The Indianapolis Colts selected tight end Kylen Granson with the 127th pick in the 2021 NFL Draft. While there was some excitement in the fanbase for his potential role in the offense, the Colts have been slow-playing his rookie season a bit.
In 10 games played this year, Granson has only seen 98 offensive snaps. His playing time did see a very slight increase this past week, as he tallied his second-most snaps in a single game on the year (12).
Despite the light workload, Granson has made a couple plays in the passing game. Should the Colts look to get the young tight end more involved in the offense?
Comparison to Trey Burton
Before going any further, I do want to start by saying that Granson is the third tight end on this team. He is fighting for playing time behind two reliable, well-rounded tight ends in Jack Doyle and Mo Alie-Cox.
Last season, the third tight end on the roster was veteran Trey Burton. Burton finished the year with 376 snaps on offense, which was good for 42% of the total offensive snaps. Granson is currently on a much lower pace, with 98 snaps on the year (only 15% of the total offensive snaps).
The numbers are a tad closer when looking at target share, though. Granson has seen eight targets on 53 routes run on the year, which means he is being targeted on around 15% of his total routes. Burton was targeted on 44 of his 226 routes run a year ago, which was around 19% of his total routes.
So, Granson is seeing a much lighter snap total than a typical third tight end in this offense, but he is being targeted around the same on routes that he does run. The only question that remains is if he should see that bigger workload.
Flashes in the Pass Game
Despite the lighter workload, Granson has shown some ability in the pass game. On the year, he has totaled six catches for 64 yards through the air. The most interesting stat is that 51 of his 64 yards have come after the catch.
One of my favorite play-calls of the year came two weeks ago against the New York Jets. The Colts are in 13 personnel, with Granson, Alie-Cox, and Doyle all on one side. The call is Trail with the intention of getting Granson room to run with the ball after the catch.
Alie-Cox and Doyle clear out the pile, and Granson is able to catch the underneath pass and turn it up field for a big gain. This was his only route run in this game.
Frank Reich drew up another excellent play for Granson on third down this past week against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Colts motion Granson into a bunch look at the top of the screen. What the Colts typically like to do is use the first player out of the bunch as a natural pick to give the second man out a free release on a drag route.
This play is a nice variation on that call. Granson begins to move like he is running a drag and then quickly whips back to the outside. Carson Wentz hits him with an excellent throw, and he is able to turn up field for extra yardage.
This last clip is a simple RPO look, but I like that Granson was the designated player on the route. He runs a quick glance route in between the linebacker and safety.
Wentz pulls the ball out quickly and delivers a strike over the middle for a positive gain.
Coach/Player Quotes on Granson
Head Coach Frank Reich spoke after this past game against the Jaguars, and he was asked about the lack of playing time for Granson. Here is what he had to say:
Yeah, we’re trying to get him more involved. It’s really hard to take Mo (Alie-Cox) or Jack (Doyle) off the field, but we do have a lot of confidence in Kylen (Granson). He is a little bit faster and a little bit more explosive than those two guys, but obviously not the run blocker that those guys are.
So what he’s showing us is that we can put him in and he can be solid in the run game and he’s been doing a good job the handful of reps that he’s been getting in. Then there is no doubt we like his speed, his athleticism and how explosive he is with the ball in his hands. We’re gaining more and more confidence with him so hopefully we can continue to build packages for him and get him more involved.
Offensive Coordinator Marcus Brady did speak a little bit back in August about slow-playing Granson and that he expected Granson's role to grow as the year progresses:
Just giving him the plays that we feel like that are going to be comfortable with him. But at the same time, he’s a sharp kid. He’s picked up the offense very well. You can see that he transitioned, even today he made some plays, you can see that he can be involved with the offense. He’s very mature, so we’re going to try and get him involved with the many weapons that we have.
Lastly, Granson also spoke this past week on the fairly frustrating process that comes with being a rookie in NFL and not seeing a ton of time:
It’s something I thought I was prepared for until I was about four weeks in, I was like, ‘Dang, man.’ I had to kind of remind myself I’m a rookie, this is my first year. I had high expectations for myself and I know the coaches have high expectations for me as well.
Really, it’s just me being patient, trusting the process, trusting the plan that the coaches have for me and just reassuring myself who I am, what it took to get here. I’m an NFL athlete, I should have confidence as an NFL athlete. I’m finally finding my stride, feeling my confidence grow every day.
How the Colts Can Get Him More Involved
While I am not by any means saying that he should be the starting tight end in this offense, I do think that it would be wise to get him more involved in the passing game. One particular way that I want to see the Colts utilize him more is in his ability to create after the catch.
Granson is a special athlete at tight end, and he could add another great dimension to this passing attack after the catch. One play-call that could involve him more is something that I have always called the Doyle Play.
The Doyle Play is a fairly simple RPO/play-action play design that features Doyle leaking into the flat. I say RPO/play-action because the Colts have added quite a few variations to this design over the years.
The main premise is the same regardless, though. The play starts as a typical run design, with Doyle selling that he is blocking the man in front of him. After a few steps, Doyle then leaks out into the flat. To create even more separation, the outside receiver crashes down on a slant to create a natural pick play on Doyle's defender.
This play has been a go-to design for the Colts on third and short situations for years. Throwing it to Doyle is great, but I think getting this easy completion to an athletic player like Granson could really do some damage. This is just one of many ways to get him more involved in this passing game.
Final Thoughts
Kylen Granson is a talented, young tight end that should see an increase in snaps going forward. Should he completely pass Alie-Cox or Doyle on the depth chart? I don't think so, but he should at least get a little closer to the overall snap number that Trey Burton saw a year ago.
The Colts need more dynamic options in the passing game. After Michael Pittman Jr, the best options have been either Jonathan Taylor or Nyheim Hines. While having two playmaking running backs is great, the Colts need more from their designated pass catchers.
The Colts are coming up on a stretch of games against a few top tier offenses. As a result, the Colts are likely going to have to throw the ball more to keep up the pace. If that does happen, the team should look to get the rookie tight end more involved in the gameplan.
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