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NY Jets make Mason Taylor highest-drafted LSU TE since 1997

Jerit Roser Twitterby: Jerit Roser04/25/25JeritRoser
Syndication: The Daily Advertiser
Mason Taylor 86 runs the ball as the LSU Tigers take on the Ole Miss Rebels at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, LA. Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024.Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024.

The most productive pass-catching tight end in LSU history became the program’s highest-drafted player at the position in nearly two decades Friday.

Mason Taylor was selected with the No. 42 overall pick in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft by the New York Jets, the franchise where his father, Hall-of-Fame defensive end Jason Taylor, finished his career in 2010.

The Tigers hadn’t had a tight end drafted since Stephen Sullivan in the seventh round in 2020 and none so highly since David LaFleur with the No. 22 overall pick in the first round in 1997.

This year’s class was considered particularly strong at the position, with Taylor joining Michigan’s Colston Loveland and Penn State’s Tyler Warren already coming off the board in Thursday’s first round to headline the group.

“Being that all-around guy, all-around player as a tight end doing whatever’s asked of him, whatever’s on my plate,” Taylor said at LSU’s Pro Day of his mentality. “And kind of being a guy that’s an every-down player as a tight end and doing everything in the run game and pass game. That’s really what I try to pride myself on.”

The 6-foot-5, 250-pound standout finished his college career with 129 receptions for 1,308 yards and six touchdowns, marking program records for catches and yards.

And he caught at least one pass in a remarkable 28 straight games and 37 of his 38 career games to highlight a consistency NFL Draft analysts pointed to as a particularly intriguing strength as a prospect among the wealth of options at the position.

“You look at his career and it was steady,” longtime ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. recently said on an episode of his “First Draft” podcast. “Two years with Jayden Daniels, a year with Garrett Nussmeier. Three catches to eight catches – that’s what you’d expect just about every game he played, certainly this past year. He was out there, reliable, consistent, right… You know what you’re getting. Like I said, very steady, reliable. It’s a safe pick.”

LSU’s 2025 NFL Draft Class

Rd. 1, Pick 4 | OL Will Campbell | New England Patriots | Story
Rd. 2, Pick 42 | TE Mason Taylor | New York Jets | Story
Rd. 3, Pick 91 | OL Emery Jones Jr. | Baltimore Ravens | Story
Rd. 3, Pick 101 | EDGE Sai’vion Jones | Denver Broncos | Story
Rd. 5, Pick 146 | EDGE Bradyn Swinson | New England Patriots | Story
Rd. 5, Pick 171 | OL Miles Frazier | Detroit Lions | Story
Rd. 7, Pick 243 | OL Garrett Dellinger | Baltimore Ravens | Story

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