Fantasy Football Week 8 Waiver Wire Pickup: WR Gavin Escobar
By Ryan Ratty
@RyanRattyNFL
Matthew Emmons- USA TODAY Sports
When Gavin Escobar was drafted in the second round of the 2013 NFL Draft, many expected the Dallas Cowboys to develop him into the long-term successor to Jason Witten. At the time, the “12″ personnel was popular in the NFL, and the Cowboys wanted to follow this trend. The duo of Witten and Escobar sounded great, but his inability to block was ultimately the reason for the lack of success Escobar has had with the Cowboys.
While Escobar has been disappointing so far in his career with Dallas, he made the first move in turning it around on Sunday. Yes, he only had three catches, but Escobar brings another element to an already good offense. Escobar caught three passes for 57 yards, two of which were touchdowns. As I said earlier, Escobar has trouble with run blocking. When the Cowboys are running the football, they usually bring in James Hanna, but on third-and-longs, Escobar comes on and stretches defenses out. At 6-foot-6, 255 pounds, the converted basketball player has the prototypical size for an NFL tight end. While he doesn’t have blazing speed, Escobar is athletic enough and he has arguably the softest hands on the team. Jeff Sullivan had this to say of Escobar:
Been saying it for two years and have been ridiculed every which way, but Gavin Escobar has the best hands on the team. Has since Day One.
— Jeff Sullivan (@SullyBaldHead) October 19, 2014
Granted he won’t catch a ton of passes per game, Escobar is a nice player to monitor in the coming weeks. With Tony Romo starting to build a strong rapport with the second-year tight end, the future is bright for Escobar. With Witten aging and the Cowboys’ offense evolving, Escobar might be the guy to get if you’re lacking talent at the tight end position. If he passes waivers, Escobar will be a nice player to pickup and stash on your bench.
Ryan Ratty is a featured writer for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @RyanRattyNFL or add him to your network on Google.
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