Senior Bowl Player Profile: Utah TE Dalton Kincaid

On February 4th, Mobile’s game will be held at Hancock-Whitney Stadium and over a hundred of the nation’s draft hopeful seniors will descend on the Gulf Coast for a week of practice in front of scouts from every NFL team before the Senior Bowl. Leading up to the game, we’ll take a look at a different prospect every day and talk about their background, their college career, where they could be drafted, and how the Senior Bowl could help them. Today we’ll take a look at Utah’s best weapon, TE Dalton Kincaid:

Background:

Dalton Kincaid is not your typical NFL prospect. A native of Las Vegas and Faith Lutheran High School, Kincaid was a basketball player who only played one year of high school football. His one season on the football field earned him all-conference and all-state honors, and he chose to pursue a walk-on opportunity at the University of San Diego. By his sophomore year at USD, he was one of the best tight ends in the FCS and would end up transferring to Utah.

College Career:

Kincaid’s first season playing major college football was essentially a wash, as Utah only played five games due to COVID (Kincaid appeared in all five but recorded just one catch). He became a major factor in the Utes offense in 2021, recording 36 receptions for 510 yards and eight touchdowns. His eight scores led the Pac-12 among tight ends and was good enough fifth in the nation overall among tight ends.

His final season at school was his best by far, finishing as a Pac-12 Champion who led his team in receptions (70), receiving yards (890), and receiving touchdowns (8 again). In the regular season victory over then-undefeated USC, he had an absolutely monster game in which he caught all SIXTEEN of his targets for 234 yards and a touchdown. Check out some of the best plays from his decorated career:

Current Draft Projection:

Kincaid is an extremely solid prospect who is expected to go in the early rounds of the draft. The only thing that stands in his way from being the first tight end off the board and possibly even sneaking into the first round is Michael Mayer of Notre Dame, who is seen as the consensus top prospect at the position and is all but guaranteed to go on the first night. After Mayer, it will be a battle for second, likely between Kincaid and fellow Senior Bowl invitee, Oregon State TE Luke Musgrave. If Kincaid does not go in round one, I would not be surprised to see him go fairly early on Day 2.

How the Senior Bowl Could Help Him:

Michael Mayer is going to be the first tight end off the board. There’s nothing Kincaid or anyone else can do about that. But Mayer, a junior, won’t be in Mobile, and Kincaid is going to have an opportunity to compete against some really good tight ends down here and make his case to be the second. In addition to Musgrave, the group features guys like Payne Durham of Purdue and Cameron Latu of Alabama. The tight end group is something worth keeping your eye on during practice, as there are multiple players who can shoot up draft boards by standing out from the rest of a talented pack.