University of Washington tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins won the Mackey Award as the nation’s top tight end in 2013.
Seferian-Jenkins, along with Texas Tech’s Jace Amaro and North Carolina’s Eric Ebron, make up the group of tight ends most commonly viewed as the best in this May’s draft class. However, Seferian-Jenkins will likely be unable to workout for scouts before the draft after an injury was discovered during the NFL combine.
According to Rob Rang of CBSSports.com, medical testing at the combine revealed a stress fracture in Seferian-Jenkins’ foot. After meeting with his agents, Seferian-Jenkins elected to have surgery last Friday. The recovery time for the surgery is expected is expected to be eight weeks, which makes him highly unlikely to perform at Washington’s pro day on April 2.
Seferian-Jenkins caught 146 passes for 1840 yards and 21 touchdowns in three seasons at Washington. While he won the Mackey Award this year, he was better in 2012. Seferian-Jenkins caught 69 passes for 852 yards and seven touchdowns during his sophomore season.
However, his time with the Huskies wasn’t without warts. Seferian-Jenkins pleaded guilty to a drunken driving charge in July and had to spend a day in jail as part of a mostly suspended sentence with probation. He was suspended for Washington’s season opener against Boise State last season.
In addition to the stress fracture in his foot, Seferian-Jenkins had a broken finger that was surgically repaired last August as well.
Seferian-Jenkins is a talented prospect and a gifted pass catcher. However, he has several red flags and isn’t the most skilled blocker. The DUI conviction and injury history will raise concerns heading into the draft. Whichever team drafts him will hope his career trends more toward that of former Washington tight ends Mark Bruener or Ernie Conwell and not Jerramy Stevens.