Fantasy Football Tight End Rankings

Fantasy Football Tight End Rankings

This position can be a whole lot of blah if you miss out on the elite options. Typically it comes down to if your player scores a touchdown that given week and that’s always difficult to predict. Still, you have to field a player in that position regardless so let’s talk about Fantasy Football Tight End Rankings!

Note – Any ADP (average draft position) is taken from FantasyData.com. In addition, these are my personal ranks and not WinDaily Staff ranks.

Fantasy Football Tight End Rankings

1. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs – Kelce scored as the WR4 in PPR settings last season, which is frankly an absurd advantage on your team. We mentioned this in the receiver ranks, but if Kelce gets some of the nearly 14% target share left from Sammy Watkins leaving the team, Kelce could push for 350 PPR points. For context, Davante Adams scored 358.4 points last year as the WR1. He was the only tight end to clear 1,200 receiving yards (1,416) and scored 11 times. 
2. Darren Waller, Las Vegas Raiders – I believe the only player with a shot of unseating Kelce as the TE1 is Waller, instead of the man at third. Waller was only one target behind Kelce and under 100 yards behind in air yards. Waller also had one more RZ target and he led the position in receptions. Waller only finished 30 points behind Kelce, which is under two points per game. He doesn’t have the same sizzle as Kelce, but the 14 spot difference in ADP is appealing. 
3. George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers – Kittle is the last of the elite tier in my eyes and still well worth a top 30 pick in the draft. The fact Kittle finished as the TE19 in just eight games speaks to how good he is and how shallow the position is. Kittle led in target share at 24.1% and still had a 26.2% air yards share. It would be a large upset if Kittle played the whole season and finished outside the top three. 
4. T.J. Hockenson, Detroit Lions – Both Kenny Golladay and Marvin Jones have moved on, leaving Hockenson as the possible number one option in the passing game. Breshad Perriman and Tyrell Williams aren’t exactly number ones in any passing game. He was fifth in targets among tight ends and tied for sixth in points per game. Since the Lions are going to be trailing an awful lot, Hockenson should be a lock to be inside the top-five in targets once again. 
5. Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens – I think most would qualify Andrews as a disappointment last year but he finished fourth in points per game and he was the TE6. Andrews isn’t a target magnet since Baltimore was dead last in pass attempts in 2020 but he was tied for fifth in RZ targets and second in EZ targets. That’s what we look for in tight ends if we can’t have the elite tier and Andrews should have plenty of opportunities to score more than the seven touchdowns that he scored last year. 
6. Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons – Typically it is very difficult for rookie tight ends to make an impact. Pitts should be able to break that trend since he should be the number two option behind Calvin Ridley and he’ll be in space a ton. I can’t imagine the Falcons passed on multiple quarterbacks at the number four pick to play Pitts as a classic tight end. He won’t be blocking at the line of scrimmage very often. There is a Julio Jones-sized hole in this offense and Pitts should be able to help fill it. 
7. Noah Fant, Denver Broncos – Fant battled injury through a lot of 2020 but still racked up an 18.2% target share and tied for the team lead in RZ targets. This is where tight ends get very difficult to try and project. Fant has to contend with iffy quarterback play and the duo of Jerry Jeudy and Courtland Sutton as competition for targets. I’m not sure Drew Lock or Teddy Bridgewater will support all three players in a passing game. 
8. Logan Thomas, Washington Football Team – Thomas was tied for second in targets last season and rarely left the field with a 92.7% snap share. Thomas led the team in RZ and EZ targets as well, not to mention touchdown receptions with six. He finished as the TE3 last season and the only knock is Ryan Fitzpatrick could utilize his receivers more than Washington’s 2020 options. Additionally, they added Curtis Samuel to the offense so the same target share isn’t guaranteed at all. 
9. Jonnu Smith, New England Patriots – He’s sitting at TE16 in ADP and I’m confused at that. Smith was a priority for New England and signed a deal worth potentially $50 million. They guaranteed over $31 million and still have limited options at the receiver position. New England either will have Cam Newton or will break in rookie Mac Jones at quarterback. It would be wild if either option didn’t treat Smith as an alpha in the passing game. 
10. Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles – This is a pick that we’ll need to see how it plays out. There is a ton of new factors in the Philly offense this year. They have a new coach, a quarterback with under six games played, and a new receiver. Goedert should remain an important factor in this offense and he had a 16.7% target share last year in 11 games. I’m curious to see how Jalen Hurts handles Goedert. 
11. Adam Trautman, New Orleans Saints – The second-year player is a popular breakout candidate as Jared Cook has moved on to the Chargers. Sean Payton and company gave up a lot of draft capital to get him in the 2020 draft. Trautman had a very quiet rookie season but still played 40% of the snaps. Cook was targeted 16 times last year and if Trautman gets that style of work, he could turn into an every-week option. 
12. Evan Engram, New York Giants – They did add Kenny Golladay but Engram did lead in targets overall, RZ targets, and just missed leading in yards. Despite his 13 RZ targets, Engram only scored one touchdown all season. Even with concerns about a crowded passing tree and his quarterback, he has to score more than once this season. 

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