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It is never too early to start looking at players for your upcoming fantasy football drafts. The NFL Draft will be here in no time, but we do have to wait a while for the 105th season of the NFL to start. Exploring the tight end landscape now can hold you over until it is time to draft your fantasy team.
Looking at last season’s tight ends, the guys you would expect to see at the top were there. Travis Kelce, George Kittle, Sam LaPorta, and Mark Andrews all had top-tier seasons. Evan Engram had 114 receptions in 2023, leading all tight ends. Jake Ferguson was TE9 in PPR leagues after being drafted as TE25. Oh, and Taysom Hill rushed for 401 yards, most for the tight end position.
If you have been playing fantasy football for a while, you know it can be hard to hit on a tight end. It's time to take a look at some tight end values, busts, and sleepers for the upcoming season. The ADP for this article is courtesy of Underdog Fantasy.
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Hunter Henry (NE): ADP 174.2 | TE21
Henry is about to play in his eighth NFL season, spending time with the San Diego/Los Angeles Chargers before joining the New England Patriots in 2021. The 29-year-old veteran tight end just signed a deal with the Patriots for three years and $27 million, earning up to an additional $3 million with bonuses.
Last season was abysmal for New England’s offense. Henry managed to lead the Patriots in scores, hauling in six touchdowns. He played in 14 games, snagging 42 of the 61 balls thrown to him while tallying 419 receiving yards. Last season, the Patriots averaged 180 yards per game, good for 28th in the NFL. The offense held him back in 2023, but with improved quarterback play, Henry should be a top receiving option for whatever rookie takes over under center.
Welcome back, Hunter Henry@Patriots 🔥 pic.twitter.com/x1i3Id4G8J
— BrycenNFL 👑 (@BrycenNFL) March 8, 2024
Quarterback Mac Jones was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars, and the Patriots have the third overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. They’ll look to take a quarterback, someone who can help bring life into the organization.
Henry has shown he can put up decent tight end numbers, scoring double-digit PPR fantasy points in five of the 14 games he played last season. His best fantasy weeks were Weeks 14 and 15, where he totaled 19 and 19.6 PPR fantasy points, respectively.
Mike Gesicki (CIN): ADP 203.9 | TE28
Gesicki was drafted in the second round of the 2018 NFL Draft, and his first year in the league was nothing to write home about. He showed glimpses of what he could do in 2019, seeing 51 receptions on 89 targets and going for 570 receiving yards. He also scored five times that season.
In 2020, he was able to catch 53 of the 85 balls thrown his way, tallying 703 yards and six touchdowns. He saw his most targets (112) and receptions (73) in the 2021 season and then followed that up with five touchdowns in 2022.
The Dolphins added Tyreek Hill, Raheem Mostert, and Jeff Wilson Jr. to bolster their offense, leaving less for Gesicki. Gesicki signed a one-year deal with the Patriots in 2022, playing alongside Henry. As discussed earlier, New England had a poor offense last season. Although Gesicki played in 17 games, he was only targeted 45 times.
Gesicki now finds himself on the Bengals’ roster, signing a one-year deal worth up to $3.25 million. This situation is ideal for the tight end as he tries to gain a starting role in the NFL once again. Drew Sample, also on the Cincinnati roster, is more of a blocking tight end, while Gesicki is a pass-catcher. Gesicki is also a red-zone threat, and QB Joe Burrow is sure to get him the ball as he did in years past with C.J. Uzomah and Hayden Hurst.
Tight End Busts
Kyle Pitts (ATL): ADP 66.9 | TE6
Pitts has had to deal with inconsistent and mediocre quarterback play his entire NFL career. He also had to deal with Arthur Smith as head coach. Now, he has veteran Kirk Cousins under center, an upgrade over Desmond Ridder, and Smith was replaced by Raheem Morris. Even with these upgrades, things will need to change to feel comfortable taking Pitts as the TE6.
Drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in 2021, he did go over 1,000 receiving yards his rookie season. His PPR fantasy points per game came to 10.4 in that year. 2022 saw Pitts only gain 7.2 points per game while 2023 jumped a bit to 7.8.
Tight ends going behind Pitts are George Kittle (ADP 70.5) and Evan Engram (ADP 77.5), both players to look at in this range. Kittle finished the 2023 season as TE5 in PPR fantasy scoring, and Engram was TE2. Both of these players had some monster games in 2023, and they should be in a similar spot in 2024. Pitts was TE13 last season, putting up four double-digit fantasy games.
