# Mychal Rivera
**Mychal Rivera** is a former [American football](https://www.edgepedia.org/american-football) tight end who played four seasons for the [Oakland Raiders](https://www.edgepedia.org/oakland-raiders) (2013 to 2016) after being selected by the Raiders in the sixth round, 184th overall, of the 2013 NFL Draft out of the [University of Tennessee](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-tennessee).[1](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RiveMy00.htm) He wore number 81 and finished his Raiders career with 146 catches for 1,413 yards and 10 touchdowns in 61 games, 15 of them starts.[2](https://www.raiders.com/history/all-time-roster/bios-r/mychal-rivera) He later signed with the Jacksonville Jaguars.[3](https://www.jaguars.com/news/jaguars-sign-tight-end-mychal-rivera-18674417)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Position, number | Tight end, No. 81 |
| NFL teams | Oakland Raiders, 2013 to 2016; signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2017[2](https://www.raiders.com/history/all-time-roster/bios-r/mychal-rivera) • [3](https://www.jaguars.com/news/jaguars-sign-tight-end-mychal-rivera-18674417) |
| Draft | Sixth round, 184th overall, 2013 NFL Draft, by Oakland[1](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RiveMy00.htm) |
| NFL totals | 61 games, 15 starts, 146 receptions, 1,413 yards, 10 touchdowns[2](https://www.raiders.com/history/all-time-roster/bios-r/mychal-rivera) |
| Best NFL season | 2014: 58 receptions, 534 yards, 4 touchdowns, all career highs[4](https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/upload/raiders/w9okva5rimxeggbgqitp.pdf) |
| College record | Tennessee single-season tight end record of 562 receiving yards in 2012, breaking Jason Witten's 493[5](https://utsports.com/news/2013/4/27/Home_State_Selection_Rivera_To_Raiders) |
| College honors | 2012 Coaches All-SEC First Team; first Tennessee tight end so honored since Jason Witten in 2002[5](https://utsports.com/news/2013/4/27/Home_State_Selection_Rivera_To_Raiders) |
| Hometown | Valencia, California; Birmingham High School[6](https://www.raiders.com/news/raiders-select-tennessee-te-mychal-rivera-in-6th-10031983) |
## College career
Rivera's path to Tennessee was indirect. He began at Oregon, transferred back to junior college at the College of the Canyons in [Southern California](https://www.edgepedia.org/southern-california), and then joined the University of Tennessee, where he played from 2010 to 2012.[7](https://www.raiders.com/news/getting-to-know-mychal-rivera-14662530) • [8](https://www.huddle.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Final_Week3_atTennessee.pdf) At the College of the Canyons in 2009 he caught 32 passes for 316 yards and 3 touchdowns in 11 games.[9](https://www.raiders.com/news/raiders-holen-quarterback-und-sechs-weitere-spieler-am-3-draft-tag-10037453)
At Tennessee he played in 37 games with 35 starts, finishing with 76 catches for 1,018 yards and 5 touchdowns.[8](https://www.huddle.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Final_Week3_atTennessee.pdf) • [9](https://www.raiders.com/news/raiders-holen-quarterback-und-sechs-weitere-spieler-am-3-draft-tag-10037453) His 2012 senior season was his best: 36 catches for 562 yards and 5 touchdowns, setting the Volunteers' single-season receiving record for a tight end with 562 yards and surpassing the mark of 493 set by [Jason Witten](https://www.edgepedia.org/jason-witten) in 2002.[5](https://utsports.com/news/2013/4/27/Home_State_Selection_Rivera_To_Raiders) He became the second tight end in program history to finish a career with more than 1,000 receiving yards, ranking second behind Reggie Harper's 1,141.[3](https://www.jaguars.com/news/jaguars-sign-tight-end-mychal-rivera-18674417) In 2012 he earned SEC coaches' first-team honors, the first Tennessee tight end to do so since Witten in 2002, along with AP All-SEC second-team recognition.[5](https://utsports.com/news/2013/4/27/Home_State_Selection_Rivera_To_Raiders) He closed his senior season with catches in 18 consecutive games and posted career highs of 10 catches for 129 yards against Missouri.[5](https://utsports.com/news/2013/4/27/Home_State_Selection_Rivera_To_Raiders)
## NFL career
**Oakland Raiders, 2013 to 2016.** Rivera secured the backup tight end job as a rookie and held a role in the Raiders' offense for four seasons.[10](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2691719-nfl1000-free-agent-rankings-for-the-2017-te-market) His 2013 rookie year produced 38 receptions for 407 yards and 4 touchdowns, leading all Raiders rookies and finishing fifth in receptions among NFL rookie tight ends.[3](https://www.jaguars.com/news/jaguars-sign-tight-end-mychal-rivera-18674417) • [11](https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/upload/raiders/l7c0ki3poszkrfd3hrqv.pdf)
His best statistical season came in 2014, when he played all 16 games with 10 starts and caught 58 passes on 101 targets for 534 yards and 4 touchdowns.[4](https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/upload/raiders/w9okva5rimxeggbgqitp.pdf) • [10](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2691719-nfl1000-free-agent-rankings-for-the-2017-te-market) That season he finished second on the team with 58 receptions and third with 534 receiving yards, and the club described him as one of quarterback [Derek Carr](https://www.edgepedia.org/derek-carr)'s favorite targets and the Raiders' primary tight end.