Does Mike Gesicki have what it takes to make the Pro Bowl?

Mike Gesicki has the skills and may find a Pro Bowl in his future.

Mike Gesicki is next in on our list of potential Miami Dolphins players who could make the Pro Bowl in 2020. Can he take that next big step?

This week we are looking at five Miami Dolphins players who could take the next step in their careers and add the title of “Pro Bowler” to their resume. Today is Mike Gesicki.

Yesterday I made the case as to why Byron Jones could be a Pro Bowl player for the Miami Dolphins. Today we go back to the offensive side of the ball for player number three. Tight end Mike Gesicki has all the tools to become a force in the passing game, what he needs now are the opportunities.

Gesicki took a big step in this process last year. Gesicki came out of Penn State possessing freakish athletic ability for a guy his size. I know a good performance at the combine does not necessarily equate to success in the NFL (see Mike Mamula) but it is one tool scouts use to measure physical giftedness.

At the 2018 combine, Mike Gesiki put up eye-popping numbers. At a shade over 6’5” and 252 pounds Gesicki was by far the top-performing tight end. He ran a 4.54-second 40-yard dash (Tied for first among tight ends). He also was first among tight ends with a vertical jump of 41 ½  inches and a broad jump of 10 feet 9 inches.

When you take Mike Gesicki’s athletic measurements and combine them with his production in his Junior and Senior seasons on a run-heavy Penn State team that featured Saquon Barkley, you have all the makings of a Pro Bowl tight end. In his final two seasons with the Nittany Lions, Gesicki caught 105 passes for 1,242 yards and 14 touchdowns.

Gesicki’s first year with the Dolphins was very lackluster thanks to Adam Gase. Gase took an uber-athletic tight end and forced him to be an in-line blocker. That’s just not what Gesicki does. Thankfully under the new regime, Gesicki was put in more situations that were more suited to his strengths running many of his routes from the slot.

If Gesicki wants to be in the Pro Bowl conversation he’s going to need to perform as he did in the final 10 games of last season. Maybe it’s a coincidence but in the first 6 games of the season, the Miami Dolphins were 0-6. In the final 10 games, Dolphins played .500 football going 5-5. When you look at Gesicki’s stats below it’s not a large leap to say the uptick in his use probably played a role in the team’s improvement.

First 6 games – 15 catches 153 yards 0 tds

Final 10 games – 36 catches 417 yards 5 tds

Even with all that is good about Mike Gesicki, it’s still going to be a tough ask to make the Pro Bowl as an AFC tight end. Last year’s Pro Bowlers had very good seasons and there’s no reason to think they won’t continue putting up numbers.

Mark Andrews  64 catches  852 yards 10 tds

Travis Kelce     97 catches 1229 yards 5 tds

Finally, there are people that are going to say that new/old Dolphins offensive coordinator, Chan Gailey, does not feature the tight end in his offense. I would argue though that that isn’t 100% true. When you look back at the tight ends that Chan Gailey has had over the years the list isn’t that great. Jeff Cumberland, Kellen Davis, Clarence Kay, Orson Mobley, Eric Bjornson, and David LaFleur put the fear in exactly no one. And who could forget the duo of Jed Weaver and Hunter Goodwin from Gailey’s first stint in Miami.

When you look at 2008 when Gailey was the offensive coordinator and play-caller in Kansas City, some guy named Tony Gonzalez put up 96 receptions for 1058 yards and 10 touchdowns. Now my point isn’t that Mike Gesicki is in any conversation with Tony Gonzalez, the point is when given talent at a position on offense, Gailey will use it to his advantage.

In the end, Mike Gesicki is a long shot to be a Pro Bowler this season but, it’s certainly not out of the realm of possibility.