NFL Draft 2019 Scouting Report: TE Kahale Warring, San Diego State

*Our TE grades can and will change as more information comes in from Pro Day workouts, leaked Wonderlic test results, etc. We will update ratings as new info becomes available.

**Our TE formulas had some slight changes in the offseason—an adjustment to better identify and value TE prospects that are smaller physically and are primed for the era ahead...the era of Jordan Reed and Delanie Walker-type TEs. Our historical grades will have changed some on various prospects as well, to show their grades by comparison. 

*Ka-ha-lay, Wear-ing

When it comes to the 2019 TE class, pretty much all anyone talks about is T.J. Hockenson, Noah Fant, and Irv Smith Jr., but flying below the tight end radar is Kahale Warring, who finished top 3-5 in about everything the TE group measured/did at the NFL Combine. Not as athletic as Fant, but arguably a better all-around athlete than either Hockenson or Smith.

Warring may have the best upper body of anybody who attended the NFL Combine… including non-TE prospects. He has freakishly muscular arms…big and sculpted. He looks more like a professional body builder from the waist up.

With his size (6’5.1”/251) and muscle, he has solid speed (4.67 40-time, 6th best among all Combine TEs) and agility (4.25 short shuttle was 4th best among all Combine TEs) with nice leg drive (3rd best broad jump and vertical jump among all Combine TEs). Athletically, Noah Fant just stands head and shoulders above any of the TE class, but LSU’s Foster Moreau and Warring were in the argument for 2nd-best all around tight end athlete in Indy.

But can he play…block, and catch, etc.?

From what I see, he can play. He is a legit NFL TE prospect. He has the speed-agility combo to get open on pass routes and had a very nice ‘get-off’ on the snap bursting into his route. He’s a so-so blocker that could be coached up to be better…like every tight end coming out of college. His size and upper body definition and arm/hand length are all projecting a good+ NFL blocker.

What really caught my attention on Warring is – very soft, natural hands. He has the proper hand positioning to catch/snatch passes coming from all angles of routes. He’s excellent at jumping/high pointing for a throw and bringing it down with ease. He’s so smooth catching the ball, he almost looks nonchalant…I think he’s just that kind of natural athlete.

Warring was a top high school athlete in water polo among many other non-traditional sports, so that will probably be held against him in his evaluation. He’s kinda soft spoken and only played high school football his senior season and became an All-Star tight end that debut year. He was a walk-on for San Diego State, earning his full scholarship a few years into his journey. I can see ‘grinder’ coaches not loving him because he does not arrive from a traditional football background. However, he has ‘grinder’ DNA being a walk-on and eventual top performer. He’s too good on tape and in Combine numbers to ignore – he will get a shot. Possibly a top 100-125 prospect overall for the NFL Draft.

Kahale Warring, Through the Lens of Our TE Scouting Algorithm:

Warring’s best college season was 2018: 31 catches, 372 yards, 3 TDs…which is ‘meh’ for a mid-major conference tight end, but consider that he played only nine games in 2018…and played with two quarterbacks who were both pretty awful.

In his nine games in 2018, the SDSU QBs threw for 11 TDs, and Warring caught 3 of them. The season prior, Warring had 3 TD catches as well…and the QBs combined for all of 10 TDs in his games. He wasn’t exactly in the ‘Air Raid’ system. For what they had, Warring did pretty well output wise. He had a decent share of the passing game within its small output/sample size.

The best game I’ve seen a San Diego State QB have in the past two years, during Warring’s time, was in 2018 vs. 8-5 Nevada…SDSU threw for 3 TDs (a shocking event) and Warring had two excellent TD catches (and routes). That game is cut up on YouTube for Warring’s performance if you want to get a taste…

 Link: https://youtu.be/4SJZM5x-y6g

2019 NFL Combine Measurables…

6’5.1”/251, 9.75” hands, 32.75” arms

4.67 40-time, 4.25 shuttle, 7.21 three-cone

19 bench reps, 36.5” arms, 10’2” broad jump

The Historical TE Prospects to Whom Kahale Warring Most Compares Within Our System:

Warring compares, in our system, to the workhorse/grinder tight end types…a Jack Doyle or Todd Heap-like career would be a very nice, long employment. Only Warring has better hands than many of the worker-bee tight ends on the list…and with that, he might be able to be a step ahead of most ‘grinder’ tight ends…one who grew up/learned in the modern passing era.

*A score of 7.0+ is where we start to take a TE prospect more seriously. A score of 8.50+ is where we see a stronger correlation of TEs going on to become NFL good/great/elite. A score of 10.00+ is more rarefied air in our system and indicates a greater probability of becoming an elite NFL TE.

All of the TE ratings are based on a 0–10 scale, but a player can score negative, or above a 10.0 in certain instances.

**The ‘TE-Reed’ score is in honor of Jordan Reed’s 2015 season…looking at TEs in a different manner—the smaller, speedy receiving threats.

“Speed-Agility Metric” = A combination of unique metrics surrounding speed, agility, physical size, mixed with some on-field performance metrics. High scorers here project to have a better YAC and show characteristics to be used as deep threats/create separation.

“Power-Strength Metric” = A combination of unique metrics surrounding physical size profiling, bench press strength, etc.  High scorers here project to be more physical, better blockers, and less injury-prone.

“Hands Metric” = A combination of unique metrics surrounding on-field performance in college, considering the strength of opponents played. Furthermore, this data considers some physical profiling for hand size, etc. High scorers here have a better track record of college statistical performance, and project the combination of data for receiving success at the next level.

2019 NFL Draft Outlook:

I see Warring draft projections all over the map…some have him as a ‘Day Two Sleeper’ while others barely show him getting drafted. Going between picks #90-125 seems like the right range for him.

If I were an NFL GM, I’d be aware of Warring…I’m not sure he’s enough of a talent to ‘reach’ for but for fair value (if in need) or as he falls, I’d get more interested. He has a lot of tools and feels like he has more upside to give considering his football inexperience and spending his college career tucked away, hiding amidst the weak San Diego State passing game.

NFL Outlook:   

The classic… ‘depends upon where he lands’ guy. He could add something to a passing game right away. He lined up as a big flanker many times in college, like the old Jimmy Graham and was a handful for linebackers and safeties to deal with.

I can’t get a great read on Warring. Some data points have me believing he’s the best ‘sleeper’ TE prospect of 2019, while other times I think I just see a low-end starter, high-end NFL backup. He belongs. How high he ascends remains to be seen. He has the tools if they all come together correctly. 

3/15/2019