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Fantasy football rankings - tight ends (TE) Week 1 rankings early edition for 2026. Read the top-accuracy fantasy football TE rankings.
At RotoBaller HQ, we are back with more fantasy football rankings for Week 1. Unless you drafted Brock Bowers, Trey McBride, Colston Loveland, or Tyler Warren, there is a good chance you might be streaming the tight end position all season. For fantasy managers playing the streaming game or who have a difficult start/sit decision at TE, we've got you covered with our 2026 Half-PPR fantasy football tight end rankings, which rank the top 75 tight ends for Week 1.
Our tight end fantasy football rankings for Week 1 are put together by Nick Mariano. Below the rankings, you will also find a summary of the important TE fantasy football news for this week. There are always key injuries and developments to keep track of, so check back throughout the week for updates.
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Week 1 Tight End Rankings for Fantasy Football
Bookmark our PPR rankings, Half-PPR rankings, and standard (non-PPR) rankings
| TE Tier |
TE Rank |
Player Name |
Pos. | Overall Rank |
| 1 | 1 | Brock Bowers | TE | 27 |
| 2 | 2 | Trey McBride | TE | 34 |
| 3 | 3 | Tyler Warren | TE | 58 |
| 3 | 4 | Colston Loveland | TE | 65 |
| 3 | 5 | Sam LaPorta | TE | 69 |
| 3 | 6 | Harold Fannin Jr. | TE | 72 |
| 4 | 7 | Tucker Kraft | TE | 77 |
| 5 | 8 | Kyle Pitts Sr. | TE | 78 |
| 5 | 9 | Dallas Goedert | TE | 79 |
| 5 | 10 | Isaiah Likely | TE | 85 |
| 5 | 11 | Travis Kelce | TE | 94 |
| 5 | 12 | Mark Andrews | TE | 99 |
| 5 | 13 | Dalton Kincaid | TE | 100 |
| 5 | 14 | Juwan Johnson | TE | 106 |
| 6 | 15 | George Kittle | TE | 110 |
| 6 | 16 | Jake Ferguson | TE | 113 |
| 6 | 17 | Hunter Henry | TE | 115 |
| 6 | 18 | Brenton Strange | TE | 118 |
| 6 | 19 | Chig Okonkwo | TE | 126 |
| 6 | 20 | Dalton Schultz | TE | 135 |
| 6 | 21 | Cade Otton | TE | 136 |
| 6 | 22 | T.J. Hockenson | TE | 137 |
| 6 | 23 | Terrance Ferguson | TE | 138 |
| 6 | 24 | Greg Dulcich | TE | 144 |
| 6 | 25 | Pat Freiermuth | TE | 149 |
| 7 | 26 | AJ Barner | TE | 152 |
| 7 | 27 | Evan Engram | TE | 153 |
| 7 | 28 | Mike Gesicki | TE | 157 |
| 7 | 29 | Gunnar Helm | TE | 160 |
| 7 | 30 | Colby Parkinson | TE | 164 |
| 7 | 31 | Oronde Gadsden II | TE | 165 |
| 7 | 32 | Charlie Kolar | TE | 171 |
| 7 | 33 | Jake Tonges | TE | 180 |
| 7 | 34 | Darren Waller | TE | 181 |
| 7 | 35 | Michael Mayer | TE | 184 |
| 8 | 36 | Darnell Washington | TE | 189 |
| 8 | 37 | Mason Taylor | TE | 195 |
| 8 | 38 | Kenyon Sadiq | TE | 196 |
| 8 | 39 | David Njoku | TE | 199 |
| 8 | 40 | Erick All Jr. | TE | 210 |
| 8 | 41 | Elijah Arroyo | TE | 211 |
| 8 | 42 | Daniel Bellinger | TE | 213 |
| 8 | 43 | Theo Johnson | TE | 214 |
| 8 | 44 | Noah Fant | TE | 217 |
| 8 | 45 | Dawson Knox | TE | 225 |
| 8 | 46 | Jonnu Smith | TE | 226 |
| 8 | 47 | Cole Kmet | TE | 228 |
| 8 | 48 | Noah Gray | TE | 231 |
| 8 | 49 | Marlin Klein | TE | 235 |
| 8 | 50 | Eli Raridon | TE | 236 |
| 8 | 51 | Austin Hooper | TE | 239 |
| 8 | 52 | Max Klare | TE | 240 |
| 8 | 53 | Luke Schoonmaker | TE | 242 |
| 8 | 54 | Matthew Hibner | TE | 245 |
| 8 | 55 | Oscar Delp | TE | 247 |
| 9 | 56 | Nate Boerkircher | TE | 251 |
| 9 | 57 | Ja'Tavion Sanders | TE | 253 |
| 9 | 58 | Elijah Higgins | TE | 254 |
| 9 | 59 | Cade Stover | TE | 255 |
| 9 | 60 | Tyler Conklin | TE | 258 |
| 9 | 61 | Davis Allen | TE | 259 |
| 9 | 62 | Tommy Tremble | TE | 261 |
| 9 | 63 | Adam Trautman | TE | 266 |
| 9 | 64 | Tyler Higbee | TE | 269 |
| 9 | 65 | John Bates | TE | 271 |
| 9 | 66 | Tanner Hudson | TE | 274 |
| 10 | 67 | Josh Oliver | TE | 276 |
| 10 | 68 | Brock Wright | TE | 277 |
| 10 | 69 | Luke Farrell | TE | 282 |
| 10 | 70 | Mitchell Evans | TE | 284 |
| 10 | 71 | Ben Sinnott | TE | 285 |
| 10 | 72 | Jackson Hawes | TE | 286 |
| 10 | 73 | Brevyn Spann-Ford | TE | 287 |
| 10 | 74 | Drew Sample | TE | 288 |
| 10 | 75 | Will Kacmarek | TE | 289 |
Week 1 Tight End Rankings News
Kenyon Sadiq, New York Jets
New York Jets tight end Kenyon Sadiq (hernia) had his first pro camp slightly derailed due to a hernia. The rookie missed most of training camp, as well as all three of the Jets' preseason games. Being available throughout the summer is pivotal for all players, but especially rookies who are trying to adapt to the speed of the NFL while making a good impression. Sadiq's injury has delayed him significantly, making it unlikely that he carves out a fantasy-relevant role early in the season. His age (21) and draft stock (16th overall pick) still make him a must-roster tight end in dynasty leagues, but he's no longer a must-draft player in redraft formats.
