Throughout the summer leading up to the regular season, we will go through the entire 2024 Cincinnati Bengals roster. Every single day until the season opener against the New England Patriots , we will break down a player on the roster including his background, contract status, and path towards making the team.
Today, tight end Tanner McLachlan gets put under the microscope. McLachlan was the second of two tight ends the Bengals selected in this year's NFL Draft. Like most Day 3 selections, his path to the NFL was far from easy, and his path towards making the 53-man roster isn't a guarantee as well. But there's much to like about what the newest tight end in Cincinnati has to offer.
Tanner McLachlan
- Age: 25
- Year: 1st
- Position: Tight end
- College: Arizona
- Previous Teams: None
- Jersey Number: 84
McLachlan was drafted by the Bengals with the 194th overall pick in the sixth round of the 2024 NFL Draft. At 25 years old, he's one of the oldest rookies in the NFL this year, but there are reasons why he's on the older side to begin his professional career.
Football wasn't McLachlan's main sport growing up, but it became the reason why the Alberta, Canada native moved to Arizona and stayed in high school for an extra year. He didn't get any attention from Division I programs and ended up at Southern Utah, where he spent the first four years of his college career. He missed all of 2021 due to a torn ACL, and was able to transfer to Arizona for the 2022 season.
It didn't take long for the experienced McLachlan to become an impact player for the Wildcats. He reeled in 34 receptions for 456 yards and two touchdowns as a seven-game starter in 2022. 2023 was even better as he posted 45 receptions for 528 yards and four touchdowns while starting 12 of his 13 games played. His 79 receptions in just two seasons broke the program record for tight ends that was originally set by Rob Gronkowski.
McLachlan proved to be a productive receiver at the Division I level and ran fast at the NFL Scouting Combine with a 40-yard dash time of 4.61. It was likely his age and lack of overall experience at the DI level that dropped him in the draft, allowing the Bengals to pick him nearly 200 selections into the draft.
Contract details
McLachlan signed a four-year, $4,203,056 deal with the Bengals in May that will pay him the minimum salary for the 2024 season.
His salary will cost $795,000 for the entire season if he's kept on the team for the entire regular season, but with a $183,056 signing bonus prorated throughout the deal, his cap hit as of now is $840,764 for the year.
Roster chances
A year after rostering very few reliable receiving tight ends, the Bengals now find themselves with several. McLachlan is joined by veterans Mike Gesicki and Tanner Hudson, along with fellow rookie draft pick Erick All. There's an argument that McLachlan and his near 4.6-flat speed makes him the best athlete of them all.
It's honestly a bit shocking a player like McLachlan isn't a near lock to make the initial 53-man roster, but that's the newfound reality for Cincinnati's tight end room. Gesicki, All, and Drew Sample are all very safe to make the team, but McLachlan can potentially push Hudson and his one-year contract off the team.
Should Hudson make it through cuts, McLachlan will have to make the argument he's valuable enough to go heavy at the position. Considering Sample may spend a good portion of his time in the backfield to fulfill the role he played last year, McLachlan's value as a pure tight end might become larger. He absolutely brings more value in that regard than past options in his shoes.
McLachlan may be cut purely because the Bengals don't have room for him. If he can't make it out of cuts, the team must be in terrific shape. I'd still guess he makes it through when it's all said and done.
Chances of making the roster: 65%
Previous player breakdowns
Related: Bengals Roster Breakdown: Cedric Johnson may force Cincinnati to think about the long game on the edge
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