STRONG POINTS

He is a smooth and fluid athlete who consistently plays to the limits of his ability. He runs good routes and sells fakes well to turn a defender a little bit in the wrong direction. He has very good hands and does a very good job of reaching out and catching the ball away from his body. He can twist his body to adjust to off-target passes consistently. He runs aggressively and strong after the catch, which helps him to consistently keep his feet against hard hits, breaks tackles and drags tacklers for extra yards; he consistently gains yards after contact. He does a good job of blocking with bent knees and good position, and it helps him to consistently seal his man out of the play. He does a good job of staying over his feet and under control to block well on passes.

COMPETITIVENESS

Byrd is a tough tight end who has consistently shown toughness catching passes in traffic. He can catch the ball right before getting hit hard and hold onto it consistently. Although he's not an explosive, big-play receiver, he has shown the ability to make the important catch on short passes. He consistently ran strong and gained yards after contact. His overall production has been solid and consistent while at USC. He runs smooth and sharp routes, uses his hands very well to push a defender and get a little bit of space, and catches the ball consistently well with a defender on his back. He is not a physically dominant blocker, but he gets onto his man quickly, keeps his feet churning and usually can eliminate his man from the play. He is a team player who always runs very hard with the ball after the catch, drags tacklers for extra yards and breaks tackles. He never quits fighting for extra yards or to block his man out of play.

Bios courtesy of NFLDraftScout.com