The Arizona Cardinals are hosting Coastal Carolina tight end Isaiah Likely next week, reports NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
Rapoport adds that Likely is in Buffalo visiting the Bills on Thursday and also spent time with the New York Jets recently.
Likely is coming off his best collegiate season, recording 59 catches for 912 yards and a team-high 12 touchdowns. The 6-foot-4, 241-pound tight end is considered one of, if not the, best tight end prospect in the 2022 NFL Draft and could be off the board early on in Day 2.
NFL Network draft analyst Lance Zierlein’s NFL comparison for Likely is 14-year veteran Delanie Walker.
Tight end prospect with an intangibles profile and positional traits that make him projectable to the next level. Likely was a winner in high school and played a pivotal role in the ascension of Coastal Carolina over the past two seasons. He lacks a prototypical tight end frame and is an inconsistent blocker, but he runs well and filled up his career stat sheet with big plays.
But while Likely’s talents are evident, the tight end position isn’t a major necessity for the Cardinals this offseason after locking up the duo of Zach Ertz on a three-year deal and Maxx Williams on a one-year contract.
The team also inked free-agent tight end Stephen Anderson to a one-year deal this offseason and has David Wells currently under contract.