Mason Taylor- 6 Things To Know About Eagles Draft Prospect

Tight End is going to be an Eagles need. Dallas Goedert is still on the team for now, but you only have to listen to what the Eagles are saying to realize that is going to change. The Eagles seem destined to part ways with their long-time TE, making TE one of their biggest needs. Will Mason Taylor out of LSU be the answer?

Mason Taylor set records at LSU in back-to-back weeks this season. A week after he set a new Receptions record for LSU TEs at 99, he set the new record for yards at 999. He finished his Tigers career with 129 receptions, 1308 yards, and 6 TDs.

He got there by just being a consistent presence for LSU, especially in his senior year. He quickly became Garrett Nussmier's go-to guy, and the LSU QB sang his praises 4 games into the season.

"He's a huge part of our offense. Mason's a guy that does things right all the time. When you have a guy like that, you trust him and he delivers all the time. He's an unbelievable talent, he has true passion for his teammates and he doesn't want to let us down. He constantly delivers and that's a guy who's a very special player."

Legacy is not everything. There are great players with no family history in the NFL, there are bad players whose family has a long history in the NFL (see Casey Matthews). But it is worth pointing out who Mason Taylor's dad is. The great Jason Taylor.

For those unaware, Jason Taylor is a Hall of Fame Defensive End who spent most of his career in Miami, racking up 139.5 sacks, 29 Forced Fumbles and holds the All-Time Record with 6 fumbles returned for a TD.

But Mason is not looking to coast off his fathers very accomplished coattails. He saw the hard work his father put in, how rewarding that work is, and is willing to follow his father's example and earn his own path to NFL greatness.

"He has been the work growing up, and he has seen the fruit of that labor. He is a self starter, a tireless worker, he has a very focused mind, and he understands what it takes."- Jason Taylor

Taylor did not do any of the athletic testing at the NFL Combine. But he did leave his mark on the on-field drills. That was enough to earn some high praise. ESPN's Matt Miller said "Mason Taylor is clearly in a different tier than the other tight ends working out."

Daniel Jeremiah had similar praise, saying "Everything he does is smooth and natural, he's polished as a route runner, understands how to work back to the quarterback, tracks it well."

But while he impressed in those workouts, his Pro Day was even more impressive. He ran a 4.64 40 yard dash, which would have been the 2nd fastest 40 for a TE at the combine. He also had 28 reps on the bench press, which again, would have been 2nd among TEs at the Combine.

ESPN's Jordan Reid called it "One of the most impressive pro days I've seen so far."

Taylor had 55 catches in 2024. But what is remarkable is how many of those were for a 1st down. 37 of his 55 catches were for a 1st.

He was a safety blanket for LSU Qbs? In a bind and need a conversion, throw it to Taylor. Taylor draws a lot of comparisons to Zack Ertz, and this is one way they are alike. In the same way, Eagles QBs used to rely on Ertz in tough 3rd down conversions, it felt like Taylor was always there to convert the 1st down.

Related: Colston Loveland- 5 Things To Know About Eagles Draft Prospect

Something that Goedert became known for was showing up in big moments. That catch and run vs the Saints earlier this year. the double stiff arm vs the Packers. Goedert was at his best when they needed him to be.

Mason Taylor may have that in his game too. His most iconic moment in college came in his freshman year. It was OT vs Bama. Instead of LSU kicking the Extra Point to tie the game, and force another OT, they went for the win. Who came up clutch to convert the 2-point conversion? None other than Mason Taylor courtesy of a Jayden Daniels pass.

But while that was the biggest moment in that game for Taylor, it was not the only moment. He also scored a go ahead TD, in traffic, late in the 4th quarter. Not a bad day for a Freshman vs a top 10 seeded Alabama.

A consistent thing you will hear about Mason Taylor is that we have not seen everything he has to offer. Scouts and draft experts often bring up that he was either not used in the best way at LSU, or that he maybe didn't get as many targets as he deserved considering the WRs he had to share the field with.

In 2022 and 2023 he was sharing targets with Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas, both 1st round picks. LSU also saw Kayshon Boutte turn into a 6th round pick. This past season he shared the field with 2 former 4 star WRs in Aaron Anderson and Kyren Lacy.

His head coach Brian Kelly acknowledged this himself while heaping praise on Taylor.

"I've got a lot of tight ends in the league and think I have a good sense of what a tight end looks like. He's an NFL tight end, he's an elite player. The problem he's had is three first-round draft picks around him on offense. Call it what you want but you tend to get overshadowed a little bit. I didn't want him to get overshadowed. I wanted to make sure that he got out here, how important he is to our success on offense. He's an outstanding football player, he's a great leader on our team, a three-year starter."

But more than having to share targets with a very talented and very deep WR group, LSU also did not make the best use of his skill set. Taylor is praised for his athletics, his route running, and his fluidity. And yet he only got 28 targets beyond 10 yards downfield, as opposed to 51 targets shorter than 10 yards. But most scouts believe he could be very effective running intermediate routes or even deep routes.