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Dynasty rankings - Tight Ends

Big-name tight ends come with big-time risk

It’s not easy ranking the tight ends (either for 2017 or longer term). Four of the very best ones comes with considerable injury risk. And if a player misses 4-8 games or ends his career three years early, that’s a huge hit for those who selected him.

So if I’m walking into a dynasty draft today, I would be leery of selecting Rob Gronkowski, Tyler Eifert, Jordan Reed and Kyle Rudolph. All are great, but all have missed games with multiple injuries during their careers. They can’t be counted on to play 16 games in any given season.

So if I were picking a tight end today, I think I would instead go with Hunter Henry. He hasn’t fully blossomed yet, but I’ve seen enough to convince me he’s going to be a very good player at this position for a lot of years.

I would also be looking hard at Cameron Brate. He’s a converted wide receiver out of the Ivy League, but he seems to be for real.

Below is my top 50. This is using standard scoring, and I’m trying to strike a balance between what a player will do in the 2017, what he might do in subsequent seasons and how many productive seasons he has left. At the same time, rankings must be crafted knowing that NFL and fantasy teams are constantly adjusting their rosters. And when 30-plus tight ends have been chosen, it makes more sense to go after somebody who might be very good (rather than just a player who’ll definitely be on a roster but has no chance of every posting top-10 numbers).

My try …

DYNASTY TIGHT ENDS
RkTmPlayerAge
1.SDHunter Henry22
2.CINTyler Eifert26
3.TBCameron Brate25
4.NERob Gronkowski27
5.KCTravis Kelce27
6.WASJordan Reed26
7.MINKyle Rudolph27
8.DETEric Ebron23
9.SEAJimmy Graham30
10.CARGreg Olsen31
11.HOUC.J. Fiedorowicz25
12.NEMartellus Bennett29
13.PHIZach Ertz26
14.TENDelanie Walker32
15.SFVance McDonald26
16.BUFCharles Clay27
17.INDDwayne Allen26
18.GBJared Cook29
19.DENAJ Derby25
20.PITLadarius Green26
21.NOCoby Fleener28
22.JACJulius Thomas28
23.INDJack Doyle26
24.CHIZach Miller31
25.OAKClive Walford25
26.ATLAustin Hooper22
27.BALDennis Pitta31
28.ARIJermaine Gresham28
29.CLEGary Barnidge31
30.NYJAustin Seferian-Jenkins24
31.MIADion Sims25
32.DALJason Witten34
33.PITJesse James22
34.LATyler Higbee23
35.NYGWill Tye25
36.INDErik Swoope24
37.ARITroy Niklas24
38.GBRichard Rodgers24
39.SDAntonio Gates36
40.LALance Kendricks28
41.OAKMychal Rivera26
42.BALMaxx Williams22
43.CHIDaniel Brown28
44.HOUStephen Anderson23
45.ATLJacob Tamme31
46.DENJeff Heuerman24
47.HOURyan Griffin27
48.PHITrey Burton25
49.NOJosh Hill26
50.BALDarren Waller24

—Ian Allan

Fantasy Index