The second-year player out of Stanford makes an impression on the league following his rookie campaign
The year of “Doot” may be upon us. Buffalo Bills second year tight end Dalton Kincaid has been the subject of many optimistic predictions during the 2024 NFL offseason (and also one deflating national outlook). With the departure of previous top wide receiver Stefon Diggs, who was traded to the Houston Texas, the Utah product has been highlighted as a potential star in the making.
But in a survey conducted by ESPN that collected responses from league executives, coaches, and scouts, the consensus is that Kincaid is already an upper-tier player at his position.
Jeremy Fowler released the results of that survey that focused specifically on tight ends, giving a top-10 list and some honorable mentions based on the responses. In it, Dalton Kincaid ranked eighth:
8. Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills
Highest ranking: 2 | Lowest ranking: Out of top 10
Age: 24 | Last year’s ranking: N/A
Kincaid drew comparisons to Travis Kelce when he came out of Utah in 2023 due to his smooth route running.
Buffalo wouldn’t mind quarterback Josh Allen and Kincaid stealing some Mahomes-to-Kelce magic as a potent quarterback-tight end duo.
“He’s super natural as a mover, super instinctive, great hands,” a high-ranking NFL personnel man said. “Not sure he’s as explosive after the catch as some of the others.”
Along with his 73 receptions for 673 yards as a rookie, Kincaid ranked atop this group in average yards from the nearest defender at pass arrival when targeted, per NFL Next Gen Stats.
While he doesn’t possess high-end speed, Kincaid’s 4.71-second 40-yard dash time was adequate for his position, and multiple evaluators believe he plays faster than that.
With the departure of Diggs and also Gabe Davis leaving in free agency to join the Jacksonville Jaguars, there are a whopping 241 targets from 2023 up for grabs across Buffalo’s pass catchers this year. The natural assumption is that free-agent arrivals Curtis Samuel and Mack Hollins will absorb a chunk of those vacated targets, with rookie second-round pick Keon Coleman and post-draft addition Marquez Valdes-Scantling likely set to take on some as well. But alongside a returning Khalil Shakir, the amount of target share potentially eaten up by Dalton Kincaid (with a more prominent role in the passing game) remains a major story line amongst Bills Mafia this summer.
Overall, ESPN’s above-quoted “high-ranking NFL personnel man” had a fair assessment of Kincaid’s skill set. The Bills’ second-most-targeted player as a rookie, he has consistently been referred to as a player who simply looks like a natural catcher of the football. Whether that’s running routes, plucking the football out of the air, or naturally transitioning from receiver to runner, Kincaid certainly looked the part enough to impress some NFL decision makers. Now we wait for an encore.
...and that’s the way the cookie crumbles. I’m Bruce Nolan with Buffalo Rumblings. You can find me on Twitter and Instagram @BruceExclusive and look for new episodes of “The Bruce Exclusive” every Thursday on the Rumblings Cast Network!