The Iowa Hawkeyes have a strong track record at tight end, and with his 2025 NFL Draft scouting report, Luke Lachey is next in line. What does Lachey bring to the fold as a TE prospect, and where should he settle in amidst the ranks of the coming class?
Luke Lachey’s Draft Profile and Measurements
- Height: 6’6″
- Weight: 247 pounds
- Position: Tight End
- School: Iowa
- Current Year: Redshirt Senior
There are always debates over which school is QBU, RBU, WRU, or CBU. But there’s no debate possible as to which school is Tight End University. That school is Iowa, and it always has been.
The headliners are George Kittle, T.J. Hockenson, and Dallas Clark — but there are dozens of other competent TE selections dotted across the Hawkeyes’ NFL history, and it dates back all the way to the 1980s and 1990s when Marv Cook was a star.
Iowa is a conveyor belt at tight end, and Lachey is the next man up. The son of former NFL All-Pro offensive tackle Jim Lachey, the younger Lachey has the pro genes and the pedigree, and he could be set to produce in his final year.
Lachey already had fans heading into the 2023 season after accumulating 28 receptions for 298 yards and four touchdowns in 2022. And two games into the 2023 campaign, he was on pace for a career year, with 10 catches for 131 yards.
But in the third game, Lachey suffered a season-ending ankle injury, leaving Erick All as the only remaining half of Iowa’s venerable TE duo. Lachey could have declared regardless of his injury, but he returned to add to his legacy — and prove to teams that he still has it.
Lachey’s Scouting Report
Strengths
- Sports a tall, streamlined frame with good mass and decent functional length.
- Explosive size-adjusted athlete with gliding vertical mobility and seam-working speed.
- Has great coordination up the seam and can track and snare passes in stride.
- Can make instinctive, high-difficulty adjustments and contortions far down the field.
- Has the hand strength to pluck contested passes out of the air and secure quickly.
- Has the spatial IQ and bend to press vertically and then sear into open zones downfield.
- Shows good lateral agility and foot speed at breaks and can use head fakes to deceive.
- Can swim past chip blocks underneath, then use hands to pry past DBs on delayed outs.
- Actively uses leans and applied physicality to supplement angle adjustments on breaks.
- Can use his frame to box out defensive backs and control positioning at the point.
- Physical, resilient RAC threat with the leg churn to brawl through contact and extend.
- Possesses stellar overall play strength in all phases of the game, maximized by zeal.
- Has alignment versatility and can use efficient split releases to win leverage off the line.
- Fires off the line as a run blocker and can seal linebackers inside gaps with power.
- Can stack successive blocks with aggression, using force and leg drive to displace.
Weaknesses
- Despite good play strength, has room to add a bit more mass to his frame.
- Proportional length and wingspan, while decent, falls well short of the elite mark.
- Is more proficient as a vertical mover who lacks high-end foot speed and quickness.
- Hand strength falls below the elite mark, as evidenced by occasional contested drops.
- Lack of high-end foot speed and flexibility naturally constricts his route tree a bit.
- With taller frame, naturally lacks high-end hip sink and flexibility on curl breaks.
- Sometimes overshoots blocking angles in space and lacks high-end corrective ability.
- At times, struggles to manage his pad level and base alignment when sustaining blocks.
- Occasionally lurches and extends past his center of gravity on the attack, losing balance.
- Missed most of the 2023 season with a significant right ankle injury.
- Will be a 24-year-old rookie.
Current Draft Projection and Summary
Entering the 2025 NFL Draft cycle, Lachey grades out as a top-75 prospect, and one of the top TE talents in the class. Although he’ll be an older rookie, Lachey should still command mid-round capital, on account of his well-rounded skill set and blocking ability.
The biggest question for Lachey’s stock, arguably, lies in his injury history. He missed most of the 2023 season with a significant ankle injury. It’s unclear whether or not he’ll keep the vertical explosiveness and smooth mobility that made him so potent.
Nevertheless, if Lachey can show that he hasn’t lost a step in 2024, he has the profile of a future starting NFL tight end. He has the size, burst, and plowing RAC ability. He’s a nuanced route runner with terrific spatial IQ and applied physicality, and he’s a menace at the catch point with near-elite instincts and play strength.
Contrasting his explosiveness, Lachey isn’t quite the same athlete on the lateral plane. While smooth, he can be a bit lumbering and lacks high-end quickness. Without that quickness or elite flexibility, his route tree may always be a bit limited to vertical concepts.
All this being said, Lachey has an extremely appealing profile overall. As a versatile and physical TE presence, he can be a combined seam and red-zone threat with superb blocking utility, and a sturdy, dependable TE1 or a high-end TE2 for an NFL team.
