Crockett Gillmore Proves He Can Be the Guy at Tight End

Oct 26, 2014; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Baltimore Ravens tight end Crockett Gillmore (80) is tackled by Cincinnati Bengals defenders during the first quarter at Paul Brown Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

At first glance, the numbers from Crockett Gillmore’s first NFL start at Cincinnati last Sunday are somewhat ho hum.  The rookie tight end secured both of his two targets for 23 yards receiving, which isn’t much considering the fact that he played on 52 of 66 snaps against the Bengals.  But as always, we must look beneath the surface to get the real story.

Gillmore received a positive grade from Pro Football Focus for his body of work on Sunday, which included 19 snaps on passing plays, 25 in run blocking situations, and 8 in pass blocking.  He did not give up any pressures on Joe Flacco, nor did he draw any penalties or commit any mistakes that hurt the team.

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Not only that, but Gillmore received a higher overall grade from PFF (2.0) for his work against the Bengals than Owen Daniels has received in any game this season.  A massive target at 6’6″ and 251 pounds, Gillmore isn’t going to run by anybody with his 4.89 speed, but his size and strength means that he should be utilized as a red zone threat going forward.

Crockett is also a big target the Ravens can use to pick up first downs in the middle of the field.  With his size and an impressive 33 1/2″ vertical, he can simply out jump and out muscle smaller corners to haul in contested passes in traffic.  That must is evident by his chain moving catches against the Bengals.

John Harbaugh admitted that he was impressed by the rookie in Monday’s press conference.

“Yes, Crockett played well,” Harbaugh stated. “Crockett did a good job. He made a lot of catches [and] made some really good blocks. He has a lot of potential as a player. He’s big, he’s physical, [and he] moves his feet well. I thought he did a great job of finding open spaces in zone coverage.

“[He] caught the ball [and] got upfield, got an extra yard or two to get the first down. He did a good job with the communication [and] didn’t have any assignment errors, which is really big for a rookie. [He] played hard, physical, tenacious, [and he] took a lot of snaps. I think he had 44 snaps.”

The Ravens likely were trying to ease Crockett Gillmore in a bit against the Bengals since it was his very first NFL start, but they would be wise to give him more looks against the Steelers this week.  Especially if the Raven’s wide receivers struggle to separate as they did against the Bengals.  With more opportunities, Gillmore could very well prove that he is truly “the guy” at the tight end position for the Ravens.