I like Pettigrew as a player, and if our team had less holes I think he'd be a great fit for us. But, our defensive deficiencies are simply too great to spend a pick on a relative non-need.
FWIW, LZ addressed Pettigrew in his blog as well and I though his take was interesting.
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Pettigrew is similar to Daniel Graham coming out of college in my opinion. A "combo" tight end as a first rounder is a classic football theory 400 level course. Football people who value a blocking TE who can catch passes will tell you that having an extra blocker on the line of scrimmage is invaluable to the running game. I can't tell you how many times over the last two seasons I've seen Heath Miller open up a lane for a Steelers RB. If you are going to be on the line of scrimmage, you want to be able to do your part and Pettigrew does his part. Now if the guy can catch passes too, then he becomes even more valuable on the backside with bootlegs where he blocks down and then can release. Also, as a bigger target, he can be a huge threat on third downs. And to take it a step further, if you already have a guy like Owen Daniels, you can play Pettigrew on the line and Daniels on the slot which can open up mismatch problems on Daniels or even formation problems for defenses as it pertains to stopping the run. Now you have a TE blocking from the slot against a safety or LB and a good run blocking tight end on the opposite side of the formation. The Colts have used this formation to their advantage for a few years now and it puts enormous pressure on defenses as they have to worry about big targets AND the ability to run the ball to other side.
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