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One of the best parts about dynasty fantasy football leagues is the year-long commitment to the team. The ongoing nature of dynasty teams creates a lot of advantages for dynasty GMs who use good strategy and roster construction. Free agency, trades, the NFL Draft, and the different news cycles lead to different strategies for different positions. This series will focus on different moves to make this month.

Beware of Rookie Tight Ends

Rookie tight ends are difficult to depend on early in their career for fantasy football production. The transition to the NFL can be difficult and slow. Having proper expectations can help you understand their value in dynasty fantasy football.

Dig Deeper: See our rookie tight end rankings here >>>

Since 2008, tight ends drafted in the first round of the NFL Draft, who have played the first three years of their career (excluding Kyle Pitts, who has only played two), average 9.4 points per game with a median performance of 9.0 points per game.

Overall, the average first-round tight end finished with 3.5 receptions, 39.2 receiving yards, and 0.3 touchdowns per game. The best performer during the time span was Evan Engram, who averaged 11.8 points per game in the first three years of his career.

By way of reference, the average TE12 finish since 2008 has been 10.4 points per game. The 90th-percentile outcome for first-round tight ends has been 10.3 points per game. Engram’s 11.8 points per game are just above the average TE8 finish, which is 11.7 PPG.

With Engram as the benchmark, the comparison with this year’s only first-round tight end, Dalton Kincaid, is illuminating.

When asked if Dalton Kincaid matched the production of Evan Engram’s production in the first three years of his career, 56% said they would be disappointed.

This is certainly a sign the dynasty marketplace is overvaluing tight ends and is a good reminder to be skeptical of early career production.

Second-round tight ends are even worse. On average, on average, they score 5.9 points per game in the first three years of their career. The 90th percentile performance is 8.9 points per game. Outside of Rob Gronkowski (15.8), no second-round tight end has averaged 10 points per game in the first three years of his career. The second-best scorer during the span was Zach Ertz, with 9 PPG.