From the University of Michigan, Colston Loveland has the potential to be one of the second-round steals in the 2025 Dynasty Rookie Drafts. The 20-year-old put up some impressive numbers during his brief time in college and was a key part of the Wolverines’ offense the past three seasons. Loveland is a dynamic and complete tight end who checks many boxes for a productive future NFL player. Additionally, the tight end position has become more of a focus in the NFL after seeing the recent impact of young stars like Sam LaPorta, Trey McBride, and Brock Bowers in the last few years. Loveland, a Washington native, is beginning to get more talk and should continue to impress scouts throughout the pre-draft process. Also, depending on where he ends up, he could quickly become an NFL starter immediately or at some point early on during the season and become a valuable Dynasty tight end soon after that. Let’s take a closer look at him.
* Within this article, the statistics were pulled from Sports Reference, KeepTradeCut (KTC), Pro Football Focus (PFF), and Sleeper.
College Production (2022 – 2024)
A four-star recruit who rotated into the offense, and as a freshman, he put up 16 receptions for 235 receiving yards and two touchdowns before taking over the starting tight end job the following year. Loveland played all three of his collegiate seasons at Michigan, where in 39 games, he totaled 117 receptions for 1,466 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. The majority of his production came in his last two collegiate seasons. In his sophomore season, Loveland had 45 receptions for 649 receiving yards and four touchdowns. Then, in his final season, he made a name for himself. In 10 games, he had 56 receptions for 582 yards and five touchdowns. This past season, Loveland posted an impressive 2.67 yards per route run, and he’s a player who accounted for 39% of Michigan’s passing yards and 45.2% of Michigan’s touchdowns this past year. The Michigan offense was a mess in 2024, somewhat limiting Loveland’s numbers. However, he led the team in receiving by a wide margin, as he was the only reliable target within the passing game. Analytically, Loveland is very impressive at the tight end position.
Loveland is a two-time All-Big Ten selection and was a Mackey Award Finalist in 2024. While he won’t be entering the league with as high of a profile as Bowers, he absolutely can be a contributor in his rookie season in the right situation. Whichever NFL team drafts him in April will likely look to put him in situations that maximize his receiving talent, something that he has put on full display for the Wolverines. He can do just about everything while looking very smooth and does things that look like a wide receiver on the football field.
Strengths
Listed at 6′ 5″ and 245, Loveland combines impressive size with elite athleticism that you look for in a top NFL tight end. His biggest strength is that he’s a versatile player who takes snaps all over and experiences lining up as a traditional inline tight end flexed out to the slot. This will allow him to adapt to any scheme at the NFL level. Loveland understands positioning and knows how to get into space. He’s an elite route runner and a natural pass catcher with the explosiveness to gain yards after the catch. Out of his stance, he has great explosiveness and the speed to threaten defenses down the seams or on flag routes. Most impressive, though, is that he’s super athletic and has shown dynamic playmaking abilities when on the field. Loveland has great contact balance and a wide route tree.
During his time at Michigan, he was asked to run routes on many levels. Loveland is a genuine mismatch weapon with alignment versatility and explosive ability to challenge defenses vertically. While he might not show elite flexibility, he shows very good coordination and body control to adjust to the ball once in the air for someone his size and shows high-end ball skills. Loveland has soft hands and has also shown more reliability, reducing his drops this past year. He’s a tough and competitive player after the catch who always looks for the extra yard. I expect his stock to continue rising as we approach the 2025 NFL Draft. Most importantly, what separates him is his athleticism and big play ability after the catch, which is difficult to teach. Loveland has shown that he has all the makings of a successful NFL tight end.
Weaknesses
Loveland does have a few weaknesses in his game that stick out to me. First, for a tight end, he could add a little more bulk and will have to adapt to match up with bigger defenders at the next level. He’s a willing blocker, but Loveland is far from being dominant. Secondly, the biggest issue that sticks out to me was that he was rarely retained in pass protection, as he played just 30 career snaps (Pro Football Focus). Overall, his biggest issue is his run-blocking. Coming into this year, he did have some issues with drops, but he appeared to clean some of that up during his last season at Michigan.
