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Wyatt's top five fantasy football tight ends who could dethrone Brock Bowers as the dynasty TE1 in 2026. Trey McBride, Colston Loveland, more.
Is there any other player in football who has more of a monopoly on their position group than Brock Bowers in dynasty fantasy football?
Bowers was viewed as one of the best, and by some analysts, the absolute best tight end prospects to enter the NFL. The young phenom set NFL records for most receiving yards in a season by a rookie tight end and most catches by a rookie at any position. Additionally, Bowers is projected to be a fantasy cheat code for years to come, considering he is only 23 years old.
However, today we will dive into five Davids at the tight end position who could take down the TE1 Goliath. For a deeper dive into dynasty strategy, rankings, and trade tactics, check out our complete Dynasty Fantasy Football Guide.
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Trey McBride - Arizona Cardinals
At the top of the list of contenders to dethrone Bowers is Trey McBride, aka the TE1 in scoring from 2025. During his historic All-Pro season, McBride broke the NFL single-season record for receptions by a tight end with 126 catches.
He also caught at least five passes in 16 consecutive games dating back to the 2024 season, breaking Travis Kelce's previous NFL tight end record of 15. If that all wasn't impressive enough, McBride became the first tight end ever to record back-to-back 100-catch seasons.
Trey McBride hauls in the TD
SFvsAZ on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/SVOrcBxc0n
— NFL (@NFL) November 16, 2025
McBride averaged 18.6 points per game in PPR leagues, which is tied with Kelce for the third most by a tight end since 2013. Only Jimmy Graham in 2013 (19.0) and Kelce in 2020 (20.9) had scored more points per game.
When combining the last two seasons, McBride has outscored Bowers by over 120 fantasy points. Yes, Bowers did miss five games in 2026, but he has only averaged 15.2 points per game compared to McBride's 17.1 points per game.
If this were a battle of pure talent, McBride might be able to take down Bowers as the No.1 dynasty tight end. Unfortunately, that isn't the only factor analysts take into account when making their rankings.
There are two weaknesses in the McBrides' quest to dethrone Bowers, and one of them has nothing to do with the player himself.
The first being McBride's likely touchdown regression. In 2025, he had 11 touchdowns and was tied for second in the league among all pass-catchers. Whereas in his first three years in the league, he scored six times total. Is it more likely he repeats his 2025 season, or was it a fluke year?
Second, there are plenty of questions surrounding the Cardinals' offensive ecosystem. For starters, we don’t know who the quarterback is for this season, let alone for 2027. The expectation is that Jacoby Brissett will be the starter, but he has been holding out in hopes of getting a bigger contract.
Even then, if the Cardinals decide to throw in the towel, they will likely want to see what they have in third-round rookie quarterback Carson Beck.
McBride may be quarterback-proof in fantasy football, but the Cardinals offense will definitely test out that theory.
Colston Loveland - Chicago Bears
Colston Loveland is currently the tight end of the people going into 2026. Every fantasy analyst has him as one of their top breakout candidates this season, and he is flying off draft boards faster and faster as the summer rolls on.
COLSTON LOVELAND FIRST CAREER NFL TD! 👏
(via @ChicagoBears) pic.twitter.com/iOL4xXVaMN
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) November 2, 2025
Loveland broke out near the end of the 2025 season, and he became Caleb Williams' security blanket in the postseason. Over the final three weeks of the regular season, Loveland was the TE1 overall by almost 10 points.
From Week 17 through their playoff run, he saw 10 or more targets in every game and over 90 receiving yards in three of the four games.
The strong end earned Loveland the seventh spot on ESPN's Top-10 tight ends list, which is voted on by NFL executives, coaches, and scouts. Jeremy Fowler noted in his article that one NFL member had Loveland ranked as high as third on their list.
"He gained 378 yards on 28 receptions (two for touchdowns) over his final four games, including the playoffs," Fowler said. "His target share during that span was 29%. Loveland showed as a rookie exactly why several teams tried to trade up for the No. 10 pick in the 2025 draft."
In addition to his talent and age, Loveland's strongest case to dethrone Bowers is his offensive ecosystem. He plays with the best quarterback of the tight ends on this list, along with the best offensive play-caller.
Williams reminded everyone why he was the No. 1 overall pick in a loaded draft class in spells last season. He was able to make plays in and out of structure while setting a new franchise record for passing yards and orchestrated six fourth-quarter comebacks.
More importantly, Ben Johnson will continue to push Williams to develop while designing plays for Loveland. The Bears could have the best offense in football for the next two to three seasons, and Loveland could be the lead target earner for it.
Tyler Warren - Indianapolis Colts
The next challenger almost feels like the forgotten member of that elite tier of tight ends. Based on his talent and situation, Tyler Warren has a real case to dethrone Bowers himself.
