In one of the rarest moves in the NLF Draft, two tight ends from the same program were drafted in the first round in 2019. Those two tight ends were members of the Iowa Football program and "Tight End U."
During the 2019 NFL Draft, the Detroit Lions selected former Hawkeye T.J. Hockenson with the No. 8 overall pick, and 12 picks later, his teammate and another Iowa tight end was selected.
The Denver Broncos selected Noah Fant with the No. 20 overall pick, capping off the Iowa tight end show at the 2019 draft.
Hockenson had an average rookie season, accumulating 367 receiving yards (11.5 yard average) and two touchdowns on 32 receptions.
Fant had a better rookie season, tallying 562 yards (14.1 yard average) and three touchdowns on 40 receptions.
Before the beginning of training camp, one of the star first-round tight ends is searching for a new home.
Seahawks release TE Noah Fant. pic.twitter.com/WvtTrwgqTt
— NFL (@NFL) July 20, 2025
The Seahawks released veteran tight end Noah Fant after three seasons with the organization. Fant went to Seattle as part of the Denver and Seattle Russell Wilson trade in 2023.
Before joining the Seahawks, Fant played three seasons for the Denver Broncos, accumulating 1,905 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns on 170 receptions.
During his three seasons for the Seahawks, Fant tallied 1,400 receiving yards and five touchdowns on 130 receptions.
The Seahawks owed Fant $8.91 million next season, and save that salary cap hit by releasing him.
After Fant's release, Seattle will turn to second-year tight end AJ Barner, rookie Elijah Arroyo, and seven-year veteran Eric Saubert at the tight end position.
Fant will look to find a new team quickly before training camps end.