Since the moment Mychal Rivera was drafted, he was the underdog. The same held true last year and is the case again this year. And yet, both years, when all was said and done, there was Rivera as the team's leading tight end.
He was a sixth round pick in the 2013 draft and wasn't even the first tight end drafted in that round - Nick Kasa was taken ahead of him. Rivera and Kasa joined the team battling for what was supposed to the backup to David Ausberry. Ausberry got hurt in preseason, and Kasa was slow to develop, so the top tight end target was Rivera.