2020 NFL Draft: Josiah Deguara is worth monitoring
By Dan Matney
Cincinnati tight end Josiah Deguara is off to a strong start this season and he’s making a name for himself in a talented 2020 NFL Draft position group.
The Bearcats are off to a 4-1 start and a 24th national ranking, and Deguara has played a crucial role in their hot start. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound redshirt senior has hauled in 17 catches for 247 yards and three touchdowns.
That stat line might seem modest, but it’s good for a college tight end up to this point. His production tops that of Jared Pinkney and Brycen Hopkins, two players that have garnered early-round talk this season. He doesn’t have quite the upside of those two, but he has intriguing traits and has a NFL future.
Deguara possesses good quickness coming off the snap and he can produce both in-line, from the slot and split out wide. He has the speed to create mismatches against linebackers and the ability to create separation coming out of his breaks.
He doesn’t run the full route tree (mostly flat outs, slants, corners) but he finds a lot of success on posts. Deguara has the fluidity to further develop his route running savvy, but he already displays the awareness to reroute vertical when he spots an opening in the back-end.
Where he struggles is as a blocker, and he will need to develop in this area before he can be relied upon at the next level. Deguara flashes adequate ability and he’s an effective chipper and down-blocker, but his initial punch is wide and he struggles to consistently win one-on-one.
He very well could be a Mackey Award finalist, but it’s tough to project exactly where Deguara fits into this loaded senior tight end NFL draft class.
It would be great to see Deguara get a chance to compete during Senior Bowl week, and Director Jim Nagy is already thinking outside of the box to find a way to get him into the game.
Posted clip of a Ben Watson-type hustle play by Cincy TE Josiah Deguara (@JosiahD5) earlier this fall and there’s more to like about him than sheer effort. Good athlete, route runner, and contested catch ability. He could play FB in the @seniorbowl. #TheDraftStartsInMOBILE pic.twitter.com/xBAwEtx1lU
— Jim Nagy (@JimNagy_SB) October 5, 2019
The fullback position is (sadly) dying in today’s NFL, but the few left offer versatility in both the passing game and as lead blockers.
While Deguara’s blocking is still coming along, it will be interesting to see if he can make that transition at the next level.
He’s a talented prospect that is certainly worth watching, and he looks to keep things rolling this weekend against Houston.