At his press conference on Monday Mario Cristobal covered more ground than the Oregon tight ends did all season in 2018, and one of the things he touched on was that veteran assistant and special teams coach Bobby Williams would take over responsibility for the position in spring practice.

Maybe the shakeup will help. The group had a lackluster 2018, losing starter Cam McCormick to injury earlier in the year and struggling to find a balance between blocking and catching the football, coming in at about 50/50 on both parts of the job.

Bothered by a chronically sore back, senior-to-be Jake Breeland struggled some with his blocking but was the unit's most reliable pass catcher. He pulled down 24 balls for 377 yards and two touchdowns, third overall on the team. His highlight moments included a 66-yard touchdown against San Jose State, a touchdown against Stanford, 4 catches for 63 yards on the road in Pullman, and big plays of 33 and 21 yards versus UCLA and Michigan State.

Breeland's catch totals have steadily advanced in his three years, from 6 to 18 to 24, and if he can find some relief for the balky spinal column, some combination of rest, massage, acupuncture, stretching or Benny Hinn, he could become a breakout player in his final season. He has some rapport with Justin Herbert, plus the range to get deeper in coverage.

Departed senior transfer Kano Dillon never materialized as a reliable second option, making a couple of big plays, dinged up a good share of the time, dropping as many as he caught when Marcus Arroyo called his number.

McCormick is full-go for spring practice after a knee injury in the opener versus Bowling Green last September. He'd won the #1 job outright in fall camp, and looked ready to capitalize on his 6-5, 253 frame and athletic gifts.

Over his season of rehab he attacked recovery with relentless energy while staying involved with the team. He's a good candidate for a medical redshirt and may be able to play three more seasons in Eugene, guaranteed at least two. The Summit High/Bend product is the group's best blocker. He's worked hard on his pass catching skills and may surprise.

The best season by an Oregon tight end in the last ten years belongs to Ed Dickson during the Rose Bowl year of 2009: 42 receptions, 551 yards, 6 touchdowns. They haven't had a TE crack 450 since. Dickson was second on the team in receptions that season, and no tight end has been higher than third over the past eight campaigns. Two dozen catches is about the norm.

A shame, because a reliable tight end can be such a weapon in keeping the chains moving and exploiting the seams in a passing attack. Through a series of offensive coordinators, the big fellas have largely been an afterthought.

With Mario Cristobal's love of the power running game, the play-action pass to the tight end is a powerful, logical counterpoint, provided the Ducks can learn to execute it with more consistency. That starts with remembering the big guy is in the formation.

Chunk plays were scarce in the RedBox Bowl, but one of the Ducks most successful was an RPO to Breeland that completely froze the defense.

Redshirt freshman Spencer Webb was a four-star recruit coming out of high school, rated the number ten tight end in the country by Rivals, 236th in the Rivals 250. His senior year stats at Christian Brothers Academy in Sacramento are awe-inspiring: 61 catches, 1063 yards, 23 touchdowns over 13 games. Cal-Hi Sports named him first team all-state.

Webb chose the Ducks over Notre Dame, Texas A&M and Oklahoma. The big-time recruit stayed patient in his scout team year, fully sold on UO and making his mark here. This season he'll be in the Oregon playbook every day, pushing the veterans. At 6-6, 234 he has the length and range to be tough to cover, but he'll have to force his way up the depth chart by making plays in practice, sometimes with limited opportunities starting 4th on the depth chart.

Ryan Bay enters his senior year having caught 9 passes for 74 yards and no touchdowns last season.

The wild card entry in the tight end sweepstakes is incoming freshman Patrick Herbert, the younger brother of the Ducks Heisman Trophy candidate at quarterback. He's 6-5, 225, the #8 tight end in the 2019 class, recruited by Arroyo. Herbert had offers from Nebraska and Penn State. He had 11 receiving touchdowns last season and 22 in his career at Sheldon High.