While not quite the draft day afterthought as defenses or kickers are, tight ends usually aren't the primary focus of teams on draft day. The position is usually highlighted by a few elite players, followed by a bunch of good to adequate fillers.
Now that we are well into the season, we take a look at how the tight ends have performed, and how they rank for the rest of the season.
ELITE
Rob Gronkowski (14.3)
With Jimmy Graham traded away from the Saints to a less productive passing team, Gronk stands alone in the elite tight end category for fantasy football. He’s a great tight end on a pass-heavy team whose quarterback targets him often. With the loss of Dion Lewis and Julian Edelman, Gronk’s already great numbers could even see an additional boost.
VERY GOOD
Tyler Eifert (11.9)
Gary Barnidge (10.9)
Antonio Gates (10.8)
Greg Olsen (10.7)
Despite the dismal Monday night showing, the Bengals' third year tight end has emerged as one of the best in fantasy football. Eifert got too many good teammates around him to be a consistent performer each week, but when he’s a part of the game plan, he produces in big chunks.
With the Browns’ refusal to replace Josh Gordon with any quality receivers over the last couple of years, Barnidge has emerged as a top target for the Browns. Their lack of a running game has made them pass-dependent, and Barnidge has been the beneficiary of this.
The Chargers’ love affair with tight ends continues yet again. The loss of Keenan Allen makes their tight ends all the more attractive as starting options.
GOOD
Delanie Walker (8.9)
Travis Kelce (8.5)
Jordan Reed (10.7)
Walker has proven to be a nice fantasy draft day steal, not as nice as Eifert, but still very solid. He’s had a good year, and is a favored target in Tennessee.
Kelce has failed to match his pre-draft hype of an elite TE, but is still pretty good.
Reed doesn’t get to face the Saints every week, but still averages over eight targets per game, which is one of the top averages in the league.
OVER RATED
Jimmy Graham (6.8)
Martellus Bennett 6.4)
Jason Witten (6.2)
Charles Clay (5.9)
These are good players, and solid fantasy options, but you probably drafted them higher than their value – especially with the better options listed above. Graham is the most deserving in this group, being drafted in most leagues as the second best tight end, but only projecting to be in the 5~10 range before the season as far as predicted point production.
UNDER RATED
Austin Seferian-Jenkins (13.0)
Lardarius Green (8.5)
It seems like forever since the safari man cranked out 23 points in Week 1. He’s been hurt practically every week since. With Mike Evans back in the lineup, he’s not going to score 23 points every week, but he's worth a potential grab if you need a TE.
Green’s value is directly tied to Antonio Gates. When Gates is out, Green is a very good start.