Why the Slide Series
This series was created a number of years ago in response to questions about why certain well-known prospects went unselected in NFL drafts. For these articles, I reach out to sources with NFL teams to find out why their organizations passed on drafting a given player and/or the reasons other teams passed on that prospect. The positive response to “Why Undrafted” and questions from readers about why prospects were drafted lower than the media’s expectations led us to create the parallel series “Why the Slide?”
Both series are back this year. Feel free to email me requests for Why the Slide? and Why Undrafted? at [email protected]. I can’t promise to get to all of them, but I will do my best and definitely will respond to the email.
The Expectations
After years of being injured, Miami tight end Elijah Arroyo finally put it all together as a senior with a stellar season. With Cam Ward at quarterback, Arroyo finally showed the potential that he flashed in his early years with the Hurricanes. Arroyo had 35 receptions for 590 yards and seven touchdowns before dominating Senior Bowl practice after the season. After his performance in Mobile, some team evaluators thought Arroyo was one of the top-25 most talented players in this draft class. Yet, Arroyo slid well into the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
The ‘Why’
In speaking to team sources, the medical history and durability concerns really hurt Arroyo. After the Senior Bowl, he was dealing with an injury in the spring, and that made teams concerned, which reinforced concerns about Arroyo’s ability to stay healthy in the NFL.
The Seattle Seahawks ended Arroyo’s slide in the second round, and that was an excellent landing spot. In a year, Arroyo should replace Noah Fant as the starter, and Arroyo could be a dangerous receiving tight end in Klint Kubiak’s offense. The scheme utilizes the tight end in the passing game, and with D.K. Metcalf being traded to the Steelers, Seattle needs some bigger targets to turn to as their starting receivers are on the smaller side. The 6-foot-4, 245-pound Arroyo could be featured as soon as his rookie season. Arroyo could stand to improve as a blocker, and he will have a year to do that while getting accustomed to the NFL. Plus, Kubiak’s zone blocking scheme makes the blocking ability of a tight end less problematic if they aren’t a force at the point of attack. After some developmental time, Arroyo could become an excellent starting tight end for Seattle if he can stay healthy.
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