Former Wisconsin football tight end Austin Traylor was an undrafted free agent signed by the Dallas Cowboys. What are his chances of making the 53-man roster?
Heading into the 2016 NFL Draft, former Wisconsin football tight end Austin Traylor hoped he made enough of a statement in an improved senior season, but he didn’t hear his name called on draft day.
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Shortly after the draft, Traylor was one of seven former Badgers to sign in undrafted free agency, joining up with the Dallas Cowboys as a workout invite. He was signed to the 90-man roster on Tuesday.
Now Traylor hopes to build on his breakout season in 2015 during Cowboys training camp to earn a spot on the team.
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After basically being a blocking tight end the entirety of his collegiate career, Traylor dedicated the offseason before his senior campaign to improving his catching abilities.
The hard work paid off and Traylor had a far better season catching the ball than anyone could have imagined, grabbing 14 passes for 210 yards and four touchdowns despite missing nearly half of the season with a broken arm.
He’ll need to continue to improve if he wants to earn a spot with the Cowboys.
The ageless Jason Witten returns as the Cowboys top tight end, and Dallas recently signed five-year vet James Hanna to a three-year deal.
Dallas has spent draft picks on both Geoff Swaim and Gavin Escobar in recent seasons, although Escobar will likely be out for good period of time as he recovers from a torn ACL.
Additionally, the Cowboys took a shot on Baylor basketball player Rico Gathers with a sixth round pick in 2016, though he hasn’t played football since middle school.
Traylor is the only undrafted guy in the group of tight ends on the roster, but the fact that Dallas signed him to the 90-man roster after a workout invite means he’s already shown them something they like.
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Despite all the progress Traylor made catching the football, his real strength still lies in the running game.
The Cowboys have one of the best offensive lines in all of football, and just spent the fourth overall draft pick in 2016 on former Ohio State Buckeye Ezekiel Elliott in addition to signing Alfred Morris as a free agent.
Clearly, the Cowboys still want to run the ball, and Traylor fits that bill to a T.
But they also have one of the better quarterbacks in the league in Tony Romo, and have talented receivers in Dez Bryant and Witten.
Traylor needs to continue to show improvement in the passing game if he wants to have a shot to make the team.
He will be a valuable special teams player, but that alone won’t earn him a roster spot.
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Traylor is likely a practice squad project who could earn his way onto the 53-man roster with strong showing in practice.