In a perfect world, my must-have tight ends list would consist of Brock Bowers and Trey McBride. End of list; end of article.

Also, in a perfect world, I would be playing quarterback for the Denver Broncos.

Spoiler Alert: It’s not a perfect world. We can’t all play quarterback for our favorite team or roster Bowers and McBride. In an imperfect world, we must look at alternative options and make the best of the imperfections around us.

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With that in mind, here are my must-have tight ends given their average draft value (ADP) and the value I expect them to offer in the upcoming season.

Must-Have Tight Ends

Evan Engram (TE – DEN) | ADP: TE12 (124th Overall)

You’d be hard pressed to find a better team and player fit than Evan Engram and the Denver Broncos. For starters, Sean Payton has overseen many successful tight end seasons, including three straight top-two fantasy finishes at the position for Jimmy Graham.

Over the last two seasons, Engram led all tight ends in receptions (112) and yards (957) from the slot while Payton’s Broncos have run 52.3% of their tight end routes from the slot, the fifth-highest rate in the NFL, according to NFL Next Gen Stats.

Engram will undoubtedly play an instrumental role in the growth of Bo Nix. In his rookie season, Nix proved his deep ball was worthy of playing on Sundays, but the Broncos’ offense often struggled to generate yards over the middle of the field.

Despite his deep ball success, Nix still threw 1.5 air yards short of the sticks on average, and the Broncos lacked playmakers who could create yards after the catch or stretch the field up the seam. That will change with Engram in town. Without a true No. 1 WR, Engram will see a heavy dose of targets.

Engram’s highest target total, by far, was the 143 he saw in 2023 with Jacksonville when he finished as the TE2. During Jimmy Graham’s dominant four-year run with New Orleans, he saw between 125 and 149 targets. Engram should fall within that range.

David Njoku (TE – CLE) | ADP: TE10 (114th Overall)

With a TE4 finish in PPR points per game last season, David Njoku’s season flew a bit under the radar. He has been one of the best tight ends in football over the past two seasons when Deshaun Watson is not under center for the Browns.

Njoku certainly benefited from Jameis Winston‘s gunslinger mentality and enjoyed a bump after the team shipped out Amari Cooper, but it’s looking likely that 2025 will bring us a reunion between Joe Flacco and Njoku.

In a vacuum, the expectation of Flacco as a starting quarterback sounds like a letdown, but in the case of the Browns, it may be just what the doctor ordered. Njoku was the PPR TE2 in Weeks 13-17 of 2023, the five games in which Flacco started for the Browns.

We can’t be sure what to expect from Flacco, or a rookie quarterback if Cleveland goes that route, but a TE10 fantasy ADP is a value for a player who is consistently a top-five tight end without Watson at the helm and who has finished in the top eight in points per game (PPG) in each of the last three seasons.

Njoku’s fifth-best dominator rating proves Kevin Stefanski is comfortable relying on his tight end, and the Browns lack pass-catchers after Jerry Jeudy and Cedric Tillman. Njoku should be the fifth or sixth tight end off the board. Enjoy the sale price while you can.

Cole Kmet (TE – CHI) | ADP: TE20 (171st Overall)

Admittedly, I’ve generally been below market on Cole Kmet, but if Ben Johnson delivers on his expectations and Caleb Williams has a breakthrough season, Kmet will eat. After target shares above 17% in each of his first three seasons, that number dipped below 10% last season.

There are a few reasons for that, including Keenan Allen, who is no longer a Chicago Bear. Shane Waldron’s insistence on rotating in Gerald Everett is another, and neither of those two is with the organization anymore. The runway is clear for Kmet this year, and somebody will need to step up as the third target in this offense.

Johnson, an offensive mastermind, has shown he is not afraid to rely on tight ends for those duties. In Detroit, Sam LaPorta saw target shares of 25% and 20.5% in their two seasons together. Kmet is no LaPorta, but if Kmet approaches a 20% target share, he will have a strong chance to be a top-10 tight end, as he was in 2023.

Despite the limited opportunities last season, Kmet generated 2.19 fantasy points per target, the sixth-best mark among tight ends. He boasted a 94% true catch rate and a 66.7% contested catch rate, also good for sixth-best at the position.

These metrics come on the heels of a 100% true catch rate in 2023 to go with a 77.8% contested catch rate, both of which topped all tight ends. He also averaged 1.99 fantasy points per target in 2023, good for fifth-best.

These numbers prove Kmet’s value as a safety blanket and asset for a quarterback. The biggest questions facing Kmet are his target volume and the success of the offense, both of which appear to be trending upward ahead of the 2025 season.

Hunter Henry (TE – NE) | ADP: TE23 (178th Overall)

If you’re looking for a tight end in the bargain bin, there’s no better value than Hunter Henry, who finished as the PPR TE12 overall and TE16 in PPG last season. Henry finished the season sixth in receptions among tight ends with 66 and eighth in yards with 674.

Holding Henry down were his two touchdowns, but his 19 red-zone targets would suggest he’s due for positive regression in that department, especially considering his reputation as a red-zone threat.

The Patriots may look to draft a receiver after acquiring Stefon Diggs in free agency, but they still lack top-end weaponry among their pass-catchers. This leaves Henry as a focal point of Drake Maye‘s development. Through eight seasons, Henry has finished as TE17 or better in seven of them with three top-10 finishes, displaying a model of consistency.

This season, however, Henry has as much upside as ever playing alongside a young, ascending quarterback. If you’re betting on Maye to grow into a dynamic quarterback, which is a wager I’m in on, Henry figures to be a big part of that.

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