Tight ends truly feel like that "have or have-not" position in fantasy. Some managers are getting WR1 production from their tight end spot with a young buy like Brock Bowers or Trey McBride. Others are patchworking together a room of Travis Kelce, David Njoku, Mason Taylor, and Gunnar Helm, desperately hoping fate breaks in their favor. If you're one of the "have-nots," though, don't worry. The league is changing quickly.
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An influx of young talent has completely changed the landscape over the last few seasons. Trey McBride headlined a 2022 class that also had Jake Ferguson, Isaiah Likely, and Chig Okonkwo. In 2023, Sam LaPorta, Dalton Kincaid, Tucker Kraft, and Brenton Strange made early impacts. 2024 blessed us with Brock Bowers, Theo Johnson, and AJ Barner. Last year, Colston Loveland, Tyler Warren, and Harold Fannin Jr. were all viable starters in fantasy. Mason Taylor, Terrance Ferguson, Elijah Arroyo, and Oronde Gadsden are prospects worth keeping the porch light on for. And this year, nine tight ends were drafted before the end of day 2. Thirteen more were drafted on Day 3. As the league trends towards more jumbo packages, more tight ends are finding consistent usage.
What felt like a dry position for years suddenly has multiple outs for cheap production. Those who don't have a steady TE1 can roster three or four young guys, hoping one breaks out soon. The first ten tight ends discussed in this article are all young and ascending, making them strong targets for rebuilders and contenders alike.
As always, these are not flat rankings. This article adds nuance to the idea of dynasty rankings by grouping players into buckets based on similar profiles, including age, scoring, trajectory, injury history, and more. In case you missed it, here are the running backs and wide receivers.
Jeff Bell and I went deep on tight ends, going through these groupings with a fine-toothed comb. You can check out the full episode here.
Now let's dive in, starting with the best of the best, the crème de la crème, "The Elites."
Dynasty Tight Ends Rankings and Tiers
The Elites
Like every other position discussed so far, tight ends have a tier of their own. Both Bowers and McBride check every box. They are elite producers with solid draft capital and on the right side of the age curve. An early-season PCL injury derailed Bowers' 2025 season, but the flashes were still there. 103 yards in Week 1 before the injury. 127 yards and three touchdowns in his first game back. As a rookie, Bowers obliterated Mike Ditka's long-time record for receiving yards by a rookie tight end. Still just 23 and now the centerpiece of a Klint Kubiak offense, his best days are almost assuredly ahead of him. McBride has had a promising profile since stepping into a full-time role in 2023. Last year, his ceiling was finally realized. With Jacoby Brissett under center for the majority of the season, McBride set career highs in targets, receptions, yards, and touchdowns. The touchdowns especially boosted his fantasy production, where he caught nearly twice as many as in his first three seasons combined. McBride is a bit older than Bowers, entering his age-27 season. Still, he's expected to be a TE1 for the next half-decade or more. You can work these guys into any roster construction, although McBride skews a bit more towards contenders.
Year 2 Budding Stars
Some elite tight ends headlined the 2025 NFL Draft, and they all proved serviceable almost immediately. Loveland and Warren got the lofty draft capital, both going in the first half of Round 1. Fannin fell to Round 3, but had the best college production of the bunch. Loveland and Fannin are very young, both entering their age-22 seasons. Warren will play the 2026 season at age 24. Warren had the most receiving yards last year, followed by Fannin and then Loveland. The mix of age, production, and draft capital makes ranking these guys a bit of a strenuous exercise, but Loveland has the edge in my rankings. Selected tenth overall, he dealt with a shoulder recovery through his rookie offseason. However, a Week 9 breakout carried through the rest of the season, and Loveland was second to only Trey McBride in scoring over the second half of the year. Warren's season was the opposite, where his role as an immediate focal point trailed off as the Colts' season fell victim to injuries. Fannin is the youngest and most intriguing of the bunch. He was the lone bright spot in a horrendous Browns' offense last year. Now he gets to be a featured part of a Todd Monken offense that has historically highlighted athletic pass-catching tight ends. All of these tight ends are in positions to drastically raise their value this season, and their rookie-season production and profiles should keep their value insulated. These are good targets for both rebuilders and contenders.
Could Still Gain Value
This cluster of tight ends is aged within three months of each other, all entering the season at 25 years old. Despite their youthful bodies, injuries have been an unfortunate theme here. Pitts came into the league much younger than most players, and his extra years of experience may have deluded dynasty managers into thinking he's older than he actually is. His elite draft capital and recent finish as a top-two tight end keep him firmly atop this tier, despite some of the fatigue dynasty managers may feel about him. The excitement following his fantastic rookie season was dampened after a season-ending MCL injury and concurrent down seasons. But he started to look more like himself last season, and could be set up for a massive contract after this year if he puts another good season on tape. He entered Week 9 leading all tight ends in scoring, but left the game with a torn ACL. His role as an after-the-catch freight train and red-zone vacuum makes him an alluring target for rebuilders. LaPorta, like many young tight ends, flashed as a rookie. As a rookie in 2023, he led all tight ends in scoring, anchored by ten touchdowns. Since then, his usage has trailed off a bit, and he dealt with a season-ending back injury in 2025. There's hope he can return to form, and any signs of life would quickly resuscitate his dynasty value. Like the players in the groups above, these guys are young enough to fit on any roster and can quickly add value early in the 2026 season.
Top-Tier Rookies
While this year's rookie tight end class is deep, it might lack some of the elite talent up top. Sadiq's draft capital is great, as he was selected 16th overall by the New York Jets. The history of tight ends drafted inside the top half of Round 1 is stellar. However, Sadiq's role on a crowded offense without an identity is hard to distinguish. However, those same concerns are what made Harold Fannin Jr. such a great value in last year's drafts. Stowers raised his stock during the predraft process, logging one of the best athletic performances we've ever seen from a tight end at the Combine. Unfortunately, he fell to Round 2 and landed behind Dallas Goedert. It's easy to see a long-term path to relevance, but his short-term upside could be capped. The Eagles also spent a first-round pick on Makai Lemon, crowding the pass-catching projections for the near future. The college production and athletic testing make Stowers a great bet, and you might be able to buy low midway through 2026.
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