Veteran tight end Parker Hesse has signed with the Detroit Lions as another rookie minicamp tryout. Here’s more on the former defensive end.
On Sunday, it was reported that the Detroit Lions had signed rookie minicamp tryout Kaden Davis to their 90-man roster. On Monday, the Lions announced that signing, as well as the addition of tight end Parker Hesse to the Allen Park tryout roster.
Hesse, 28, was actually the second oldest player in rookie minicamp (after 29-year-old Mathieu Betts). Hesse, another NFL tight end who attended Iowa, was a defensive lineman in college. He went undrafted in 2019, but spent two years with the Tennessee Titans, switching to tight end.
He has spent the past three years on and off the Atlanta Falcons’ practice squad. Having said that, he has appeared in 28 games for the Falcons, eight of which were starts.
At 6-foot-3 and 261 pounds, he’s built like a blocking tight end, and his background as a defensive lineman suggests someone who enjoys contact. However, his run blocking grades in the NFL have been just marginal, with a 72.5 PFF his first season in Atlanta and 61.2 and 50.9 the last two years.
In his most active year (2022), Hesse added nine catches for 89 yards in 17 game appearances and seven starts, which was a significant boost for the Falcons, who were missing Kyle Pitts due to an injury.
“The things we ask Parker Hesse to do that nobody will ever notice, guy just does his job,” former Falcons coach Arthur Smith remarked in 2023. “You can see why he was Iowa’s captain—a defensive end, by the way. Just a thankless professional who does not receive enough recognition.”
Hesse joins a crowded tight end corps that includes Sam LaPorta, Brock Wright, James Mitchell, Shane Zylstra, and undrafted rookie Isaac Rex.
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