Who is Ryan Griffin?

Ryan McDowell Posted On March 11, 2014

griffin

Houston Texans tight end Ryan Griffin was recently quoted as saying, “I’m ready to get the season started!”

Now we know why.

Just who is Ryan Griffin? Many of you may be asking yourself that question, but if early indications are correct, he’s the next starting tight end for the Houston Texans, one of the most tight end friendly offenses in the NFL.

First though, let’s back up and learn a bit more about the relatively unknown player entering his second season. Griffin played four seasons for the University of Connecticut, amassing exactly 1,500 receiving yards and hauling in ten touchdowns. Ironically, Griffin was compared to his future teammate Garrett Graham as he went through the pre-draft process. The Texans selected Griffin late in the sixth round of the 2013 NFL draft. This pick garnered little attention in the dynasty football world as the Texans tight end depth chart looked to be set with veteran Owen Daniels and the promising Graham next in line. That is just how things played out early in the 2013 season as Griffin failed to record a reception until week six, which marked the team’s first game without their starter Daniels, who was lost for the season due to injury. Even after grabbing two passes that week against the Rams, Griffin would only record three more receptions over the next two months as Graham had taken over as the team’s starter and the offense was struggling overall. Finally, Graham himself went down with an injury and missed the season’s final three weeks. Griffin started those final three games and averaged over four receptions and around sixty yards per game, all while playing with lame duck quarterbacks.

Let’s fast forward to March 11^th, the kickoff of the 2014 NFL calendar year and the beginning of free agency. Along with the many signings that will take place during this period, there will be nearly as many teams cutting veteran players either in an effort to get under the salary cap, or simply due to the contract implications of specific players. In this case, that player is the former starting tight end for Houston in the form of Owen Daniels. The Texans parted way with Daniels, who manned their tight end position for his entire eight-year career. Daniels was due $4.5 million in 2014 and the team is up against the salary cap, so this became a relatively easy decision. Next is Graham, who is an unrestricted free agent himself and has already been linked to the Green Bay Packers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Again, with the Texans being limited financially, it would be a surprise if they chose to reward Graham with a new contract, especially considering he will be turning twenty-eight years old before the 2014 season begins and is not a proven commodity. That leaves, of course, Griffin.

Griffin is a big target at 6’6” and around 260 pounds who possesses solid speed. He is an above average blocker and provides the Texans with versatility at the position. He’s so similar to Daniels, it becomes clear to me Houston saw this situation playing out just this way, minus the season ending injury to their former starter. He impressed the team enough during the 2013 preseason that he made the team, even with Daniels and Graham already in place.

With Griffin seemingly in place as the starter for the 2014 Texans, what can we expect as far as production? The Texans have always been an offense that heavily featured their tight end, to the point that Daniels is the franchise’s second leading all-time receiver, behind Andre Johnson. Of course, things could be different under new head coach Bill O’Brien. O’Brien has a wealth of coaching experience, all focused on the offensive side of the ball, which includes a long stint in New England before he left to take over at his alma mater Penn State. We all know how the Patriots have made use of the tight end position over the past few seasons. The Texans will not employ an offensive coordinator, as O’Brien will man the play calling in his first season as an NFL Head Coach.

It’s not yet clear who will be playing quarterback for the team, although longtime starter Matt Schaub will almost certainly not be with the team. There were rumors the team would pursue veteran Matt Cassel, but he instead chose to re-sign with the Minnesota Vikings. That likely leaves the Texans selecting a rookie quarterback with the top overall draft pick and whomever they choose could be the day one starter. The current options are thought to be Louisville’s Teddy Bridgewater, former Heisman winner Johnny Manziel or Blake Bortles of Central Florida. No matter who is throwing the ball, it is certain he will be surrounded with some talented players, namely running back Arian Foster and a pair of wide receivers in Johnson and DeAndre Hopkins. That leaves Griffin as the third option, at best, in the passing game. The Texans have been criticized for years as they failed to add a second quality wide receiver to play alongside Johnson. Instead, it was Daniels who served as the Texans’ plan B to Johnson and he benefitted from that role. With the team seemingly finally finding a quality partner in Hopkins, it’s only realistic to lower our expectations from the tight end position, regardless of who is lining up there. After all, Daniels has finished as a TE1 (among the top twelve tight ends) on three occasions in his career, with another three seasons of high-end TE2.

Each year, there are young tight ends who break out and quickly gain value. In 2013, those breakouts were punctuated by the Broncos Julius Thomas and Jordan Cameron of the Browns. Both players were productive early in the season, which coincided with struggles from some of the more established tight ends, including Daniels and Jason Witten. So, is there room for a Ryan Griffin breakout in 2014? Of course! Witten is not getting any younger and his dynasty value has really fallen off. Outside of the top five tight ends, the position is wide open and early success from Griffin could easily boost him into the TE1 range. Griffin has been well off the radar in most dynasty leagues prior to Daniels’ release. Although he has been selected in most of our DLF mock drafts from January through March, he has been well down the boards, usually available well into the eighteenth round. Here’s a look at his ADP through the off-season’s first three months.

Name	January	February	March
Ryan Griffin	223	210	237

Normally, I would not recommend going out and acquiring players based on the news and impact felt during the early free agency period, but I think Griffin’s price tag will remain very reasonable and he was so under the radar prior to this move that he should be somewhat easy to acquire. In fact, there’s a good chance he’s on your league’s waiver wire.

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Ryan McDowell

Contributor at Dynasty League Football

In addition to his senior leadership role here at DLF, Ryan is also a husband, father of three and PE teacher. Ryan is the commissioner of multiple dynasty leagues, most notably the Kitchen Sink Dynasty Leagues. Here at DLF, Ryan’s focus is on identifying, monitoring and analyzing player value.