playing that I had to improve, and that is what I\u2019ve done. I love it, I take pride in it, I\u2019ve actually fallen in love with blocking. I\u2019m just a nasty player like [George] Kittle\u2026 I take pride in that for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

The self-comparison to the San Francisco 49ers tight end sets the expectation for his NFL impact. It\u2019s not just his mindset; it\u2019s also his attention to detail that makes him so effective at locking up a defender.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s the main thing about tight end is hand placement,\u201d Sharp emphasized. \u201cI try to start low to high when trying to stick in their chest. That\u2019s tight end\u2026 every defensive lineman I go against in the league is going to be bigger than me. You have to win with technique, base and footwork.\u201d<\/p>\n

With practice snaps showing off athleticism as well, Sharp appears to be the total package; it wouldn\u2019t surprise me if he is one of the highest drafted players from the Shrine Bowl.<\/p>\n

\"Sep<\/a><\/p>\n

Sep 20, 2025; Norman, Oklahoma, USA; Oklahoma Sooners tight end Jaren Kanak (12) makes a catch past Auburn Tigers linebacker Elijah Melendez (9) during the second half at Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

A native of Hays, Kansas, Kanak is looking to prove himself as more of a \u201chybrid position\u201d than tight end at a height below 6 feet 2 inches. Last season at Oklahoma, he lined up in-line (265 snaps), flexed to the slot (222), out wide (39), and in the backfield (43) according to Pro Football Focus.<\/p>\n

In a play from Friday\u2019s practice, Kanak\u2019s first step gets the defender off-balance, and a notable burst the other way gives him the separation he needs to catch and run up the sideline. He also lined up in the backfield as an H-back during team period.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s just part of having a versatile tool belt and to be able to put defenses in binds,\u201d Kanak shared with me. \u201cLike \u2018how do we label this personnel group? Are they in 21? Are they in 12? Is it 11? Is this guy a receiver because he\u2019s running past our Nickels?\u2018\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt can create hiccups for a defense,\u201d Kanak said. \u201cAnd so being able to have that versatility in my tool belt is something that I\u2019m definitely looking forward to offering a team.\u201d<\/p>\n

If you thought of 49ers\u2019 fullback Kyle Juszczyk when Kanak explained his ideal role, you weren\u2019t alone.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat was a guy that I constantly am referring back to,\u201d Kanak shared. \u201cAnd a guy that I studied very heavily in the offseason, trying to model my game after him. Mostly in the run game, using his body position\u2026 he\u2019s honestly just the perfect example.\u201d<\/p>\n

3. Seydou Traore, Mississippi State<\/p>\n

\"STARKVILLE,<\/a><\/p>\n

STARKVILLE, MISSISSIPPI – NOVEMBER 28: Seydou Traore #8 of the Mississippi State Bulldogs carries the ball during the game against the Mississippi Rebels at Davis Wade Stadium on November 28, 2025 in Starkville, Mississippi. (Photo by Justin Ford\/Getty Images) Getty Images<\/p>\n

No prospect had a more intriguing background than Traore, who grew up in London, England, playing goalkeeper in soccer among different sports, but eventually wanted to play American football. He didn\u2019t even know what position; he just wanted to play.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had no idea,\u201d Traore answered when I asked about his original positional desire. \u201cI was pretty slim when I first started. So initially, when I first started, I was playing safety and wide receiver for my local club.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cA year on from that, I played wide receiver at the NFL academy. The following year, I\u2019m at Clearwater Academy International in Florida, and I\u2019m a receiver too, and then from there I got recruited by Arkansas State.\u201d<\/p>\n

In his transition to college football, Arkansas State immediately asked Traore to gain strength in order to play tight end rather than receiver. At the Shrine Bowl weigh-ins, he was over 6 feet 3 inches tall and weighed 233 pounds. He has an 80-inch wingspan \u2014 the longest measured of any tight end there.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel my strength is my versatility of what I\u2019m able to do,\u201d Traore declared. \u201cI can turn a five-yard catch into a 20-yard gain. I can also go deep and stretch the field, then in the run game, I just stick my face in there and get busy. I feel like I create problems, and I\u2019m a mismatch for defenses.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Saturday, Traore stood out to NFL Draft analyst Tony Pauline in practice<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Kansas City Chiefs should be keeping tabs on the tight ends in the 2026 NFL Draft, regardless…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":702242,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2063],"tags":[346,7,118,110,80177,923,2438,2437,6],"class_list":{"0":"post-702241","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-kansas-city-chiefs","8":"tag-chiefs","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-kansas-city","11":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs","12":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs-analysis","13":"tag-kansas-city-chiefs-draft","14":"tag-kansascity","15":"tag-kansascitychiefs","16":"tag-nfl"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115951874803750822","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/702241","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=702241"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/702241\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/702242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=702241"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=702241"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=702241"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}