Andrew Rappleyea TE Penn State |
NFL Draft Profile & Scouting Report
| Jersey: #87 ROLE: Slot Blocking TE | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last Updated: 08/03/2026 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Draft Year: 2027 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| FORTY time: 4.65 seconds (80%*) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Age: 22.5 DOB: 02/22/2004 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Jersey: #87 | |
| ROLE: Slot Blocking TE | |
| Last Updated: 08/03/2026 | |
| Draft Year: 2027 | |
| Forty time: 4.65 seconds (80%*) | |
| Age: 22.5 DOB: 02/22/2004 | |
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SHARE THIS PROFILE:
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| Overall Rating: |
79.3 / 100
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| Average rating of opposition Defense player has faced | ||
| Defense Rating: |
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80% |
| Click the links below to view how player ranks vs other prospects. | ||
| Hands: |
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84% |
| Short Receiving: |
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74% |
| Intermediate Routes: |
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79% |
| Deep Threat: |
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69% |
| Blocking: |
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62% |
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DRAFT PROJECTION:
6th
Overall Rank:
#196
Position rank:
#10 (TE)
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| College Games: 13 College Snaps: 398 | ||
ESPN RATING: 82/100
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247 RATING: 93/100
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RIVALS RATING: 5.9 (97%)
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| Player Comparison* (Similarity level) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Dallen Bentley - Utah |
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93% |
| Tanner McLachlan - Arizona |
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91% |
| Joe Royer - Cincinnati |
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87% |
Draft Profile: Bio
A New York native who prepped at Milton Academy in Massachusetts, Rappleyea was a four-star and one of the top tight ends in the 2023 class, originally committing to Michigan before flipping to Penn State. He developed behind a deep tight end room, working into the rotation as a two-way option.In 2025 Rappleyea caught 20 passes for 180 yards and three touchdowns across thirteen games, handling an inline blocking role on more than 230 run-blocking snaps while allowing just one pressure. A reliable, well-rounded tight end who can line up inline or flex, he profiles as a developmental two-way piece with the hands and frame to grow into a bigger receiving role. The three-touchdown season and the inline blocking value point to a developing two-way piece, and the Michigan-to-Penn State flip landed him in one of the more decorated tight end pipelines in the country.
Scouting Report: Strengths
- Caught twenty of twenty-two targets without a drop, the cleanest hands in this group.
- Hands tape lead every tight end in the class by a comfortable margin.
- Best game came late, four catches for 75 and a score at Rutgers.
- Good timed speed with the build to handle both wings of the position.
- Started through Penn State's chaos year and kept his own film tidy.
Scouting Report: Weaknesses
- Volume never arrived: 180 receiving yards across thirteen starting-role games.
- After-catch work is functional, not dangerous; defenses tackled him on schedule.
- Run blocking tape sits mid-tier, below what the frame and role demand.
- The 2025 staff collapse leaves his usage unreadable as evidence either way.
Scouting Report: Summary
Reliability is the resume. Rappleyea caught twenty of his twenty-two targets without a single drop, posting the best hands tape of any tight end in this class, and his late-season Rutgers game, four catches, 75 yards and a score, hinted at a receiving dimension the offense never consistently asked for. He held the starting job through a season in which Penn State fired its head coach and shuffled quarterbacks, and his own tape stayed orderly while everything around it burned.The argument against is volume and force. A starting tight end finishing with 180 receiving yards is hard to project upward, his after-catch work gains what is blocked and no more, and the run blocking tape sits mid-tier when the role asks for better. Fairly or not, the program's collapse makes the small numbers difficult to grade: it is impossible to know whether the offense failed him or simply found nothing more to use.
He chose to return and find out, staying in State College for a rebuilt 2026 staff that inherits the most sure-handed tight end it could ask for. A season of real target volume would move him from trustworthy to draftable, because zero-drop receivers with his frame always get a roster look somewhere. The projection today is a priority free agent with a specialist's calling card, and meaningful room above it if the new offense feeds him.
How other scouting services rate Andrew Rappleyea (Overall Rank)
All Scouts AverageOverall Rank
94.0
All Scouts AveragePosition Rank
5.0
*Percentile Ranking in Player's Position Group (NFL Combine Historical Data): This percentile reflects how a player's specific statistics rank
in comparison to historical performances at the NFL Combine, specifically within their position group. A higher percentile indicates a better performance.
For instance, being in the 90th percentile for a particular stat means the player outperformed 90% of their peers in that category.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.
*Similarity Percentage: This percentage is calculated based on a comprehensive analysis of various factors, including height, weight, 40-yard dash times, on-field performance statistics, and overall player rating. The analysis is conducted against our database of draft prospects from 2021 to 2023. This similarity score helps in evaluating how closely a current prospect aligns with past prospects. It is important to note, however, that this score reflects similarities based on college production and attributes, and does not account for eventual success or performance in the NFL.