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| Tyler Eifert | |
|---|---|
| Name | Tyler Eifert |
| Position | Tight end |
| Birth date | 8 November 1990 |
| Birth place | Fort Wayne, Indiana |
| Weight lb | 250 |
| College | Notre Dame |
| Draftyear | 2013 |
| Draftpick | 21 |
| Pastteams | * Cincinnati Bengals (2013–2020) * Jacksonville Jaguars (2021) |
| Highlights | * First-team All-American (2012) * John Mackey Award (2012) * Pro Bowl (2015) |
Tyler Eifert is an American former professional American football tight end known for his collegiate career at University of Notre Dame and his tenure with the Cincinnati Bengals in the National Football League. A first-round pick in the 2013 NFL Draft, he earned recognition for receiving ability, contested catches, and red-zone production, earning a Pro Bowl selection. His career was marked by notable performances, recurring injuries, and periods of rehabilitation that influenced roster decisions and team strategies.
Eifert was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana and attended Cincinnati-area schools before starring at Parkway High School—where he played football, basketball, and baseball alongside athletes recruited by programs such as Ohio State University, University of Michigan, University of Notre Dame, Pennsylvania State University, University of Oklahoma, University of Alabama, University of Southern California, University of Florida, and University of Texas at Austin. In high school he drew attention from scouts associated with the National Football League, Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten Conference, Southeastern Conference, Pac-12 Conference, Big 12 Conference, Notre Dame Fighting Irish football, Cincinnati Bearcats football, and Indiana Hoosiers football. He competed in postseason events similar to the U.S. Army All-American Bowl, the Under Armour All-America Game, and regional combines frequented by personnel from the Green Bay Packers, New England Patriots, Pittsburgh Steelers, Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Chicago Bears, Washington Commanders, and Philadelphia Eagles.
Eifert enrolled at the University of Notre Dame and played for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football program under head coaches such as Charlie Weis and Brian Kelly. He developed alongside teammates who progressed to the NFL Draft and compared favorably to prominent tight ends from Stanford Cardinal football, Michigan Wolverines football, Florida Gators football, Texas Longhorns football, Ohio State Buckeyes football, Oregon Ducks football, and USC Trojans football. In 2012 he won the John Mackey Award and achieved First-team All-American honors while participating in matchups against programs like USC Trojans, Michigan State Spartans, Pittsburgh Panthers, Boston College Eagles, University of Miami Hurricanes football, Clemson Tigers football, Louisville Cardinals football, Syracuse Orange football, Northwestern Wildcats football, and Stanford Cardinal football. His collegiate production led to projection alongside prospects such as Graham Killeen and comparisons to professional tight ends including Rob Gronkowski, Jimmy Graham, Antonio Gates, Vernon Davis, Zach Ertz, Travis Kelce, Julius Thomas, and Greg Olsen.
Selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft, Eifert joined a roster featuring players like A. J. Green, Andy Dalton, Giovanni Bernard, Marvin Lewis, T.J. Houshmandzadeh, Chad Ochocinco, Carlos Dunlap, Vontaze Burfict, Rey Maualuga, Domata Peko, and later teammates such as Joe Burrow and Ja'Marr Chase. His rookie season involved learning from coaching staff connected to the NFL Coaches Association, specialist coaches with pedigrees linked to programs including Notre Dame, Ohio State, Michigan, Alabama, LSU Tigers football, Florida State Seminoles football, and USC Trojans football. Eifert's best statistical season came in 2015 when he earned a Pro Bowl nod and led Bengals passing targets with quarterbacks including Andy Dalton, Carson Palmer, A.J. McCarron, Tom Brady-adjacent comparisons, and contemporaries such as Ben Roethlisberger, Drew Brees, Aaron Rodgers, Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, Russell Wilson, Cam Newton, Matthew Stafford, and Joe Flacco. After injuries and recovery he later signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars and participated in preseason planning alongside personnel connected to the AFC North, the AFC South, the New York Jets, Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Carolina Panthers, Tennessee Titans, and Indianapolis Colts.
Eifert was known for contested-catch skill sets akin to Rob Gronkowski, Jimmy Graham, Zach Ertz, Travis Kelce, Antonio Gates, Greg Olsen, Julius Thomas, Jordan Reed, Delanie Walker, Darren Waller, Jason Witten, Antonio Gates, Kyle Rudolph, Maxx Williams, Hunter Henry, O. J. Howard, and Evan Engram. His play combined route-running refined in systems like those used by Wing T offense-adjacent coordinators and red-zone schematics seen with franchises such as the New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Pittsburgh Steelers, New Orleans Saints, Green Bay Packers, Kansas City Chiefs, Denver Broncos, San Francisco 49ers, Baltimore Ravens, and Los Angeles Rams. Statistically, his career included notable single-season receiving totals, touchdown counts, and yards per reception that analysts compared to leaders from the NFL such as Antonio Brown, Julio Jones, DeAndre Hopkins, Antonio Brown, Odell Beckham Jr., A.J. Green, Calvin Johnson, Larry Fitzgerald, Michael Thomas, Stefon Diggs, Keenan Allen, and Michael Crabtree.
Eifert's career was significantly affected by injuries including ankle and hamstring issues, surgeries comparable to procedures performed on players like Adrian Peterson, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Rob Gronkowski, Tom Brady, LeBron James-adjacent rehabs, and protocols overseen by medical teams associated with institutions such as Cleveland Clinic, Mayo Clinic, Johns Hopkins Hospital, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, HSS, and university athletic departments like Notre Dame Fighting Irish athletics. His rehabilitation processes included strength programs, physical therapy regimes, and offseason training approaches used by veterans across franchises including the New York Giants, Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Chargers, Minnesota Vikings, Dallas Cowboys, Houston Texans, Arizona Cardinals, Seattle Seahawks, Buffalo Bills, and San Francisco 49ers.
Off the field, Eifert engaged with charitable organizations and community initiatives similar to partnerships seen with NFLPA-affiliated causes, team foundations such as the Cincinnati Bengals Foundation, collegiate alumni networks like Notre Dame Alumni Association, and national efforts involving the United Way, Make-A-Wish Foundation, Boys & Girls Clubs of America, Special Olympics, and local Indiana and Ohio charities. His family ties include relatives and acquaintances connected to the Fort Wayne and Cincinnati regions, and he has been featured in media outlets alongside athletes and personalities from networks including ESPN, NFL Network, FOX Sports, CBS Sports, NBC Sports, Bleacher Report, The Athletic, and local newspapers such as the Cincinnati Enquirer.
Category:1990 births Category:Living people Category:American football tight ends