Fantasy Football – Pre-Draft Tight Ends rankings

Fantasy Football: Pre-Draft Tight End Rankings

5. O.J. Howard (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)

2018 Stats: 34 Receptions | 565 Yards | 5 TDs | 16.6 YPC

Now there may be some crazy juice drinking here with this O.J. Howard write up but with the Buccaneers finally figuring out who they want at the Quarterback position, we all should be okay. Howard held a snap share of 63% while averaging 41.6 passing plays per game where he ran a route for 44% of them.

He saw seven targets in the red zone but just two targets in the end zone. While his targets weren’t up there, Howard was still able to average 12.1 fantasy points per game which ranked him 5th at the tight end position.

4. Jared Cook (New Orleans Saints)

2018 Stats: 68 Receptions | 896 Yards | 6 TDs | 13.2 YPC

I am a huge fan of Jared Cook and I love that he’s in a system where he can exceed and dominate in while in New Orleans. Last year he had a snap share of 77% and averaged 38 passing plays per game where he had a route for 70% of them.

He also saw 15 targets in the red zone and just 8 in the end zone. I expect all of those numbers to increase by a decent amount this season with his new quarterback being Drew Brees. We know exactly what Drew Brees did with Jimmy Graham and we should see a similar partnership between Brees and Cook.

3. Zach Ertz (Philadelphia Eagles)

2018 Stats: 116 Receptions | 1,163 Yards | 8 TDs | 10 YPC

I’ve written up Zach Ertz and the next two tight ends already in previous articles and love that I get to write about them again. Now the Eagles have allowed Nick Foles to leave which makes Carson Wentz their franchise guy (even though his injuries have happened back to back years).

It’s tough to pay two franchise quarterbacks though. Ertz was involved in 95% of the snaps last season and averaged 39.9 plays per game which 76% of those had him running a route. He was a huge red zone target as he had 27 but he only held 10 targets in the end zone.

The one huge thing about Zach Ertz is that he averaged 17.5 fantasy points per game which had him ranked 2nd at the position.

2. George Kittle (San Francisco 49ers)

2018 Stats: 88 Receptions | 1,377 Yards | 5 TDs | 15.6 YPC

Oh it’s one of my man crush everyday with George Kittle. This man broke the single season receiving record for tight ends a little bit after Travis Kelce last season and he did it while working with three different quarterbacks.

He played in 94% of the offensive snaps while averaging 36 passing plays per game. Just like Ertz, Kittle was a red zone target with 19 but then had a lonely 8 targets in the end zone. Kittle ranked 3rd in fantasy points for tight ends last season with 16 points per game.

If Jimmy G can start Week 1 and stay healthy for the season then that consistency of just one quarterback can help George Kittle become the top tight end in the NFL this season.

1. Travis Kelce (Kansas City Chiefs)

2018 Stats: 103 Receptions | 1,336 Yards | 10 TDs | 13 YPC

When you are already one of the most dangerous weapons in the NFL and then your teams number one wide receiver is suspended, what does Travis Kelce become next? He just becomes more God-like, I suppose.

Kelce averaged 18.4 fantasy points last season while holding 96% of the offensive snaps. He was one of Mahomes best red zone targets as he had 26 targets which ranked him 3rd. In the 38 passing plays per game he averaged last year, Kelce ran a route in 77% of them. He also only had one game below 10 fantasy points last season and that was in Week 1.

With Sammy Watkins becoming the number one receiver for the Chiefs, we can expect Mahomes to rely heavily on Travis Kelce and his snap shares going up once again for the season.