LSU football needs tight end depth to emerge to boost offense

LSU football tight end Trey'Dez Green is expected to be a weapon for LSU's offense in 2026. The 6-foot-7 pass catcher is a nightmare for defenders and will likely be preseason first-team All-SEC.

But for all of the attention Green is getting as LSU's starting tight end, it's worth looking at who LSU's TE2 will be. Green is a pass-catching first tight end. He's made progress as a blocker, but it's an area that needs work. LSU will want to work in a player more capable of blocking SEC-level defensive linemen.

At Ole Miss, Lane Kiffin and Charlie Weis Jr. leaned on tight end Dae'Quan Wright to play 804 snaps in 2025. But he wasn't the only tight end to see the field. Trace Bruckler played 228 snaps, Caleb Odom played 184, and Luke Hasz played 131. The Rebels had four tight ends they trusted on the field, even if Wright got the bulk of the work.

LSU won't roll that deep at tight end -- the Tigers don't have the same depth at the position that the 2025 Ole Miss squad did. Still, a couple of guys will get playing time alongside Green.

LSU signed two transfer tight ends: Malachi Thomas and Zach Grace.

Thomas and Grace are different players. Thomas is more of a classic tight end. He's 6-foot-3, and 242 pounds. He's athletic enough to catch a few passes and a decent enough blocker to put his hand in the dirt. Grace is strictly a blocking tight end, at least that's how he was used at Oregon.

Grace's role at LSU could be limited to speciality packages like short yardage and goal line. He played 60 snaps with Oregon in 2025 -- 53 came as a run blocker.