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Michael's top tight end fantasy football sleepers, breakouts, and potential league winners for 2025. His favorite TE fantasy football draft values with upside.
I have said it in each part of this series: breakouts win championships. It is why you should be targeting high upside places in your drafts. If you want breakout quarterbacks, running backs, or wide receivers, I've got you covered.
A breakout, though, is different at different positions, especially at tight end. Sure, everyone would love to draft Brock Bowers from last year, but those are few and far between. The bar for success is so much lower at the tight end position.
There are a couple of middle-round tight ends that could return early-round value, and don’t worry, those names are included in this article. In the later rounds, you are looking for someone who could become a weekly starting option. There are plenty of those as well!
Be sure to check all of our fantasy football rankings for 2025:- 2025 fantasy football rankings
- Running back (RB) rankings
- Wide receiver (WR) rankings
- Quarterback (QB) rankings
- Tight end (TE) rankings
- Defense (D/ST) rankings
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- FLEX rankings
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Tight End Fantasy Football Breakout Candidates
Tyler Warren, Indianapolis Colts
Tyler Warren is my favorite tight end target and has been since the NFL Draft. Daniel Jones (and Anthony Richardson Sr., in case a change occurs) is at his best statistically when targeting the middle of the field. He also rarely airs the ball out. Warren could be peppered with targets right from the jump.
In fact, I believe he will lead the Colts in targets this season. He is a massive target that can win downfield but excels after the catch. Give him volume, and great things will happen. He is the next great rookie tight end after Kyle Pitts, Sam LaPorta, and Bowers.
#Colts starters have played 35 snaps this preseason. Tyler Warren has been on the field for 34 of them. And posted 4-65-0 on six targets. pic.twitter.com/Ac75ddXa6D
— Adam Levitan (@adamlevitan) August 18, 2025
T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings
T.J. Hockenson is proven, but I still feel like he can reach a level he has never reached before in fantasy. That is partially because he is a year removed from his ACL tear and should be the number two target and safety blanket for first-year starter J.J. McCarthy. I expect a lot of targets to go his way in Kevin O’Connell’s fantasy-friendly system.
KOC and his system are the main reasons he can break out. In 2023, until he tore his ACL, Hockenson was on a full-season pace for 149 targets, 111 catches, 1,095 yards, and six touchdowns. That production would have made him the TE1 in 2023 and the TE2 last season, behind only Bowers. He is a strong target in the middle rounds of drafts.
TJ Hockenson catches a nice little screen pass from JJ McCarthy for a big gain at Vikings Training Camp. pic.twitter.com/hC7eD7ZzNk
— Skol Geek (@SkolGeek) July 29, 2025
Evan Engram, Denver Broncos
Evan Engram has been a top 12 in fantasy PPG in three straight seasons and a top seven in two of them. Engram will now play for Sean Payton, who has historically featured his tight ends when he has one he can trust. From 2008 to 2014, a quarter of the passes in his offenses went to tight ends.
Engram has always been a good target earner and should be Bo Nix’s number two target behind Courtland Sutton. Engram could also operate as the big slot in this offense, which would be an ideal fantasy role. He brings a safe floor as always, but we could finally see his full ceiling in this offense.
Evan Engram catch-and-run for 58 yards!
Watch on @NFLNetwork
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/eLXJQtwfpe— NFL (@NFL) August 17, 2025
Colston Loveland, Chicago Bears
Colston Loveland was hand-picked by Ben Johnson as the 10th overall pick in the NFL Draft over Warren. Johnson comped Loveland to LaPorta, who finished as the TE1 overall as a rookie in Johnson’s system. LaPorta has averaged around 100 targets per year in two seasons under Johnson.
Loveland has the prospect pedigree to break out as a rookie in a system that has already led to a rookie TE breakout. The only worry is that the Bears have a lot of target competition. Still, though, Loveland often is drafted as a TE2. In that range, he is the ideal pick.
Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys
Jake Ferguson saw 102 targets in 2023 and then 86 last year in just 14 games. He has always had strong chemistry with Dak Prescott. George Pickens’ arrival in Dallas may mean fewer targets, but it also means less defensive attention.
The Cowboys are likely to be one of the pass-heaviest offenses in football, and Ferguson provides a safe target across the middle. He is a strong TE2 pick with a safe floor and upside to outlive his ADP.
Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills
Dalton Kincaid is the cheapest he has ever been in fantasy football. For the first time since entering the NFL, he can be had as a TE2. Last year, Kincaid was second amongst all tight ends with a 29 percent target rate and was the Bills' top target at times in games before hurting his knee.
Last season, Josh Allen threw a career-high 10 percent of his passes to tight ends. Unfortunately, Kincaid led all tight ends in uncatchable target rate of all tight ends that had at least 50 targets. That seems unlikely to duplicate itself given the QB play. Kincaid is a cheap way to get exposure to one of the best QBs and offenses at the thinnest position in the game.
Elijah Arroyo, Seattle Seahawks
If you read my NFL Draft tight end write-up, you know Elijah Arroyo was one of my favorite tight ends in the draft. His size and speed combo is what stood out to me. He uses both to win on deep passes and has way more downfield usage than you typically see from a collegiate tight end.
He can also win after the catch as a YAC option. That is a tight end that could certainly earn a larger role. Plus, due to his size, he could be the go-to option in the red/end zone. With Noah Fant no longer there, opportunity is up for grabs. He brings breakout upside and is only a late-round pick or may even be a waiver wire option.
I’m going to talk about Elijah Arroyo as a sleeper a lot this summer. I was very high on him going into the NFL Draft. Real chance for him to carve out a consistent role here. From my NFL Draft write up https://t.co/ZyiDmI4S7o pic.twitter.com/IMKn1jpfFO
— Michael F. Florio (@MichaelFFlorio) July 21, 2025
Mason Taylor, New York Jets
Mason Taylor may not be a freak athlete, but he is a high-IQ player. As the son of NFL great Jason Taylor, you would expect nothing less. Taylor is a smooth route runner and has reliable hands. In college, he was often used on shorter, catch-and-run targets.
He has a knack for finding the soft spot in zone coverages. That could be enough to make him a viable fantasy tight end even as a rookie. The Jets are very thin pass-catcher-wise behind Garrett Wilson. While Taylor may struggle against man, he should thrive against zone. Taylor is a late-round pick with some upside.
Harold Fannin Jr., Cleveland Browns
Harold Fannin Jr. is an athletic beast. He moves like a receiver in a tight end's body. He was the go-to guy in college. Even when the entire stadium knew the ball would go his way, he would make a play. He can win downfield, on contested catches, and after the catch. I believe his catch-and-run ability is his strongest trait, but being able to win in a number of different ways is never a bad thing. Fannin reminded me of Kincaid during the draft process.
He may be behind David Njoku on the depth chart, but the Browns use a lot of 12, meaning both tight ends could be on the field. Fannin is more of a later-round pick or even waiver wire target, but there is upside for him to carve out a weekly role. If Njoku missed time, he would bring TE1 upside.
Browns GM Andrew Berry called TE Harold Fannin Jr. the “queen on the chessboard” after they drafted him.
Fannin catches his first NFL TD lined up like a wide receiver. Cleveland loves his versatility. pic.twitter.com/oDZ2wXVFMD
— Daniel Oyefusi (@DanielOyefusi) August 23, 2025
Chig Okonkwo, Tennessee Titans
Chig Okonkwo has the talent; we have seen flashes of that. He has not had consistent QB play, though. Cam Ward is not proven as consistent, but he brings much more upside than the Titans' QBs from past years.
If Ward hits, Okonkwo could as well. He has earned 70-plus targets in two straight years and has a chance to be the second target behind Calvin Ridley. He is purely a late-round dart throw, but if you are searching for TE2 upside late, he has it.
Make sure to follow Michael on X, @MichaelFFlorio.
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