Alabama Tight End Compared to Best in the NFL

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - Alabama players met with the media on Tuesday, and with it, came an interesting comparison for an unsung hero on Alabama's offense so far this season.

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Josh Cuevas, a 6-foot-3, 256-pound tight end from Los Angeles, California, transferred to Alabama after Kalen DeBoer accepted the Crimson Tide's head coaching vacancy following Nick Saban's retirement in 2023. Cuevas had previously joined DeBoer at Washington after spending his first two seasons of college football at Cal Poly. Coevas earned playing time at Alabama sparingly behind CJ Dippre and Robbie Outz last season, but is now the mainstay at tight end for Alabama during his redshirt senior season.

So far this season, he's been a plus blocker and has been Ty Simpson's 'safety blanket' in the receiving game, totaling 13 catches for 126 yards and two touchdowns (his FBS career high) through the first five games of the season. On Tuesday, the Crimson Tide's signal-caller compared him to two of the best to do it in the NFL.

"Dude's insane," Simpson said on Tuesday. "Dude's got some of the best ball skills I've ever seen. You know, for people to say he's a smaller guy, but he puts his face mask in people like he's 6-foot-7, like he's Kadyn Proctor. I'm just glad he's on my team, to be honest with you.

"We can use him in so many different ways. And then, us asking him to do the stuff that he does, it's incredible. Like, the fact that that guy came so far from an FCS school to Washington to here and is playing at an All-American level - he's my guy, man. I thank him every day.

"He's like a safety blanket. You know what I mean? Not many tight ends can act like Travis Kelce and block like George Kittle."

Quite the comparison for Cuevas. Kelce is widely regarded as one of the best receiving tight ends in NFL history as a 10-time Pro Bowler, four time First Team All-Pro, and three time Super Bowl Champion. Kelce is no doubt a lock for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Kittle is also widely regarded as one of the best in the NFL, known for his love of blocking and desire to hit people. Kittle has had a pretty successful NFL career as well, being named a Pro Bowler six times.

Quite the comparison for Cuevas, who leads Alabama's tight ends in receiving yards and is fourth on the team in touchdowns.

Wyatt Fulton is the Tide 100.9 DME and Brand Manager, primarily covering Alabama Crimson Tide football and men's basketball. For more Crimson Tide coverage, follow Wyatt on X (Formerly known as Twitter) at @FultonW_.