Luke Musgrave Scouting Report and NFL Draft Profile

 

2023 NFL Draft Measurements

Luke Musgrave 40-Yard Dash Time – 4.51

6’6” / 250 lbs.

 

Luke Musgrave Draft Profile

 

Personal Background

Luke Musgrave comes from a football family. His father, Doug Musgrave, was a quarterback for Oregon in the 90s. His Uncle, Bill Musgrave, was also a quarterback at Oregon back in the day. Then he was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the 1991 NFL Draft and went on to play for the 49ers, Broncos, and Colts. He then went on to be a coach for many NFL and college programs.

 

High School

Luke Musgrave is a former 4-star recruit out of Bend Senior High School in Bend, Oregon. According to his 247sports recruiting profile, he was the 2nd best player in the state of Oregon. He was also the 12th-best tight end in the nation. While achieving this status, he received offers from 5 Division I programs. These schools were Utah State, UC Davis, Oregon, California, and Oregon State. The day after receiving a scholarship from Oregon, he committed to Oregon State.

 

Strengths

 

Athleticism

Luke Musgrave is arguably the most athletic tight end prospect in the 2023 NFL Draft class. For a tight end of his size, he has elite speed, clocking a 4.51 40-time. When he puts his pads on, he still plays with the same high level of athleticism. He is very good at quickly stemming his route once the ball is snapped. His quickness also allows him to separate from defenders when making a break in his route. Musgrave also displays good balance after going up and making a catch. This allows him to rack up some extra yards after the catch. Although Musgrave has a big frame, when making breaks in his routes, he does a good job of sinking his hips and exploding in another direction.

 

Aggressiveness

When the ball is thrown to Musgrave, he does a good job of being aggressive at the catch point. He also displays lots of concentration when making a contested catch. Both of these abilities allow him to be effective anywhere on the field. He also shows lots of aggression when run blocking. Although he is not the best blocking tight end in this draft class, he shows lots of aggression at the point of attack.

 

Hands

Luke Musgrave has some of the best hands in the nation out of all positions. His hand size plays a big role in that because his hands are just over 10” in length. Having hands that big allows him to catch the ball one-handed almost effortlessly. He also has very good hand strength that allows him to make heavily contested catches and hold onto the ball through contact.

 

Yards After Catch

As I briefly mentioned earlier, Musgrave is good at racking up extra yardage after making a catch. His size and strength are helpful when shedding tackles and running over defenders in the middle of the field. He has incredible quickness and lateral agility that allows him to take advantage of any open space that he has in front of him. Also, as I mentioned earlier, he is very good at maintaining balance after going up and making a catch.

 

Route Running

Luke Musgrave is one of the best route-running tight ends that I have seen at the collegiate level. He has incredible quickness out of a 2 and 3-point stance that allows him to quickly stem his route. When lined up in a 2-point stance, Musgrave shows that he has a solid double move off the line of scrimmage. This often manipulates his defender’s hips, immediately giving Musgrave leverage. When he is going against zone coverage, Musgrave does a good job of finding a hole in the coverage and settling for an easy catch.

 

Weaknesses

 

Separation Quickness

One part of Musgrave’s game that is puzzling to me is his lack of ability to separate from defenders in the 2nd level. Although Musgrave has very good athleticism for a tight end, he struggles to gain space at the top of routes. When running routes in the middle of the field, he struggles at getting past DBs because they are quicker and more mobile. But, I would not consider this to be a big weakness. After seeing what he has to offer in the passing game, this weakness is minimal compared to what he can do.

 

Blocking

As I briefly mentioned earlier, Musgrave’s blocking has a ways to go before it can be considered a strength. When lined up in a 3-point stance as a Y tight end, he displays adequate pad level. This often leads to him getting forced vertically and overpowered at the point of attack. He has the same problem when he is drive-blocking. He struggles to win at the initial point of attack and finish blocks. Finally, in pass protection, Musgrave needs to improve on his ability to quickly get set out of a 3-point stance.

 

Luke Musgrave Draft Stock

Luke Musgrave is one of the top tight ends in the nation. Personally, I think he is the 2nd best tight end in the draft behind Michael Mayer. Although he is not a first-round talent like Mayer, Musgrave will likely get drafted in the 2nd round.

 

Final Thoughts

Overall, Luke Musgrave is one of the most dangerous pass catching tight ends in this draft class. He has tremendous athleticism that is rare to see from a tight end of his size. This leads to him being an effective route runner and ball carrier. When the ball is thrown in his direction, he shows that he has strong hands and loads of concentration to hold onto the ball through contact. I expect Musgrave to have an instant impact on whatever team he ends up on. Especially if he is drafted to a team that has a pass-heavy offense.

 

Luke Musgrave Player Comparison

When watching film on Luke Musgrave, he showed me glimpses of a few tight ends. His athleticism and route running reminds me of Isaiah Likely. He also has a tendency to show the upside of a tight end like T.J. Hockenson and Travis Kelce when they were in college.

 

Luke Musgrave Scouting Report Analyst – Matthew Lewis