What happened to the number 1 TE recruit from 2010-2015?

2010: Xavier Grimble TE Las Vegas, Nevada. 20th ranked national, 1st best tight end, 1st best in the state of Nevada. 3 seasons at USC (2011-2013). Undrafted in 2014. 5+ seasons in NFL (1 with Patriots, 1 with 49ers, 4 with Steelers). 7 games started out of 80. 1x Super Bowl Champion (2015 with New England). 3 TD, 5.1 Yards/Game, 56.1% Catch %, 23 receptions, 239 yards. Currently a free agent in the NFL.

2011: Nick O’Leary TE Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. 27th ranked national, 1st best tight end, 10th best in the state of Florida. 4 seasons at Florida State (2011-2014). 6th round pick in 2015 NFL Draft (194th overall) by the Buffalo Bills. 5+ seasons in NFL (3 with Bills, 2 with Dolphins, 1 with Jaguars). 24 games started out of 80. 4 TD, 11.3 Yards/Game, 68.8% Catch %, 53 receptions, 668 yards. Currently a free agent in the NFL.

2012: Kent Taylor TE Land O Lakes, Florida. 77th ranked national, 1st best tight end, 15th best in the state of Florida. 1 season for Florida (2012), 1 season for Kansas (2015), 1 season for UTEP (2016). Undrafted, signed a futures deal with the Panthers in 2018. Never played in NFL. Currently a free agent in the NFL.

2013: O.J. Howard TE Prattville, Alabama. 19th ranked national, 1st best tight end, 2nd best in the state of Alabama. 4 seasons at Alabama (2013-2016). 1st round pick in 2017 NFL Draft (19th overall) by Tampa Bay Buccaneers. 4+ seasons in NFL (4 with Buccaneers). 37 games started out of 64. 1x Super Bowl Champion (2020 with Buccaneers). 14 TD, 38.1 Yards/Game, 66.0% Catch %, 105 receptions, 1602 yards. Currently backup TE for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

2014: Dalton Schultz TE South Jordan, Utah. 101st ranked national, 1st best tight end, 1st best in the state of Utah. 3 seasons for Stanford (2015-2017). 4th round pick in 2018 NFL Draft (137th overall) by the Dallas Cowboys. 3+ seasons in NFL (3 with Cowboys). 21 games started out of 48. 4 TD, 17.1 Yards/Game, 70.4% Catch %, 76 receptions, 737 yards. Currently backup TE for Dallas Cowboys.

2015: Alize Mack TE Las Vegas, Nevada. 63rd ranked national, 1st best tight end, 1st best in the state of Nevada. 3 seasons for Notre Dame (2015-2018). 7th round pick in 2019 (231st overall) by New Orleans Saints. Never played in NFL. Currently on practice squad for Detroit Lions.

From 2010-2015:

Drafted in NFL Draft (4): Alize Mack, Dalton Schultz, O.J. Howard, and Nick O’Leary

Currently on NFL roster (3): Alize Mack, Dalton Schultz, and O.J. Howard

Made a Pro-Bowl (0)

Won a Super Bowl (2): Xavier Grimble and O.J. Howard

The top tight end prospects from 2010-2015 were disappointing. There is only one player who started more than 25 games (O.J. Howard). Dalton Schultz can have a good career, given that he is the youngest prospect on this list. Both O.J. Howard and Xavier Grimble have Super Bowl rings, but neither played in the game their team won.