Tight ends are the featured position this week, and I’ll operate under the assumption that all of my top 20 players are already spoken for. No need to spend much time debating whether Michael Mayer might be next year’s Trey McBride, because he’s surely rostered as a second tight end in the vast majority of leagues.
I will focus instead on a few tight ends who might be available, with the potential to maybe become top-20 players at the position in 2024 (or later).
Greg Dulcich. He missed almost all of the season with hamstring and foot injuries but he’s Denver’s best pass-catching tight end. If he can get right physically, he’ll have a good chance of developing into something. He caught 2 passes early in the team’s opener before suffering a hamstring injury that ruined his season.
Tucker Kraft. He sure has played well filling in for fellow rookie Luke Musgrave. Kraft has caught 2 TDs in his last five games. Three weeks in a row he’s caught 4 passes for over 55 yards. I’m starting to wonder if Kraft might have a better career than Musgrave (who’s also had a very good debut season).
Luke Schoonmaker. He didn’t do much of note in his first season, but nor did he fall on his face. He’s played some, contributing as a second tight end. I don’t think he’ll be knocking Jake Ferguson out of the starting lineup anytime soon, but it also can’t be ruled out. With the upside of that offense, seems like a guy who should be rostered. (Dallas selected him in the second round in April.)
Jelani Woods. He’s spent the entire season on injured reserve, but he’s a physical freak. At 6-foot-7, he could develop into a Gronk-Goedert type difference maker. (Woods, it should be clarified, plays for the Colts.) He made a few plays as a rookie, catching 8 passes for 98 yards in a game against the Steelers. If we’re in a 12-team dynasty league, with each team carrying about three tight ends, makes some sense to roster him, allowing you to control his rights in August, deciding whether he might be something.
Davis Allen. A fifth-round pick, Allen caught 4 passes for 50 yards and a touchdown for the Rams in their shootout loss at Baltimore a few weeks ago. That has me wondering if he might be the guy who replaces 31-year-old Tyler Higbee.
My revised tight end list appears below. I turn my attention to dynasty leagues each Saturday during the regular season, rotating between the four notable positions. I’m assuming PPR scoring, with teams controlling the rights to players indefinitely. Rookies tagged with black dots.
To see recent lists at other positions, use the “past issues” navigation box.
Last week: wide receivers
Next week: Quarterbacks
Ages indicate player's age as of today.
DYNASTY LEAGUE TIGHT ENDS | |||
---|---|---|---|
Rk | Tm | Player | Age |
1. | DET | • Sam LaPorta | 23.0 |
2. | MIN | T.J. Hockenson | 26.5 |
3. | ARI | Trey McBride | 24.1 |
4. | BAL | Mark Andrews | 28.3 |
5. | CLE | David Njoku | 27.5 |
6. | BUF | • Dalton Kincaid | 24.2 |
7. | CHI | Cole Kmet | 24.8 |
8. | KC | Travis Kelce | 34.2 |
9. | HOU | Dalton Schultz | 27.5 |
10. | ATL | Kyle Pitts | 23.2 |
11. | PIT | Pat Freiermuth | 25.2 |
12. | JAC | Evan Engram | 29.3 |
13. | PHI | Dallas Goedert | 29.0 |
14. | DAL | Jake Ferguson | 24.9 |
15. | SF | George Kittle | 30.2 |
16. | LV | • Michael Mayer | 22.5 |
17. | TB | Cade Otton | 24.7 |
18. | GB | • Luke Musgrave | 23.3 |
19. | TEN | Chigoziem Okonkwo | 24.3 |
20. | BAL | Isaiah Likely | 23.7 |
21. | NE | Hunter Henry | 29.1 |
22. | DEN | Greg Dulcich | 23.8 |
23. | NYG | Darren Waller | 31.3 |
24. | LAC | Gerald Everett | 29.5 |
25. | NYJ | Tyler Conklin | 28.4 |
26. | GB | • Tucker Kraft | 23.2 |
27. | ATL | Jonnu Smith | 28.4 |
28. | DAL | • Luke Schoonmaker | 25.3 |
29. | NO | Juwan Johnson | 27.3 |
30. | IND | Jelani Woods | 25.2 |
31. | BUF | Dawson Knox | 27.1 |
32. | LAR | • Davis Allen | 22.9 |
33. | SEA | Noah Fant | 26.1 |
34. | CAR | Tommy Tremble | 23.6 |
35. | LAR | Tyler Higbee | 31.0 |
36. | IND | Kylen Granson | 25.8 |
37. | WAS | Logan Thomas | 32.5 |
38. | CIN | Tanner Hudson | 29.1 |
39. | KC | Noah Gray | 24.7 |
40. | NYG | Daniel Bellinger | 23.3 |
—Ian Allan