When preparing for your fantasy football drafts, knowing which players to target and others to avoid is important. The amount of information available can be overwhelming, so a great way to condense the data and determine players to draft and others to leave for your leaguemates is to use our expert consensus fantasy football rankings compared to fantasy football average draft position (ADP). In this way, you can identify players the experts are willing to reach for at ADP and others they are not drafting until much later than average. Let’s dive into a few notable late-round fantasy football picks I target in drafts.
When preparing for your fantasy football drafts, knowing which players to target and others to avoid is important. The amount of information available can be overwhelming, so a great way to condense the data and determine players to draft and others to leave for your leaguemates is to use our expert consensus fantasy football rankings compared to fantasy football average draft position (ADP). In this way, you can identify players the experts are willing to reach for at ADP and others they are not drafting until much later than average. Let’s dive into a few notable late-round fantasy football picks I target in drafts.
Fantasy Football Advice: Late-Round Draft Picks to Target
Let’s dive into late-round draft picks I target.
Tucker Kraft (GB)
Last year, Tucker Kraft stepped up as Green Bay’s clear present and future starting tight end. The South Dakota State alum finished as the TE14 in fantasy points per game in the Packers’ run-heavy offense. Green Bay loves its committee approach with the passing game, so it’s tough to see Kraft becoming a high-end target earner in this offense, but he has the talent to do so. Last year, among 47 qualifying tight ends, Kraft ranked 20th in target share and 27th in first read share, but he posted top 12 marks in receiving yards per game (12th-best), yards per route run (seventh), missed tackles forced (third), and yards after the catch per reception (first). Green Bay did feed him an 18.5% designed target rate (second-best among tight ends), but he wasn’t the first option on many passing plays. Kraft proved he has the talent to take the next step and become a focal point if the Green Bay offensive design changes in 2025. Kraft is a wild card TE1.
Dallas Goedert (PHI)
Dallas Goedert has finished as a TE1 in fantasy points per game in EVERY season since 2019. I don’t think that streak ends in 2025. Goedert should be ranked as a TE1 this season, operating in one of the best offenses in the NFL, which will pass more frequently this year. Goedert dealt with injuries again last year with a knee issue and a hamstring ailment. When he was on the field and playing at least 60% of the snaps, he produced 11.8 PPR points per game, which would have equaled the TE8 in fantasy points per game last year. In that sample, he earned a 20.2% target share, churned out 55.1 receiving yards per game and 2.23 yards per route run, and garnered a 25.2% first-read share. Among 47 qualifying tight ends last year, those figures would have ranked sixth, fourth, fourth, and third last season (per Fantasy Points Data). Draft Goedert confidently as a TE1 again this season.
Tyler Higbee (LAR)
Tyler Higbee is a strong TE2 who could flirt with TE1 production in 2025. Last year, he spent almost the entire season recovering and ramping up from ACL and MCL injuries. He had a brief cup of coffee in Weeks 16-17, playing 26-29% of the snaps before ramping up further in Weeks 18-20. In Weeks 18-20, Higbee had an 18.8% target share, 2.43 yards per route run, a 25.7% first-read share, and 0.123 first downs per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). These are all elite usage marks, but I don’t expect them to continue this season with Cooper Kupp exchanged for Davante Adams and Terrance Ferguson added to the equation. Ferguson will likely be a part-time player in his rookie season with a gradual ramp-up, with Ferguson taking over as the team’s starting tight end in 2026 when Higbee leaves as a free agent. This could still cut into Higbee’s route share, but what helps Higbee is that this is an extremely consolidated passing attack. If Higbee is the clear number three option and Matthew Stafford‘s passing touchdown rate bounces back, he could finish as a low-end TE1.
Hunter Henry (NE)
Hunter Henry is a wonderful late-round tight-end target this season if you’re looking to punt the position in 2025. Last year, in Drake Maye‘s full starts, he had a 19.2% target share, averaged 49.9 receiving yards per game, had 1.70 yards per route run, a 22.7% first-read share, and 0.098 first downs per route run (per Fantasy Points Data). I’ll also add on top that he averaged 11.3 PPR points per game in that sample. Last year, among all tight ends with 25 targets, those marks would have ranked seventh, sixth, 14th, fifth, eighth, and the points per game production would have made him the TE8 in fantasy. Yes, since that time, New England added Stefon Diggs and Kyle Williams to the passing equation, but that doesn’t mean that Henry still can’t emerge in 2025 as Maye’s number two option in the passing offense and flirt with TE1 output.
Mason Taylor (NYJ)
Taylor is headed to the Jets after they selected him in the second round of the NFL Draft. Taylor could become the number two target in the passing attack quickly, with only Josh Reynolds and Allen Lazard as his closest competition for targets. I wasn’t nearly as enamored as many with Taylor as a prospect. His athleticism was solid, with a 4.68 40-yard dash and an 83rd percentile 3-cone. Taylor should develop into a solid starting NFL tight end, but I have a hard time seeing a pathway to elite status for Taylor. Across his three seasons at LSU, he never ranked higher than 63rd in yards per route run (per PFF). Taylor finished his collegiate career with only 5.4 yards after the catch per reception and 14 missed tackles forced (129 receptions). With the Jets lacking difference-making and high-end target-earning options outside of Garrett Wilson and Breece Hall, Taylor could easily be a volume-fueled low-end TE1 in 2025. He’s a fantastic late-round TE2 pick.