Additionally, he’s not the most elusive player in space, as he’s more of a no-nonsense player who gets upfield. He caught only 10 of 25 contested catches over the past two seasons. Loveland will also need to add a more diverse route tree and refine his route running at the next level.
There’s no reason to believe he can’t improve upon many of these traits and further develop his game. At the next level, adding more bulk to strengthen his blocking game and refining his route running will create more separation. It’ll be important that he gets placed with a good coaching staff at the next level who can help him continue his development. However, Loveland is a very intriguing prospect and someone who, with the right team in the right situation, can be an instant difference-maker.
Draft Projection
Loveland is projected to be a 1st-round pick (23rd overall prospect), according to NFL Mock Draft Database. He’s a very talented prospect that teams will be willing to take a chance on, especially with some refinement, as he has the potential to be a very good all-around tight end in the NFL. This year’s 2025 NFL Draft has a very strong tight end class, and Loveland is currently TE2 behind Tyler Warren, who has next-level impact ability. Loveland is a player that most of your league mates are probably familiar with, and taking notice of his stock on NFL Draft boards. Currently, he projects in the early-to-mid second round of Dynasty Fantasy Football Drafts, and he could be one of the gems of Dynasty Fantasy Football Rookie Drafts this year, especially with a nice landing spot. Ideally, his rumored landing spots are at 20 with the Broncos or 22 with the Chargers. Getting reunited with his old Michigan head coach, Jim Harbaugh, and the opportunity to catch passes from Justin Herbert is a Dynasty Fantasy Football dream. Once Loveland gets a chance to show off his abilities at all the remaining NFL Pre-Draft processes, I expect him to be a fast-growing prospect and push him up the draft boards. In the future, I expect Loveland to become a very productive player in the NFL.
Conclusion
Loveland is a polished tight end with plenty of pedigree, coming from a blue-blood football program in Michigan. He’s a do-it-all type of player who projects well for future production at the NFL level with today’s style of play. The tight end position has become more of a focus in Dynasty Fantasy Football after seeing the impacts of Sam LaPorta, Trey McBride, and rookie Brock Bowers. While the 2025 NFL Draft lacks that bonafide stud at tight end, it does feature a few mid-tier options that could become solid players for your Dynasty roster. Michigan’s Colston Loveland is one of those players in the TE1 race for the 2025 Draft class. However, he’s seen by most as the TE2 currently behind Warren. And while Loveland won’t be entering the league with as high of a profile as Bowers, he absolutely can be a contributor in his rookie season in the right situation. Whichever NFL team adds him in April will likely look to put him in situations that maximize his receiving talent. One of the strengths of the 2025 Draft class is the tight end position. Loveland has been compared to players like Greg Olsen and Zack Ertz, but Loveland reminds me more of Ertz, especially his prototypical size. Ertz is 6′ 5″ and 250, similar to Loveland, and both players show an athletic frame and consistent yard-after-the-catch ability while being red-zone threats. However, time will tell if he can live up to his pro comparisons. If Loveland can add more strength and refine a few of his flaws, he has the makings of a top tight end who can do just about everything on the field.
As things stand now, Loveland’s stock is consistent, and I will be watching his stock leading up to the NFL Draft very closely to see if he can keep climbing up draft boards any further. It will be important to see where Loveland lands because if he’s drafted by an offensive-minded team with a creative play-caller, his stock will rise. If drafted by the Chargers, Loveland would enter the league as the top rookie TE and easily fit into the top-12 TE discussion for your Dynasty rosters. Loveland is someone that I will be targeting heavily, especially if he has a good landing spot that could allow him to showcase his dynamic playmaking abilities early on, helping make him the steal of Dynasty Rookie Drafts. He’s a player I’ll be drafting a lot of because I believe Loveland could be of great value on his way to becoming a very valuable Dynasty Fantasy Football player. I’m betting on Loveland to be one of the best tight ends in this year’s 2025 rookie class. Get him on your team, as he projects to be a steal from round two of Dynasty Fantasy Football Rookie Drafts.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article, and I hope you gained some valuable information. If you have any questions or you’d like additional insight and analysis, please follow me on Twitter/X at @MonicasHubby. #DFFArmy #AlwaysBeBuilding
