Eli Heidenreich
Eli Heidenreich
Despite being one of the final picks of the 2026 NFL Draft, Eli Heidenreich garnered a big-time pro comparison. Since being drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers, national analysts and local pundits have made parallels between three-time All-Pro Christian McCaffrey and Heidenreich. Even for someone who likely spends little time scrolling his name on social media, Heidenreich is well aware of the comp.
“Yeah. Yeah, I have,” Heidenreich told reporters via the team website following Tuesday’s practice with a sheepish grin.
In skill set and, let’s be honest, skin tone, there’s a baseline level of similarity. McCaffrey is lauded for his versatility and ability as a receiver. His 80 receptions as a rookie remain fourth-most ever by a running back, and he caught 100 passes in the two seasons that followed. His 116 catches in 2019 set a record for the position.
Heidenreich exited Navy as the school’s all-time leader in receiving yards and touchdowns, with his 941 receiving yards last season also setting a program record. The two are similar in build and testing. Heidenreich gave McCaffrey his flowers while acknowledging the comparison is polarizing.
“He’s a fantastic player and one of the best to ever do it,” he said. “He’s just someone that I look up to, and really try to do my best to model him in certain ways. But yeah, I do see them. And I know people get pretty fired up one way or the other about them.”
So far, Heidenreich has had limited chance to test the comparison. He opened training camp buried on the depth chart and hasn’t seen much action in the passing game. A minor leg injury also cost him a handful of practices, though he’s trending in the right direction and could make his NFL debut Thursday night. He’s at least shown versatility wearing multiple hats on special teams: as a personal protector, kick returner, and on kick coverage.
Heidenreich’s short-term aim isn’t to match what McCaffrey did in his first year. It’s simply to make the team. Like the comparison or not, that’s all draft fodder. What matters is what’s in front of Heidenreich, which is three more training camp sessions and three preseason games to prove he’s worth keeping around. McCaffrey or not.