Kansas City Chiefs

Fixing the Chiefs: I like… JAKE BUTT! And I can not lie

LadnerMorse January 17, 2017 No Comments

Fixing the Chiefs:

I like… JAKE BUTT!

And I can not lie

Laddie Morse

Tight End Jake Butt from Michigan is damaged goods. He suffered an ACL injury in the Orange Bowl against Florida State and consequently won’t be available to teams as the combine and team workouts take place which will push his value even lower but Mr. Butt can be a great value if the Chiefs decide to take him with a 3rd round compensatory pick or possibly even a 4th round pick. That’s how far Jake Butt has fallen because he started out the year with a second round grade by major services. Now, CBS Sports has him ranked 117th overall and DraftTek has Butt falling from the 50th ranked prospect overall to… #162.

So, the first question is, how did his surgery go. Butt answers that one himself.

 

 

 

Checking out Jake Butt’s twitter account shows he has the right attitude about the issue of risking bodily injury while playing in a Bowl game too.

 

 

You would think that Butt would feel differently about that issue once he was injured but he wrote that comment AFTER the game.

 

On the field, Jake Butt reminds me of Jason Witten-lite… or at least I think that could be his upside. I don’t know that he will ever match Travis Kelce’s athleticism but when healthy he would offer an upgrade over any other TE the Chiefs have on their roster. At 6-foot-5 and 250 pounds (other sites have him at 6-foot-6 and 240). From mgblue.com here is a list of Jake Butt’s 2016 accomplishments:

  • John Mackey Award Winner
  • Senior CLASS Award Finalist
  • AFCA All-America First Team
  • Sports Illustrated All-America First Team
  • Walter Camp All-America First Team
  • Associated Press All-America Second Team
  • Sporting News All-America Second Team
  • Big Ten’s Kwalick-Clark Tight End of the Year
  • All-Big Ten First Team (coaches and media)
  • Pro Football Focus College Big Ten Team of the Week honoree (vs. Colorado and Illinois)
  • Big Ten Sportsmanship Award recipient
  • Voted co-captain

 

Those last two should interest John Dorsey and Andy Reid. He’s just the kind of guy they’re attracted to. Plus, TE Travis Kelce could use some of his “good sportsmanship” influence. In the past two seasons, Butt has made 97 catches for 1,200 yards in 26 games and has experience in four seasons. He has been underutilized in the Michigan system but just as Jim Harbaugh did at Stanford — where he tutored a number of TEs to go on to the Pros in Coby Fleener, Austin Hooper, and Zach Ertz — Butts looks like he’s a great fit for the Pro style offenses as well, which the league is turning more and more to. Here’s what WalterFootball.com had to say about Butt,

 

“In the passing-driven NFL, teams are looking for tight ends who can be dangerous receivers, and Butt illustrated that ability last season. The senior is a real weapon in the passing game. He runs excellent routes and has the quickness to get downfield quickly. Butt’s hands are reliable and he does an excellent job of securing the football. Butt does a very good job of making leaping contested catches and hanging onto the football while getting hit in the air. Routinely, he uses his size, hands, and leaping ability to make receptions over safeties. He is just too big for them to cover him.”

 

I’d like to emphasize what is being said about Butt’s ability to go in the air and fight for the football and come down with it. Here’s one of my favorite highlight videos of Jake Butt.

 

 

 

I consider Jake Butt a high value because he can be had at a much lower round than normal. Some will not like the idea of the Chiefs investing a draft pick in a broken player but remember that Travis Kelce missed most all of his first year and not only came back but has become one of the best in the league. Plus, the Chiefs should have 9 picks, maybe 10, in this draft and so they might have a pick they wouldn’t mind investing in a fixer-upper like Butt. I’m not one to judge players based solely on “highlight” reels so here’s a link to game tape on Jake Butt from DraftBreakDown. This is their game vs. Northwestern in 2015 which they won 38-0 but it shows Butt at work as a blocker and in routes.

 

DRAFT BREAKDOWN: 2015 Michigan vs. Northwestern

 

 

The moment Jake Butts is healthy and steps on the field for the Kansas City Chiefs, he immediately would become their second best tight end. That would take a lot of pressure off of Travis Kelce and give Andy Reid the dual threat at TE that he’s always coveted.

.