Fantasy Football 2019 Tier Tight End Rankings
By Bill Pivetz
Tight end is the weakest of the skill positions for fantasy football. Outside of the top three, the rest is a crapshoot. Do you draft one early or wait a few rounds?
The tight end position is always a messy one for fantasy football owners. The position is extremely top-heavy with six options that could finish at the top, a big handful of TE2 picks and then a lot of question marks.
Luckily, most fantasy football leagues require owners to start just one tight end. That means you should just have to draft one. For your tight end’s bye week, just find a replacement on the waiver wire. There is no need to take up a roster spot for weeks by drafting a backup.
Yes, it may be smart to have one just in case of injuries, but looking at the scoring differential between the first and 20th options, it doesn’t make much of an impact compared to other positions.
For that reason, I have broken my tight end rankings up by tiers to give you a better idea of when to draft a certain talent level for your tight end.
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Smith was placed on the PUP list with a knee injury. As soon as he comes off the list, he will be competing with Delanie Walker for the Titans starting tight end job. I believe Walker will be the starter but Smith will be ready to take over at any time.
In 13 games last season, Smith caught 20 passes for 258 yards and three touchdowns. Walker is recovering from his own injury. Smith is a solid backup to draft in the deepest of leagues. Should Walker miss time, Smith is a good waiver wire add.
Davis comes back for his 11th season. He’s played a decent amount of games since joining the Redskins. With Jordan Reed not the healthiest of tight ends, Davis will immediately shoot up the value chart if he misses any time.
Davis caught 25 passes for 367 yards and two touchdowns. The Redskins have a quarterback battle and a questionable wide receiving corps, so Davis could see some extended playing time this season.
With Rob Gronkowski enjoying the retired life (for now), the Patriots have a vacancy at the tight end position. LaCosse seems to be the favorite to win the starting job. Though, veteran Benjamin Watson is also on the roster.
With Denver last season, he caught 24 passes for 250 yards and a score. The Patriots have arguably one of the worst wide receiving groups in the league. Tom Brady has to throw to someone outside of Julian Edelman so LaCosse could be that guy.
The rookie tight end gets a mention on my list. In his junior year with Alabama, Smith caught 44 passes for 710 yards and seven touchdowns. Based on 0.5 PPR scoring, that would have put him 10th in tight end scoring.
He is going to back up Kyle Rudolph. But outside of Rudolph, Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen, Smith could be the fourth pass-catching option in the Vikings offense. Many teams are going with two-tight end sets. He’s a deep sleeper.
Looking at the Texans depth chart, Thomas is the only true tight end on the roster. Darren Fells is a blocking TE and their rookie, Kahale Warring, is very green. Last season, Thomas had 20 catches for 215 yards and four tight ends.
The Texans have a formidable offense with DeAndrw Hopkins, Will Fuller, Keke Coutee, Lamar Miller and now Duke Johnson. Deshaun Watson will have to check down some times and Thomas will be there. He’s a low-end TE2 in deep leagues.
Dissly is recovering from a damaged patella tendon but should be ready by Week 1. He is listed as the backup tight end but may still have value in the Seahawks offense. With the receiving corps not as deep as it was in years past, Dissly could be effective.
He had eight catches for 156 yards and two touchdowns. Tyler Lockett is the top option for Russell Wilson. The No. 2, 3 and 4 options are up in the air. Dissly is in a timeshare at the position.