While Kittle and Engram put up over 20 fantasy points in multiple games last season, Pitts never cracked 20 points in PPR scoring. Pitts was steady, scoring an average of 8.1 PPR fantasy points per game in 2023, but at his ADP, looking at another option or waiting for a tight end might be the right move.
T.J. Hockenson (MIN): ADP 120.5 | TE14
Hockenson is a talent at tight end, and there’s no doubt he was on a great run when healthy. On Christmas Eve, Hockenson tore his ACL and MCL, causing him to miss the season’s remaining games. Even though he only played in 15 games, he ended the season as TE4 in fantasy football.
Despite playing with four different quarterbacks last season, Hockenson was able to put up huge numbers. Kirk Cousins tore his Achilles, ending his season early. Cousins is now in Atlanta, and Sam Darnold is currently at the top of the QB chart in Minnesota. The Vikings will look to move up in the draft, considering they are lacking at quarterback and have the 11th and 23rd overall picks. Whatever player is under center, Hockenson has shown he can play with anyone. The issue is his health.
The Minnesota tight end is currently a bust based on how cloudy his situation is. Hockenson successfully had ACL surgery on January 29, but we haven’t been given an official timeline for his return. Adrian Peterson tore his ACL on Christmas Eve in 2011 and was MVP the following season. On the other hand, Odell Beckham Jr. tore his ACL during Super Bowl LVI and missed the full 2022 season.
9-12 months of recovery is the typical timeline for an ACL injury, but it is different with each athlete. His ADP should drop once there is clarification on his playing time.
Tight End Sleepers
Ja'Tavion Sanders (Rookie): ADP 199.9 | TE27
Putting a rookie on the list of tight end sleepers this early might not make sense, as the NFL Draft hasn’t happened. The landing spot for Sanders is not yet known, but if he ends up in an offense looking for a reliable pass-catching tight end, he is set up to make an impact in Year 1.
Sanders’ playing time was limited during his freshman year at the University of Texas, only seeing action in three games while catching no passes. That season, Texas was focused on the run game, as both Bijan Robinson and Roschon Johnson were on the roster. As his college career progressed, Sanders’ ability at the tight end position began to shine.
The Texas Longhorn had two straight seasons of 45 or more receptions and over 600 receiving yards to finish out his college career. He is a threat in the vertical game, which complements his reliable pass-catching skills. Sanders never dropped a pass in his 2023 season, and over his entire college career, he only dropped four, according to Pro Football Focus.
Sanders is in the running for the second tight end to come off the draft board behind Brock Bowers. Bowers is currently being drafted as the TE9 with an ADP of 81.8. Taking a flyer on Sanders at his ADP of 199.9 in fantasy football drafts would be beneficial, depending on where he ends up. If he ends up in an offense that will utilize his pass-catching abilities, Sanders’ ADP will shoot up the board.
Colby Parkinson (LAR): ADP 237.3 | TE37
The Los Angeles Rams signed tight end Colby Parkinson to a three-year, $22.5 million deal, including a $15.5 million guarantee. This move keeps Parkinson in the NFC West after spending his career so far with the Seahawks. This payday means the Rams plan on using their new weapon this season.
In his time with Seattle, Parkinson caught only 57 passes for 628 yards and four scores. When your wide receiver room looks like DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett, and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, that is bound to happen. Moving onward to the Rams, Parkinson finds himself surrounded by talented receivers, but he has more of an opportunity to get the ball.
Colby Parkinson right to your living room 🔥 @CJ51 @Seahawks
📺: #DENvsSEA on ESPN/ABC
📱: Stream on NFL+ https://t.co/54o9fOPBKO pic.twitter.com/LWvI2ySRMz— NFL (@NFL) September 13, 2022
The former fourth-round pick will most likely find himself starting the season for the Rams due to the ACL tear Tyler Higbee suffered in the playoffs. With Higbee absent, Parkinson will step into that role. Opportunity has always been key with sleepers, and Parkinson is in a solid position to take a step forward in 2024.
Davis Allen, also on the Rams’ roster, is currently going as TE32 on Underdog, ahead of Parkinson. This will be Allen’s second year in the NFL, while Parkinson is going on his fifth. Allen could be the future, but for the time being, Parkinson seems to be a lock at TE1 in the Los Angeles offense, at least until we see a healthy Higbee.
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