Time to See What the Younger Otton Brings to the Husky TE Corps

Originally posted on FanNation Husky Maven | By Dan Raley | Last updated 3/4/24

University of Washington tight ends have been in the news a lot lately. The outgoing Devin Culp was the talk of the NFL Scouting Combine with his dazzling 4.47-second 40-yard dash. The incoming Charlie Crowell, all 6-foot-5 and 240 pounds of him, just flipped from Arizona to the Huskies.

Continuing discussion persists in how Jedd Fisch's new staff needs to restock a traditionally strong Husky position that is sending the equally talented Jack Westover and Culp to the pros and the exceptionally skilled Josh Cuevas to Alabama.

Amid all of this continuing tight-end turnover, Husky sophomore Ryan Otton hasn't generated much discussion at all. It's time that changed.

Granted, while he hails from a notable football family in Tumwater, Washington, previously well known to the Huskies, this Otton has had to wait his turn for the older guys to finish.

He's also had to deal with the death of his mother in the middle of his freshman season and lingering injuries that have nagged at him for both of his years in the program, with Otton severely pulling a hamstring muscle in his very first UW practice .

People eagerly have been waiting for the chance to compare Ryan Otton to his older brother Cade, who has been a first-team All-Pac-12 tight end, a fourth-round NFL draft pick and for two seasons the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' top player at that position.

"He has athleticism," former UW tight-ends coach Nick Sheridan said of Ryan before leaving with Kalen DeBoer for Alabama. "I think he has physicality. He's not afraid to stick his face in there. He's a great kid from a great family and he's getting better every day."

Both Ottons redshirted during their first seasons in Montlake, with Cade growing into a 6-foot-5, 250-pound player and Ryan now carrying a 6-foot-6, 243-pound frame.

Cade didn't appear in a game during his first UW season, while Ryan made a cameo appearance as a true freshman against Colorado.

Where their Husky football careers took different turns was the redshirt freshman season, when Cade became a starter and caught 13 passes for 174 yards and 3 touchdowns, and Ryan endured another injury-interrupted year and played only against California.

The older Otton, of course, went on to start 35 of 39 games over four active Husky seasons and finish with 91 catches for 1,026 yards and 9 touchdowns. Ryan remains stuck on two mop-up appearances.

In two NFL seasons, Cade Otton has started 28 of 33 Bucs games while catching 89 balls for 846 yards and 6 touchdowns from the now retired Tom Brady and current Tampa Bay quarterback Baker Mayfield.

Ryan Otton still is awaiting his first UW catch that, barring any further injury or competitive interruptions, should come from Mississippi State transfer quarterback Will Rogers.

With spring football opening in a month, Otton enters the tight-end competition as one of the older guys, along with 6-foot-4, 255-pound senior Quentin Moore, another local player from Kenmore, Washington.

They'll be joined by a pair of freshmen signees in 6-foot-3, 230-pound Decker DeGraaf from San Dimas, California, and eventaully 6-foot-5, 240-pound Charlie Crowell from Medford, Oregon.

If all goes as planned, with an unencumbered Otton available and the others settling in, people might quit saying the Huskies need tight-end help.

Follow Dan Raley of Inside the Huskies on X — @DanRaley1 or @UWFanNation.

This article first appeared on FanNation Husky Maven and was syndicated with permission.

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