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Welcome to my bi-weekly tight end rankings update. Each fortnight, I’ll take you through the major movers and shakers in fantasy tight end-land as we head towards the NFL off-season. This week, I’ll be talking about tight ends who are entering free agency this season, while my full rankings are at the bottom of the […]

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Okay, Razzball fam. Can we be honest about something? Ray-Ray McCloud III sounds like he should be catching passes from Tyroil Smochie-Wallace. And I’m still not sure if I’ve been spelling Jauan Jennings’ name correctly. Is it linking in this post? Unfortunately, if you were a wide receiver last night, it didn’t matter how recognizable your name was. You fell short, while the tight ends and Christian McCaffrey stole the show. Yes, George Kittle and Brock Purdy were awesome despite only connecting four times. They did it when it mattered and they did so in chunks. Which is exactly what I have been spewing the past several hours as a heavy-share Brandon Aiyuk owner. We’ll sort out that mess and more below as I reveal what else I saw in the Week 15 edition of Thursday Night Football.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

The 2020 tight end class lacks top end talent, but there were 5 players taken on day 2 which bodes well for future production. These will be my final off-season rankings now that we know landing spots and draft capital. For more background information, please check out my initial TE article for details on the players’ profiles and more of the process used to rank the position. 

The List!

Rank Movement Name Team  Draft Round
TE1 +1 Adam Trautman Saints 3
TE2 +1 Cole Kmet Bears 2
TE3 -2 Brycen Hopkins Rams 4
TE4 NR Devin Asiasi Patriots 3
TE5 NR Dalton Keene Patriots 3
TE6 +1 Colby Parkinson Seahawks 4
TE7 NR Josiah Deguara Packers 3

NOTE: There are no tiers for this list, as everyone is going to be a slow burn for fantasy relevance

Please, blog, may I have some more?

The tight end position is similar to QB in fantasy, in the sense that only an elite player really turns tides for your team. Most TE production is replaceable week in and week out. In 2019 the top 7 tight ends ranged between 16.6 and 13.6 in PPR points per game before a 1.3PPG gap to TE 8. The elite tier was even more dramatic in 2018 when the top 2 TEs averaged 3 PPG more than TE3.

Because of this, in most leagues the TE position is an afterthought on draft day. In dynasty rookie drafts it is difficult to know how to value a TE because 1) they take a while to develop for fantasy and 2) they are so often replaceable compared to other positions. If you are going to take a rookie TE, it better be in an attempt to land a whale.

Please, blog, may I have some more?