Mel Kiper Jr. evaluates how good Elijah Arroyo can be in the NFL

Miami’s Elijah Arroyo is projected among the top five tight ends in this upcoming class for the NFL Draft. Mel Kiper Jr. and Field Yates agree on that stock but each sees him outplaying that with what he brings to the next level.

Those two broke down Arroyo after Yates rated him just inside his Top 50 at No. 49 earlier this week on ‘First Draft’. He has Arroyo at either third or fourth at the position for this draft, especially considering the athleticism he was fully able to show this season with the Hurricanes.

“Super-charged athlete from Miami. Averaged nearly 17 yards per catch last season,” Yates said. “Wouldn’t surprise me if he is the third tight end off the board when we’ve got four great ones in this year’s class.

“…He is clearly the best big-play threat amongst these tight ends that we are talking about in this two pairing right here. He was phenomenal after the catch. They completely had no answer for him on a lot of Saturdays this past year,” Yates later added. “It’s close. I think the complete, more well-rounded player is Mason Taylor, who also ran a solid pro day time around I think a 4.6 or so, for LSU.”

Kiper agreed with much of the same as far as Arroyo as a prospect. His size and skill set, despite his injury history, make him a problem of a matchup and, for Kiper, Arroyo was a big reason why Cam Ward had the season that he did at The ‘U.

“Everything came together for Cam Ward this year because of having Elijah Arroyo. Elijah Arroyo was a key guy for Cam Ward and he made so many big plays,” Kiper said. “You talk about a guy, plays like a wide receiver in a tight end frame, h-back frame. You talk about a guy who, when he was healthy – and that’s the thing. The durability concern is there with Elijah Arroyo. But, when he’s healthy, when he’s at 100%, he is a nightmare to try to match up with. And Cam Ward was able to benefit from Arroyo putting together that career season at Miami.”

Arroyo had a career-best season last fall as a redshirt junior after dealing with knee injuries, including an ACL tear, the two years prior. He caught 35 passes for 590 yards and seven touchdowns in 13 appearances for Miami, who had the No. 1 scoring offense in the sport, as he doubled and even tripled most of the receiving statistics he had previously posted.

With that, Kiper has Arroyo set at third as TE3 in 2025. That has him just behind Penn State’s Tyler Warren and Michigan’s Colston Loveland with the decision between three and four then being between him and Taylor.

“I think, when you look at the top two tight ends? You say, okay, it’s Tyler Warren for me, Colston Loveland. They’re close. Then, Elijah Arroyo – a little bit of a gap there but not as dramatic as you have it. Then Mason Taylor, you get into, from LSU,” Kiper said. “People have had Taylor at three. I have Arroyo solidly at three.”

Arroyo as finally healthy enough, and played for an offense that allowed him the opportunity, to show off his ability as a target. Kiper now thinks he takes that to the league with some team getting a rookie weapon that’ll cause problems for opposing defenses next season.

“To me, he’s the guy. He’s a guy that somebody is going to say, boy, the way the games played now, the way we can move him around? We talk about that chess piece. He is a nightmare. He is a guy who can be down the field catching the football like a wide receiver yet he can do the dirty things. He can do the dirty work as well,” Kiper said. “To me, Elijah Arroyo? A little underpublicized for the kind of year he had and the kind of talent he possesses.”