One of the more popular offensive weapons from the Jonathan Smith era was just signed to his first NFL contract after going undrafted.
Jack Velling was thought to be a potential late-round 2026 NFL Draft pick, but his two years in East Lansing were apparently not enough to make him Michigan State’s first drafted tight end since Dion Sims was picked by the Miami Dolphins in the fourth round back in 2013.
While Velling may have expected to hear his name called over the weekend, he didn’t waste much time signing his first NFL contract with the Atlanta Falcons.
Velling is going to re-join former teammate Nate Carter in Atlanta after the former Spartan tight end signed a post-draft deal with the Falcons. The two were teammates in East Lansing in 2024 after Velling transferred over from Oregon State, following his head coach. Carter also went undrafted last year before signing as an undrafted free agent with the Falcons and he ended up defying the odds and making the 53-man roster.
That gives Velling hope that he could do the same. The Falcons are clearly willing to give undrafted free agents a serious look, and I think Velling has the potential to stick around in the NFL.
Jack Velling’s Michigan State career was a roller-coaster
At Oregon State, Velling was one of the best tight ends in the country, catching 45 passes for over 700 yards and 11 touchdowns in two seasons. Everyone expected him to contend for the Mackey Award at Michigan State with Aidan Chiles getting him the ball.
That didn’t quite pan out.
Chiles struggled in East Lansing and it just felt like he was never on the same page as Velling. The former All-Pac-12 selection at tight end saw his numbers suffer because of it. I definitely wouldn’t call Velling’s Michigan State career a “disappointment”, but I would say that it fell short of expectations although I wouldn’t put that all on him. Yes, he had his struggles, but the offense was a mess.
Velling was still one of the more popular and polarizing players from the Smith era, catching 72 passes for 770 yards and four touchdowns. He put up solid numbers, but he didn’t take off like he was expected to. He was still a well above average tight end.
I could see him sticking in Atlanta like Carter did.
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