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Craig Rondinone analyzes the tight ends who could be breakout players in dynasty fantasy football leagues in 2019.
You do not have to look too hard to find last season’s breakout performer at the tight end position.
The biggest dynasty breakout at tight end for 2018 was undoubtedly San Francisco’s George Kittle. He was a fifth-round rookie in 2017 who caught a respectable 43 passes for 515 yards and two touchdowns. He was far from a fantasy factor, yet this past year he turned his game up 1,000 notches and racked up the most receiving yards ever for a tight end (1,377) while adding 88 receptions and five touchdowns. That is the walking advertisement for a breakout year, and considering Kittle is only entering his third season, the lucky ducks who own him in dynasty leagues have to be happier than a college basketball fan during March Madness.
So which tight ends are poised for breakout seasons in 2019 and could become mainstays on their dynasty fantasy league squads for years to come? Here is a look!
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Dynasty Tight End Breakouts
Ricky Seals-Jones, Arizona Cardinals
2018 Stats: 34 receptions, 343 yards, 1 TD
Seals-Jones should have had a breakout season in 2018, but his quarterbacks and offensive coordinators gave him about as much help as Ja Rule did putting together the Fyre Festival. After a promising rookie season where he averaged 16.8 yards per catch and showed flashes of big-play ability, Seals-Jones struggled to have any fantasy relevance and was likely dropped in most fantasy leagues as the season wore on. Signal callers Josh Rosen and Sam Bradford had an easier time getting injured and intercepted than they did getting Seals-Jones the ball.
New Arizona head coach, offensive mastermind and surprising hire Kliff Kingsbury is all about passing the ball and concocting high-scoring offenses. His track record when it comes to wins and losses and putting together decent defenses is suspect, but anything is better for Seals-Jones than being stuck with Mike McCoy and Byron Leftwich designing plays for him another year in a 32nd-ranked passing attack.
Arizona has not done much to upgrade its receiving corps this offseason (Kevin White?), and adding veteran Charles Clay as a backup tight end should have no impact on Seals-Jones’ fantasy value since Clay’s best days are behind him. Look for Seals-Jones to double his reception and yardage totals in 2019 and score four-to-six times. His fantasy needle is pointing up, especially in dynasty leagues, and particularly if the Cardinals get much, MUCH better play from the quarterback position.
Chris Herndon IV, New York Jets
2018 Stats: 39 receptions, 502 yards, 4 TD
Herndon is a former fourth-round pick who has the skill set of a wide receiver as a tight end on the smallish side. He was New York’s second-best pass-catcher during his rookie campaign last season and became a favorite of franchise quarterback Sam Darnold. Herndon caught touchdown tosses in three straight October outings and topped the 30-yard mark in six out of seven games during the second half of the season.
New York’s offense is only going to get better with the additions of top tailback Le’Veon Bell and slot receiver Jamison Crowder, but do not worry about those two taking targets away from Herndon. Herndon has already created chemistry with Darnold and has his niche in the Jets offense. All Bell and Crowder will do is create more opportunities for him over the middle and set him up with more scoring chances inside the red zone.
This is easy fantasy football math. An improved Darnold plus an improved Jets offense plus another year of experience equals Herndon being a fantasy force in 2019 and many years after.
Jonnu Smith, Tennessee Titans
2018 Stats: 20 receptions, 258 yards, 3 TD
Tennessee had been Delanie Walker territory since 2013, and Walker had become one of the most dependable tight ends in fantasy football and the NFL, averaging 896 receiving yards per season between 2014 and 2017. But a gruesome leg injury suffered during the opening week of the 2018 season has cast doubt on Walker’s availability and effectiveness in 2019.
Enter Smith, who replaced Walker as Tennessee’s top tight end until he suffered his own season-ending injury towards the end of the year. Smith has some physical gifts that cannot be ignored. He has above-average speed for a man 6’3” and 248 pounds as evidenced during the 61-yard touchdown reception he had last season. He also averaged 43 yards per contest and scored three touchdowns in five weeks before his untimely injury. Smith was just starting to get the hang of being a starting tight end in the NFL when he got hurt.
We all know that Tennessee starting quarterback Marcus Mariota likes throwing to his tight ends, and we all do NOT know about Walker’s status for 2019. If Walker is not ready for season’s start or is a shell of his former self, Smith could become a breakout performer and a valuable dynasty asset for the near future.
