Tyler Warren, just three games into his pro career, is establishing himself as one of the more physical tight ends in the NFL whether he has the ball in his hands or not.
The 2025 first-round pick's physicality comes from a preternatural toughness, but also a certain team-first mentality.
"(Being physical) is a way to show you care for your teammates, right?" Warren said. "If you're willing to be physical and you don't have the ball or you're not making a play, it's a cool thing to do."
Warren's blend of physicality, athleticism and football smarts has allowed head coach Shane Steichen and the Colts' offensive brain trust to use the Penn State product in plenty of ways so far. One notable thing here: Warren has lined up as a fullback eight times in three games, and on those eight plays, the Colts' offense has gained four first downs and averaged 11.3 yards per play.
On a third-and-one against the Miami Dolphins in Week 1, Warren motioned into the backfield, lined up as a fullback, put his hand in the turf and took a handoff up the middle to pick up a first down. In Week 2, Warren motioned under center, faked a direct snap, lined up behind right guard Quenton Nelson and sprinted to the flat at the snap; the Denver Broncos covered him on third-and-one, but quarterback Daniel Jones was able to scramble for a first down.
On the next play, Warren again motioned into the backfield. This time, he ran a diabolical corner route from far hash to the near numbers, scything through the Broncos' defense and getting open for a gain of 41 yards.
Then, in Week 3 against the Tennessee Titans, Warren put his hand in the turf as a fullback, again offset and ahead of running back Jonathan Taylor. At the snap, Warren poured into the C-gap (between the tackle and tight end) and thumped linebacker Cody Barton, allowing Taylor to slip the third level of the Titans' defense, where he worked his magic for a spectacular 46-yard touchdown.
So from these true fullback looks, Warren has rushed for a first down, caught a 41-yard pass and set up a 46-yard run with a block.
A player's versatility usually is a good thing, but sometimes coaching staffs will unwittingly become predictable when tapping into it. If Warren were able to line up as a fullback but was only good at blocking, and was used almost always to block, it'd be a sign to an opposing defense that a run is coming.
But Warren's presence in the backfield has not given anything away. He could take a handoff. He could catch a downfield pass or sprint to the flat. He could lay a physical block. His skillset lends itself to doing all those things well, which allows Steichen and Colts coaches to stay unpredictable when the sprinkle him into the backfield.
"As a staff, you always want to put eye wash on everything you do and not have those tells," Steichen said.
What Warren has done as a fullback is one thing; his versatility to block or get out in the passing pattern when lined up as a tight end is more consistent within the Colts' offense. Warren is one of five tight ends this season with PFF receiving and run blocking grades over 70; he leads all tight ends with 193 receiving yards and his 10 receiving first downs are tied for the most in the NFL.
"If you can do both, you're not only going to be more valuable to yourself, but add more value to the offense and make it a better offense," Warren said. "I think it's really important."
But it's just as important for Warren to be able to do both no matter where he lines up on the field. If his hand is in the dirt at fullback, he might run a deep corner route against you – or he might deliver a punishing block on your linebacker to create room for his team's star running back.
"When you've got a guy with that type of skillset," Steichen said, "you want to be able to use that skillset."
And you want to be unpredictable doing it, which Warren's skillset has allowed Steichen to be.
