Dynasty Draft Advice: Sam LaPorta, Dalton Kincaid, Tucker Kraft

There was a point when it felt like an outright necessity to give a draft class three years before determining whether or not those players hit. Things have changed to a degree, as we’ve seen an influx of young players entering the NFL and making an immediate impact on their respective teams.

Taking a look back at the 2023 NFL Draft shows us a bit of a mixture: Some players entered the NFL and took the league by storm, while others might have gotten off to a slower start, but now look primed to make an impact for your fantasy rosters. Here’s a look at a few notable third-year players and their 2025 fantasy football outlook.

Dynasty Draft Advice: Third-Year Players

Tight Ends

We saw some immediate contributions come from the tight end group from the 2023 NFL Draft, and some players are starting to emerge a little further down the line.

Sam LaPorta broke onto the scene in a big way during his rookie season. Despite his 2024 season getting off to a slow start, he was the TE5 from Week 10 on. There will always be some variance thanks to the surplus of playmakers the Lions have on their roster, but LaPorta remains a top tight end in dynasty formats. He should be treated as a top-three option at the position, likely behind only Brock Bowers and Trey McBride.

Dalton Kincaid has failed to live up to the hype and it’s fair to wonder at this point if we’re ever going to see a massive breakout for fantasy purposes. The Bills feel likely to add another playmaker in some capacity this offseason. Even if that’s at wide receiver, it’s bound to eat into Kincaid’s opportunity in some fashion. He’s a back-end, touchdown-dependent TE1 moving forward.

The wind was taken out of Michael Mayer‘s sails for fantasy purposes as soon as the Raiders selected Brock Bowers. While the two players complement each other nicely, it’s tough to see Mayer being able to emerge from Bowers’ shadow. If the Raiders were to ever put Mayer on the trade block, he’d be an interesting post-hype candidate on another team.

Tucker Kraft was maybe the least heralded of this group, but he broke out in a big way in 2024. After only having 355 receiving yards as a rookie, Kraft hauled in 50 catches for 707 yards and seven touchdowns in 2024. His 14.1 yards per reception average was second in the NFL among tight ends, behind only San Francisco’s George Kittle. He’s a mid-range TE1 for dynasty leagues and arguably falls within the top six options at the position.