TAMPA — It wasn't long ago, you would expect to hear a tight end's name called in the first round of the NFL draft.
From 2000 to 2010, there was at least one every year — two or three in some drafts, producing Pro Bowl names like Heath Miller and Greg Olsen and Jeremy Shockey.
But come Thursday night, chances are you won't see a tight end picked in the first round, and that will be the fourth time in six drafts, a clear sign that the position has lost much of its value in the NFL, with less and less talent coming from college football.