Have we finally reached the point where tight end is no longer a wasteland? The reign of Kelce might finally be ending, as the superstar tight end now has competition atop the rankings. Not only is he no longer in a tier of his own, but he has finally been supplanted as the TE1 in these rankings.
Even tier 2 has plenty of guys with huge potential for this coming season, and I would honestly be ok with taking any of the top 12 guys on my fantasy roster. It will be interesting to monitor fantasy drafts as they start up this summer as I expect people to start taking multiple tight ends on their roster. I would rather be starting the TE 10 in my flex than some WR 50 who you hope happens to fall into the end zone.
Note: All fantasy rankings from the 2023 season are coming from Yahoo’s ½ PPR rankings.
Tier 1:
1 . Sam LaPorta – Detroit Lions – TE1 in 2023
LaPorta blew away any and all expectations for his rookie season in Detroit. The 23 year old second round pick was a factor from the beginning, lining up for 83% of the team’s offensive snaps in his first game – an unheard of feat for rookie tight ends. LaPorta only dipped below 80% of the team’s snaps 3 times the entire season, and one of those games was because he left with an injury in week 18. He has a nose for the end zone, scoring 10 times this past year, and with most of the offense returning, there’s no reason to believe that number will decline next season. With his rookie season behind him, the Lions can look to bump up his receptions (86 in 2023) and help him get over 1,000 receiving yards.
2. Travis Kelce – Kansas City Chiefs – TE3 in 2023
This felt criminal to do after putting Kelce in a tier of his own last season and believing he was the only tight end worth taking in the first 3 rounds. His entire playoff performance was a throwback to the Kelce of old as he dominated teams on his way to another Super Bowl victory. That was almost enough to keep him at #1, but father time will catch up to all of us eventually. Kelce will be 35 next season, and clearly was going through it last year. 2023 was his first season under 1,000 receiving yards since 2015, and he only found the end zone 5 times in the regular season. He turns it on for the playoffs, and is still as competitive as ever, but his heavy playstyle gets harder and harder to maintain as he ages. He’ll still be fantasy relevant in 2024, but he’s no longer the dominant threat that we once were lucky enough to watch.
Tier 2:
3. Mark Andrews – Baltimore Ravens – TE12 in 2023
I’m having a difficult time settling on where to put Mark Andrews, who missed almost the entire 2023 season with an ankle injury. The injury gave us an extended look at high potential backup Isaiah Likely. Likely played really well – almost good enough to make you wonder about a tight end competition in Baltimore. Andrews, who is 28, did make it back for the Ravens final game of the year, a 17-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in the playoffs, but only lined up for 31% of the team’s offensive snaps. While it was a surprise that he was able to suit up at all, Likely, who is just turning 24, was still the lead tight end in that game. So there’s plenty of mystery surrounding the pair this offseason. We would assume that Andrews is healthy and therefore back to his lead role, hence the high ranking, but there’s still plenty of time between now and the start of the next season for things to change in Baltimore.
4. Trey McBride – Arizona Cardinals – TE9 in 2023
McBride has as much upside as any tight end on this list. It took a Zach Ertz injury and subsequent release for the Cardinals to finally roll out their 2nd year tight end, and from weeks 8 on, McBride was the TE4 in fantasy. The Cardinals are committed to Kyler Murray for the 2024 season, and the two have shown some real chemistry that they can build around. There will also be lots of turnover for the Cardinals offense around McBride and Murray – their wide receiver room is pretty barren, and while the Cardinals are likely to address that with their 4th overall pick, there are still plenty of targets for McBride to receive next year as their #2 option in the passing game. There’s talent and opportunity in Arizona for McBride to have a true breakout season.
5. Dalton Kincaid – Buffalo Bills – TE13 in 2023
Kincaid really came on when the Bills moved to Joe Brady as the offensive coordinator, resulting in a nice stretch of double digit points from weeks 7 – 10. He was more of a disappointment during the last few weeks of the season and in your fantasy playoff, but the upside for 2024 is huge. The Bills have lost WR2 Gabe Davis in free agency, and Kincaid has already passed Knox on the depth chart as the TE1 despite Knox’s albatross contract. Kincaid can very easily become Josh Allen’s #2 target and red zone threat. I expect big things from Kincaid this season.