He has fallen to TE27 in RotoBaller's redraft rankings, and he could slip even further if Mason Taylor handles the bulk of the snaps in Week 1. Sadiq currently has a redraft ADP of 169.4, which corresponds to the 15th round of fantasy drafts and makes him the 23rd tight end off the board. At that same price tag, we'd prefer slightly safer tight ends like Dalton Schultz, Oronde Gadsden II, T.J. Hockenson, and AJ Barner.
Tyler Warren, Indianapolis Colts
Across 17 games as a rookie in 2025, Indianapolis Colts tight end Tyler Warren recorded 76 catches for 817 yards and four touchdowns on 112 targets. The 24-year-old got off to a dominant start to the season, but his production tapered off down the stretch. From Week 12 onward, Warren recorded just one touchdown catch and failed to log more than 43 receiving yards in any game.
However, Warren's worst run of the season largely correlated with the health of Colts QB1 Daniel Jones, who suffered a season-ending torn Achilles in Week 14. Heading into 2026, Jones will be back under center for Indianapolis. The Colts also traded away veteran wideout Michael Pittman Jr. over the offseason, which could put Warren in position to be the team's clear number one target in its passing game. Warren carries high-end TE1 potential for fantasy managers into 2026.
Harold Fannin Jr., Cleveland Browns
Cleveland Browns tight end Harold Fannin Jr. is looking like the Browns' top target around a relatively inexperienced group of wide receivers. Fannin Jr. is inexperienced himself, in only his second season, but he produced as a rookie and is looking to build on that this year. The tight end started 13 of the Browns' 16 games last season and recorded 72 catches on 107 targets for 731 yards and six touchdowns.
With David Njoku out of the picture this season, those 107 targets could very well increase. The quarterback play in Cleveland is a question mark with Deshaun Watson starting the season as the starter, but Fannin Jr. has shown he can make the most of his opportunities. He could potentially be the lead target in front of receivers like Denzel Boston, KC Concepcion, and Jerry Jeudy.
Kyle Pitts Sr., Atlanta Falcons
Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts Sr. enjoyed a breakout 2025 season, and he continued to produce throughout the 2026 preseason. As a result, he continues to trend up in fantasy football, despite having some uncertainty at the quarterback position. Pitts emerged as the overall TE2 in PPR leagues last season, catching 88 passes for 928 yards and five touchdowns. He set new career-high marks in fantasy points, receptions, and touchdowns with Michael Penix Jr. and Kirk Cousins as his quarterbacks.
He added another six catches for 81 yards this preseason, which is really impressive considering that he handled a limited snap share due to his role as the team's starting tight end. Pitts' latest success has him trending up in redraft leagues. For now, he ranks as RotoBaller's TE8, but another top-three finish is not out of the question. Right now, the biggest obstacle in his way is the Falcons' quarterback situation. Tua Tagovailoa is trending toward being the Falcons' Week 1 starting quarterback, and his discouraging production in recent years could put a slight damper on Pitts' fantasy upside.
Who Should I Start Tool
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Week 1 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players: Sam LaPorta, Harold Fannin Jr., Tucker Kraft, Travis Kelce, Tyler Warren, Kyle Pitts Sr., and Jake Ferguson. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 1.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player name. In the second box, search for the second player name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed that our 'Who Should I Start?' tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, stats, projections, strength of schedule, player news, and enhanced search results with data to compare with a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circle), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 1 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 1 (2026)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 1 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular searches and comparisons from our Who To Start tool for Week 1 for Sam LaPorta, Harold Fannin Jr., Tucker Kraft, Travis Kelce, Tyler Warren, Kyle Pitts Sr., and Jake Ferguson:
More Fantasy Football Analysis
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