Make the Case: Will Greg Dulcich will be the Broncos' Week 1 starting tight end?

Will rookie Greg Dulcich be the Denver Broncos’ starting tight end from Week 1?

That is the question.

This is the debate.

The Situation

The Broncos have a jam-packed tight end room, to say the least.

Including two undrafted rookies, Denver has not one, not two, not three, not four, but eight tight ends, including Andrew Beck, on the roster after the draft.

While Beck, Shaun Beyer, Dylan Parham and Rodney Williams likely don’t have a realistic chance to start, there are still four tight ends that a legitimate shot at being Denver’s starter out of the gate.

Pass-catching specialist Albert Okwuegbunam and run-blocking specialist Eric Tomlinson highlighted the group before the draft.

Then the Broncos used their second pick in the draft on the UCLA tight end. Days after the draft, George Paton re-sign Eric Saubert, who played in all 17 games for the Broncos in 2021, including four starts.

While Dulcich is clearly the Broncos’ future at the position, will he be the Week 1 starter over the other three more experienced options?

The Cases

Dulcich will start Week 1 – Zac

You better believe it. Paton and the Broncos didn’t use a Day 2 pick on a position of need just to have him develop for the future. They already have a fantastic developmental tight end in Albert O. They needed someone who could play from the start. Enter Greg Dulcich.

It’s clear, by the fact they used a third-round pick on Dulcich, that the Broncos weren’t satisfied at the position for the future or for this season.

While certainly not a finished product, Dulcich is already the most well-rounded tight on the roster.

The 6-foot-4, 250-pound tight end is a better blocker than Albert O already. Dulcich is already a more dynamic and dangerous receiver than the massive 6-foot-6, 263-pound Tomlinson — who had one catch last year — and Saubert — who has 18 total receptions in his five-year career.

By putting Albert O. on the field, Nathaniel Hackett would be tipping his hand that a pass play is coming. By putting Tomlinson on the field, he would be telling the defense to expect a run.

Dulcich, on the other hand, is Hackett and the Broncos’ best option to keep the defense guessing.

Don’t expect a monster season from the rookie tight end. But expect him to be the starter from Week 1.

Dulcich will not start Week 1 – RK

I want to start by saying this it not a knock on Greg Dulcich, but it’s just a fact that transitioning from college to the NFL at the tight end position is extremely difficult. You essentially have to learn how to be an NFL wide receiver and an NFL offensive lineman.

Because of this, it usually takes a little more time for a young tight end to become a full-time starter. If you look to last season, after top-10-pick Kyle Pitts (74%) the next highest snap percentage from a rookie tight end was from Pat Freiermuth who, despite having a very productive season for a rookie, only played 58% of the snaps in the season. After those two, who were bnoth drafted significantly higher than Dulcich, there’s a steep drop down to the next rookie, Tommy Tremble, who only played 43% of the snaps.

I firmly believe that Dulcich will be used and used often for the Denver Broncos, but I expect Nathaniel Hackett to shelter him a bit early, onlu putting him in positions that he believes are advantageous for the UCLA product. Starting Week 1 in an offense that asks a lot of tight ends seems like too high of an expectation for me.