[4](https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/upload/raiders/w9okva5rimxeggbgqitp.pdf) His production declined afterward as Clive Walford emerged as Carr's favored tight end target: 32 catches for 280 yards in 2015 and 18 catches for 192 yards and one touchdown in 13 games in 2016, his final Oakland season.[12](https://www.nfl.com/players/mychal-rivera/stats/career) • [13](https://www.cbssports.games.cbssports.com/nfl/players/1631841/mychal-rivera/) Oakland parted with him before the 2017 season, bringing in [Jared Cook](https://www.edgepedia.org/jared-cook) at tight end instead.[14](https://as.com/us/us/2017/08/03/nfl/1501772369_234793.html)
**Jacksonville Jaguars.** Rivera signed with Jacksonville in 2017, where the departure of [Julius Thomas](https://www.edgepedia.org/julius-thomas) left a vacancy for a new receiving leader at tight end.[3](https://www.jaguars.com/news/jaguars-sign-tight-end-mychal-rivera-18674417) • [15](https://fantasyindex.com/2017/06/12/around-the-nfl/mychal-rivera)
## Playing style and evaluation
Scouting reports before the 2013 draft described Rivera as slightly undersized at 6 feet 3 inches with limited strength, and his future as a blocking tight end was questioned, though his versatility as a receiver and blocker and his experience lining up anywhere on the field were seen as his best route to an NFL roster.[16](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1596776-mychal-rivera-scouting-report-nfl-outlook-for-tennessee-te) At the 2013 combine he ran a 4.81-second 40-yard dash, jumped 31 inches in the vertical leap and 112 inches in the broad jump, numbers rated average to below average for the position.[16](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1596776-mychal-rivera-scouting-report-nfl-outlook-for-tennessee-te)
In the NFL, evaluators rated him effective as a receiver, able to challenge secondary defenders on downfield seam routes while also working underneath against linebackers, and solid as a blocker on the edges in both power and zone schemes.[10](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2691719-nfl1000-free-agent-rankings-for-the-2017-te-market) A 2017 Bleacher Report NFL1000 assessment scored him 60.1 out of 100 overall, with his blocking (16.5/25) and hands (14.8/25) his strongest categories, and ranked him 15th in the 2017 tight end free-agent market.[10](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2691719-nfl1000-free-agent-rankings-for-the-2017-te-market)
## References
1. [Mychal Rivera Stats, Pro-Football-Reference](https://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/R/RiveMy00.htm)
2. [Mychal Rivera, All-Time Roster, Raiders.com](https://www.raiders.com/history/all-time-roster/bios-r/mychal-rivera)
3. [Jaguars Sign Tight End Mychal Rivera, Jaguars.com](https://www.jaguars.com/news/jaguars-sign-tight-end-mychal-rivera-18674417)
4. [Oakland Raiders Individual Notes, NFL media guide PDF](https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/upload/raiders/w9okva5rimxeggbgqitp.pdf)
5. [Home State Selection: Rivera To Raiders, University of Tennessee Athletics](https://utsports.com/news/2013/4/27/Home_State_Selection_Rivera_To_Raiders)
6. [Raiders Select Tennessee TE Mychal Rivera in 6th, Raiders.com](https://www.raiders.com/news/raiders-select-tennessee-te-mychal-rivera-in-6th-10031983)
7. [Getting to Know Mychal Rivera, Raiders.com](https://www.raiders.com/news/getting-to-know-mychal-rivera-14662530)
8. [Raiders vs. Titans game release PDF](https://www.huddle.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Final_Week3_atTennessee.pdf)
9. [Raiders holen Quarterback und sechs weitere Spieler am 3. Draft-Tag, Raiders.com](https://www.raiders.com/news/raiders-holen-quarterback-und-sechs-weitere-spieler-am-3-draft-tag-10037453)
10. [NFL1000: Free-Agent Rankings for the 2017 TE Market, Bleacher Report](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2691719-nfl1000-free-agent-rankings-for-the-2017-te-market)
11. [Oakland Raiders Feature Clips PDF](https://static.clubs.nfl.com/image/upload/raiders/l7c0ki3poszkrfd3hrqv.pdf)
12. [Mychal Rivera Career Stats, NFL.com](https://www.nfl.com/players/mychal-rivera/stats/career)
13. [Mychal Rivera, CBS Sports player page](https://www.cbssports.games.cbssports.com/nfl/players/1631841/mychal-rivera/)
14. [Así los veo: previa NFL 2017 de los Oakland Raiders, AS](https://as.com/us/us/2017/08/03/nfl/1501772369_234793.html)
15. [Mychal Rivera, Fantasy Index](https://fantasyindex.com/2017/06/12/around-the-nfl/mychal-rivera)
16. [Mychal Rivera Scouting Report: NFL Outlook for Tennessee TE, Bleacher Report](https://bleacherreport.com/articles/1596776-mychal-rivera-scouting-report-nfl-outlook-for-tennessee-te)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Other team and ball sports › Rugby and other football codes › American football players, coaches, and executives › Tight ends › Former NFL tight ends*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 17, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Oct 12, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license