6. George Kittle – San Francisco 49ers – TE4 in 2023
Kittle is the Michael Myers of the tight end position – he just doesn’t die. He’s older, slower, consistently banged up, and surrounded by superstars on offense, yet at the end of the year he’s still fantasy relevant. He’ll frustrate you with a few duds each season, but the second you bench him he’ll go off for 3 touchdowns (week 5 vs Dallas) or 149 yards (week 8 vs Cincinnati). He also tends to finish the season strong, so he’s great to have as you are getting ready for your fantasy playoffs. Not sure I would be interested in drafting him at his current ADP, but as other names get hyped up in the offseason, Kittle is sure to fall and could be a good value pick.
Tier 3:
7. Evan Engram – Jacksonville Jaguars – TE2 in 2023
It’s still so strange to me that after years of frustratingly inconsistent play, Engram has become one of the most consistent tight ends in the league over his past 2 seasons in Jacksonville. The touchdowns aren’t there – he’s only scored 3 times this past season, and they all came in weeks 13 and 14, so his fantasy upside is quite limited. However, he can consistently score you 8-12 points every week on the back of 5-9 receptions and around 70 yards. Not something you’ll brag about to your friends, but having something locked in a tight end that you rarely have to worry about can be nice.
8. Jake Ferguson – Dallas Cowboys – TE8 in 2023
When the Cowboys offense was clicking, Ferguson was a major part of it. Obviously everything runs primarily through CeeDee Lamb, but Ferguson carved out a nice role as a secondary option. In the last 5 weeks of the regular season, Ferguson had 8 targets in 4 of the 5 games. His 100 targets on the season were good, and 5 touchdowns is ok production, although we were hoping for more of a red zone role in this offense.
9. Dallas Goedert – Philadelphia Eagles – TE15 in 2023
Goedert suffered through an injury plagued 2023 season, which has been a trend over his 6 year career. He’ll be turning 30 next year, and I think his decline will be steep. The Eagles have traditionally used him in creative ways, and it was evident how much the offense missed him when he was out last season. Kellen Moore’s offense as the OC should in theory be a boon for all Eagles pass catchers, Goedert included, but it’s impossible to draft him for the 2024 season expecting to get a full season out of him at this stage of his career.
10. T.J. Hockenson – Minnesota Vikings – TE5 in 2023
Not much to say about Hockenson at this point of the year. He’s still recovering from a torn ACL and MCL suffered at the end of the 2023 season, and it’s likely he’ll be out at least until the end of October. Hockenson was having another fantastic season with the Vikings before the injury, and would be up in tier 1 if he was going to play a full 2024 campaign. Unfortunately he’s a draft and stash option at best, and there’s no guarantee he’ll be back to his old self when he does return.
11. David Njoku – Cleveland Browns – TE6 in 2023
At 27 years old, Njoku looked like he was having a breakout season with Joe Flacco at quarterback in what’s already Njoku’s 7th year in the league. He was a bust of a pick for the first 7 weeks of the season but was the TE1 from week 8 – 18. Unfortunately Flacco has left the Browns, and Njoku will be playing with Deshaun Watson again next season. Njoku had just one game with double digit fantasy points with Watson in at quarterback last season, and the offense as a whole doesn’t seem to work as well when Watson is playing. Unless something changes in Cleveland, I again am going to be out on Njoku.
12. Dalton Schultz – Houston Texans – TE11 in 2023
Schultz isn’t overly special as a tight end, but he did just sign an extension with the Texans and for fantasy purposes grabbing as many pass catchers around C.J. Stroud is good business. Schultz was awful to start the season with his new team, and struggled with drops throughout the year, but was able to put together some nice performances down the stretch. With another year of familiarity with both his quarterback and the offense, Schultz is a nice late round flier to grab if you opt to punt tight ends to the end of the draft.
Tier 4:
13. Tucker Kraft – Green Bay Packers – TE28 in 2023
14. Isaiah Likely – Baltimore Ravens – TE20 in 2023
15. Kyle Pitts – Atlanta Falcons – TE14 in 2023
16. Cole Kmet – Chicago Bears – TE7 in 2023
17. Michael Mayer – Las Vegas Raiders – TE33 in 2023
18. Pat Freiermuth – Pittsburgh Steelers – TE29 in 2023
19. Luke Musgrave – Green Bay Packers – TE34 in 2023
20. Darren Waller – New York Giants – TE22 in 2023
-Devon Gallant
Twitter: @DevGallant
Photo: All-Pro Reels. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.