Tyler Warren has a rushing touchdown for Indy
INDvsLAR on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXnxV pic.twitter.com/6hLKA0zqgw
— NFL (@NFL) September 28, 2025
Warren was the second tight end selected in the 2025 NFL Draft behind Loveland. At the time, there was a real discussion that Warren should have been drafted ahead of Loveland, with many draft analysts having Warren as the most talented tight end in the class.
Warren took the league by storm after getting off to a hot start. As a rookie, he led the team in targets (112) and was second in receiving yards (817).
For the first 10 weeks of the season, Warren was the TE2 in overall scoring and only trailed the previously mentioned McBride. Ultimately, Warren finished the year as the TE4 after his performance slipped due to battling nagging injuries and Daniel Jones suffering an Achilles injury in early December.
Heading into Year 2, all roads in Indianapolis point to a heavier workload for Warren. First, the team traded away Michael Pittman Jr., who was second on the team in targets with 111 total.
Next, No. 1 receiver Alec Pierce underwent ankle surgery that could hold him out of football until the start of the regular season. In addition, Jones will likely be eager to get the ball out quickly until he is back to full health.
Warren is the last part of the passing game still standing outside of Josh Downs. Collectively, this means Warren will be the focal point of the passing attack, with more targets available in the offense, and Jones wanting to get the ball out quickly, which will allow Warren to get yards after the catch.
Lastly, Warren's unique athleticism and quarterback background give him an advantage over all the tight ends in the league. In college, Penn State weaponized Warren's multi-positional versatility across wildcat packages, short-yardage situations, aka its version of the "tush push," and trick plays.
If head coach Shane Steichen decides to deploy Warren's versatility, it could break fantasy football at the tight end position. How many touchdowns could Warren accumulate in a season if Steichen, who made the "tush push" famous in Philly, decided to implement it in Indianapolis?
Kyle Pitts Sr. - Atlanta Falcons
If we could travel back in time to 2021, many fantasy football fans, myself included, would have thought this article would be centered on Kyle Pitts Sr.
Heading into the 2021 NFL Draft, most draft analysts described him as a unicorn because he possessed a combination of elite physical size, receiver-level speed, and rare athletic metrics. As a result, he was the highest-drafted tight end in NFL history by the Atlanta Falcons with the fourth overall pick.
After review it's a... touchdown!
Kyle Pitts with his THIRD of the night 🙌
ATLvsTB on Prime Video
Also streaming on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/Qhap3iexGS— NFL (@NFL) December 12, 2025
Until last season, Pitts' fantasy production had not lived up to lofty expectations. Despite being one of three tight ends to start their careers off with a 1,000-yard season, Mike Ditka and Bowers are the other two.
In 2025, Pitts finished as the TE2 in PPR leagues in overall scoring, with a whopping 45.6-point performance in Week 15. His fantasy outlook received an extra boost when the Falcons hired Kevin Stefanski as their head coach.
Stefanski has heavily favored tight ends in his offense while making them a staple of his scheme. His offense has produced a TE1 in four of his six years as the Browns' head coach, with two of those seasons producing the TE6 overall.
If we follow the money, the team gave Pitts a historic three-year, $54 million contract extension. A front office won't dish out that kind of money to a tight end unless it believes he will be a foundational piece in the offense.
With Stefanski's scheme actively targeting tight ends, paired with Pitts' generational skill set, fantasy managers finally have the opportunity to see Pitts hit his ceiling that they have been dreaming about for years.
Harold Fannin Jr. - Cleveland Browns
We have finally arrived at our final contestant, Harold Fannin Jr. The Bowling Green standout is also the third tight end on this list who is going into their sophomore year.
HAROLD FOR SIX!!!!
Harold Fannin Jr. crosses the Pond to score his first career NFL touchdown!!!!
📺 NFL Network #FalconsInTheNFL pic.twitter.com/Rlw22ogTBt
— BGSU Football (@BG_Football) October 5, 2025
The 22-year-old finished as the TE6 as a rookie in PPR leagues as he hauled in 72 catches for 731 yards and six touchdowns. Unfortunately, Fannin will enter 2026 without Stefanski as his head coach.
He will also face stiffer competition for targets this season after the team drafted KC Concepcion and Denzel Boston within the first 40 picks in the NFL Draft. In addition, Fannin still has a less-than-ideal quarterback room conducting his offense.
Nonetheless, Fannin remains the most proven pass-catcher on the roster and will likely be the No. 1 target in the Browns offense. Fannin has been a heavy-volume consumer dating back to his time at Bowling Green.
In 2024, he led the entire NCAA FBS in receptions for all positions, hauling in 117 catches. If that wasn't impressive enough, Fannin became the seventh tight end in NFL history to earn over 100 targets in their rookie season.
Similar to McBride, if the Browns land one of the top quarterbacks in the 2027 draft, the conversation will dramatically shift for Fannin. His elite target share would finally get an efficiency boost that could take his game to another level.
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