The Denver Broncos threw everybody a curveball on draft day. Many observers expected them to take Drew Lock or another quarterback with the tenth pick, but instead, they traded down. They ended up nabbing Noah Fant with the 20th pick, and still got Lock in the second round.

While Broncos fans should be getting excited on Fant, they might need to tamp down their expectations just a bit. It's often said that tight end is the hardest position to transition from the college to pro game at, other than quarterback. Rookie tight ends hardly ever have big seasons, as they essentially have to learn the position all over again.

New Broncos coach Vic Fangio is old school, so don't expect him to bend too many norms. Fant has reportedly been showing out during OTAs, but Fangio threw cold water on the rising hopes, per Nicki Jhabvala of The Athletic.

“Yeah, he can run. We all knew that,” Fangio said. “That was easy, but now he has to learn how to be a tight end in the NFL. He’s got tools, but you know I can go into Home Depot and walk out with a bunch of nice tools and I’m not a carpenter. We have to teach him how to be a tight end in the NFL, and he’s working great at it.”

It's a classic Fangio analogy, and he does have a point. Coming out of college, many analysts wrote that Fant had major issues as a blocker and would need to adapt to the pros. Fangio isn't the type of coach to play a tight end who can't block, so hopefully, Fant can fine-tune that part of his game.

The Broncos haven't had much at tight end since Julius Thomas left, so it would be huge for the team if Fant can reach his potential. He was an elite redzone threat at Iowa, and hopefully, he can be the same in Denver.