It\u2019s 2026. When we talk about fantasy, we do tiers<\/a>. In recent history, the top tier of tight ends has been one or two guys each season, and if you have one of those guys, you are in an infinitely better spot than the person you\u2019re playing.<\/p>\n There used to be no analysis; you drafted Travis Kelce, and you were set \u2026 But it\u2019s been three years since he\u2019s been at that top spot. Now you have to do some thinking about what you\u2019re going to do at tight end, and that\u2019s not a bad thing.\u00a0<\/p>\n If you prioritized tight end early in the draft last year, you either got burned or you made out like a bandit. If you went after Brock Bowers late in the first or early in the second round, you were in bad shape \u2026 He ended up getting hurt early in the season, and everything went to hell immediately.\u00a0<\/p>\n If you went after Trey McBride (who was drafted as a TE2), you were sitting pretty. He went on to have a historic season and broke the single-season receptions record for a tight end. All the while, Travis Kelce dropped from elite-tier production to just a very good, steady-Eddie level and ended the season as TE3.<\/p>\n Does that mean the draft strategy of targeting an elite tight end early is a bad idea? Not necessarily \u2026 Look at where the guys who ended up as TE1 were drafted over the last eight seasons.\u00a0<\/p>\n Year<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n TE1<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n ADP<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n Preseason Rank<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n\n 2025<\/p>\n<\/td>\n Trey McBride<\/p>\n<\/td>\n 28<\/p>\n<\/td>\n TE2<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n 2024<\/p>\n<\/td>\n Brock Bowers (R)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n 100.6<\/p>\n<\/td>\n TE11<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n 2023<\/p>\n<\/td>\n Sam LaPorta (R)<\/p>\n<\/td>\n 168.3<\/p>\n<\/td>\n TE18<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n 2022<\/p>\n<\/td>\n Travis Kelce<\/p>\n<\/td>\n 15<\/p>\n<\/td>\n TE1<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n 2021<\/p>\n<\/td>\n Mark Andrews<\/p>\n<\/td>\n 50.6<\/p>\n<\/td>\n TE4<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n 2020<\/p>\n<\/td>\n Travis Kelce<\/p>\n<\/td>\n 18.8<\/p>\n<\/td>\n TE1<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n 2019<\/p>\n<\/td>\n Travis Kelce<\/p>\n<\/td>\n 15.2<\/p>\n<\/td>\n TE1<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n 2018<\/p>\n<\/td>\n Travis Kelce<\/p>\n<\/td>\n 26.6<\/p>\n<\/td>\n TE2<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n The bad news is obviously that Travis Kelce isn\u2019t a \u2018grab him and don\u2019t worry for the rest of the season\u2019 guy anymore. But there\u2019s a bunch of good news that goes along with that.\u00a0<\/p>\n One bit of good news is that aside from 2023 and 2024, when a couple of rookies came out of nowhere, drafting a top tight end has been mega beneficial. Another bit is that there aren\u2019t any rookies who will realistically come out of nowhere and make you feel like you wasted a premier pick. Typically, those early tight ends pay off.<\/p>\n The last bit of good news is a bit of a monkey\u2019s paw: The tight end position is strong<\/em> this year, so you\u2019re not up a creek if you don\u2019t get the tip-top-tier guys \u2026 But that also means that everyone else is in the same boat.\u00a0<\/p>\n We\u2019ve pivoted from a world where the good tight ends were a rarity to a world where half of the teams are going to have one.\u00a0<\/p>\n Over the past seven seasons, we\u2019ve seen the tight end position play out just about every way that it could. One guy has been by far the best. Two guys have separated themselves. Then there have been years that felt flukey at the time, where a group of guys is alone at the top. Here\u2019s what that separation looked like, and a short reason why:<\/p>\n With the emergence of guys like McBride, Bowers, Harold Fannin Jr., Tyler Warren, Tucker Kraft, and Colston Loveland, and the relative downturn of guys like Kelce and Andrews, we\u2019re shaping up for a year closer to 2024 than 2022.<\/p>\n It used to feel like if I didn\u2019t get a tight end in the first two rounds, I was just going to sit back and grab a guy that I thought had some upside, or completely put it off and stream the position for the year.\u00a0<\/p>\n After doing 50-ish mock drafts over the past few months, it\u2019s turned into a situation where I want<\/em> someone to grab Bowers and McBride so I can <\/em>wait until the fourth or fifth round for a different one of the young guys.\u00a0<\/p>\n Right now, the top two tight ends are projected to score within 10-ish points of each other, and the top seven tight ends are projected to be within around 60 points of each other. That\u2019s relatively close, especially when you consider the ADP. Bowers\u2019 ADP as TE1 is 23-ish, and Fannin\u2019s ADP as TE7 is 74-ish.<\/p>\n For what it\u2019s worth, guys being drafted around Bowers are Josh Allen, Nico Collins, and George Pickens. And guys being drafted around Fannin are Caleb Williams, Marvin Harrison Jr., and Rhamondre Stevenson.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re giving me the choice between Fannin and the best fantasy quarterback with Josh Allen, or Bowers and questionable production with Caleb Williams \u2026 Brother, I\u2019m taking that first option every single day.\u00a0<\/p>\n My point here is that if you don\u2019t want to gamble on drafting the TE1 or TE2, that\u2019s totally fine. But if you want to use a premium pick on those guys, you\u2019re setting yourself up for a good year. However, if you want to wait, you\u2019re still in great <\/em>shape.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u2026 Just don\u2019t wait too long. Do you really want to bank on a 33-year-old George Kittle who is coming off an Achilles? That\u2019s a hell of a way to lose a fantasy season.<\/p>\nThe hunt for TE1<\/h2>\n
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