The biggest nightmare in fantasy football often revolves around the tight end position and how to deal with what can be a feast or famine position. Scoring six touchdowns at tight end can make you a top-end player, but consistency is often craved more, and that can be a tricky thing to find.
As we wind closer to training camp and the start of the fantasy football season, this is our recommended fantasy football strategy for handling the tight end position in 2025.
- Fantasy Football Draft Kit
- 2025 Fantasy Football Expert Rankings
- Fantasy Football ADP
- Fantasy Football Trade Tools
Tight End Fantasy Football Draft Strategy
2025 Tight End Landscape
Looking at FantasyPros’ average draft position (ADP), 29 tight ends go within the first 210 picks of drafts. Only six find themselves in the first 100 picks, which is a noteworthy drop from 11 in 2024 and 10 in 2023. Eleven tight ends have an ADP between picks 100 to 150, which seems like the range many will be heavily reliant upon. This range also includes both rookies taken in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft.
| Positional Rank | ADP | Name | Team |
| 1 | 19 | Brock Bowers | LV |
| 2 | 25 | Trey McBride | ARI |
| 3 | 42 | George Kittle | SF |
| 4 | 74 | Sam LaPorta | DET |
| 5 | 88 | T.J. Hockenson | MIN |
| 6 | 94 | Travis Kelce | KC |
| 7 | 104 | Evan Engram | DEN |
| 8 | 105 | Mark Andrews | BAL |
| 9 | 114 | Jonnu Smith | MIA |
| 10 | 118 | David Njoku | CLE |
| 11 | 125 | Tyler Warren | IND |
| 12 | 132 | Tucker Kraft | GB |
| 13 | 137 | Colston Loveland | CHI |
| 14 | 140 | Dallas Goedert | PHI |
| 15 | 142 | Dalton Kincaid | BUF |
| 16 | 145 | Isaiah Likely | BAL |
| 17 | 147 | Jake Ferguson | DAL |
| 18 | 161 | Kyle Pitts | ATL |
| 19 | 166 | Brenton Strange | JAX |
| 20 | 168 | Pat Freiermuth | PIT |
| 21 | 170 | Hunter Henry | NE |
| 22 | 172 | Zach Ertz | WSH |
| 23 | 177 | Mike Gesicki | CIN |
| 24 | 187 | Mason Taylor | NYJ |
| 25 | 186 | Cade Otton | TB |
| 26 | 190 | Chig Okonkwo | TEN |
| 27 | 198 | Dalton Schultz | HOU |
| 28 | 201 | Juwan Johnson | NO |
| 29 | 209 | Ja’Tavion Sanders | CAR |
Early Tight End
The first four tight ends are a tale of upside and talent, but in varying situations.
TE1: Brock Bowers (LV)
People worried about Brock Bowers’ build a year ago, and many were still reeling from Kyle Pitts whiplash, but Bowers went on to become the fantasy TE1 overall, with George Kittle 16 points behind him as the TE2. Bowers’ 112 receptions were the most by any rookie ever, not just at the tight end position.
There remains an air of skepticism about Bowers with his ADP firmly in the second round, but with such high volume paired with a quarterback upgrade in Geno Smith, Bowers could be even better this time around.
TE2: Trey McBride (ARI)
The one significant factor that has held back Trey McBride continues to be the biggest concern about him going forward — his lack of touchdowns. Through three seasons, McBride has six total receiving touchdowns, a number Mark Andrews, George Kittle, Sam LaPorta, Tucker Kraft, Jonnu Smith and Isaiah Likely all exceeded last year alone.
McBride has had over 100 targets in each of the last two seasons. If the touchdowns eventually come, he has TE1 overall upside.
TE3: George Kittle (SF)
Last year’s TE1 in PPR points per game, George Kittle, has a significantly clearer pathway now that Deebo Samuel is no longer with the 49ers.
In previous years, when Samuel was healthy and in form, much of the close-to-the-line-of-scrimmage action went to Samuel. While Jauan Jennings could potentially see some of that action, this offense feels like it’s being built around Kittle.
TE4: Sam LaPorta (DET)
Sam LaPorta finds himself as the TE4 after being the TE1 in 2023 ADP, dropping down after disappointing many who drafted him. LaPorta was always primed for touchdown regression in 2024, having scored nine in 2023, three more than any other tight end.
Still, LaPorta has shown us his upside. Including Week 18 of his rookie year, LaPorta became the first rookie tight end since 1961 to score to double-digit touchdowns. While LaPorta disappointed in failing to pay off his high ADP, it’s worth pointing out that from Week 8 onwards, when he was healthier, his average points per game jumped from 7.1 to 13.2, which is no bad outcome at the tight end position.
The Middle Ground
After the elite tight ends, the question mark players start to creep in, and there are plenty of them. T.J. Hockenson has had his moments, but the target competition with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, alongside a rookie quarterback in J.J. McCarthy, has seen him fall slightly.
Mark Andrews scored 11 touchdowns last year, but lacked the volume he once did, and is dealing with Isaiah Likely pushing heavily behind him, having scored seven touchdowns of his own. Evan Engram and Jonnu Smith both had their moments, but is Smith the player we saw last year? Smith’s ADP is being suppressed by rumors of a potential trade to Pittsburgh. Engram, meanwhile, is fine; the vanilla ice cream of tight ends. Each year, Engram can earn a reasonable amount of targets but fails to score many touchdowns and generates some of the most mediocre yards after the catch numbers among tight ends.
Where the middle area of the tight end landscape gets potentially interesting is when we arrive at the rookies. Colston Loveland and Tyler Warren are both picked between picks 125-140, fresh off securing top-15 draft capital. It used to be the case that drafting rookie tight ends was a one-way ticket to disappointment, but in recent years, Sam LaPorta and Brock Bowers have crushed that mantra.
Between 2000 and 2022 (the pre-stud rookie TE1 era we live in), there were 25 tight ends drafted in round one. Only three resulted in top-12 tight end PPR finishes — Kyle Pitts (2021), Evan Engram (2017) and Jeremy Shockey (2002). Whether Loveland or Warren can maintain the hot streak LaPorta and Bowers started remains to be seen, but they’re interesting picks.
Late-Round Dart-Throws
In recent years, late-round tight end has worked out well with Jonnu Smith and Mike Gesicki two of the highlights of 2024, and Sam LaPorta headlining 2023. If we’re not into the top-end values at tight end, then it makes sense to draft multiple players from this range if your roster has space for it.
Kyle Pitts represents the ultimate upside swing in this range, but the question marks about his ability are more prominent than ever. Only seven tight ends averaged more than the 4.4 targets per game Pitts saw in his limited starts with Michael Penix. Use that information as you see fit.
Elsewhere, Hunter Henry is an interesting name if the Patriots’ offense can take a leap forward. It’s worth mentioning he finished as the TE12 in PPR points last season.
Ideal Strategy
It seems simple to say, but the top two tight ends in Brock Bowers and Trey McBride seem like must-have players this year due to excellent volume and upside. If they aren’t available when you’re on the clock, Sam LaPorta falls in an area of the draft where wide receivers and running backs are less appealing.
Speculating on the rookie tight ends is a lot of fun, but easier in best ball than redraft leagues. In redraft leagues with large benches, I would prioritize drafting one of Loveland and Warren regardless of your other selections. Another choice would be to double-dip in the middle grounds with a pairing of Mark Andrews, who has been a reliable touchdown scorer, and David Njoku, who commands great volume but has quarterback question marks to contend with.
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