What should fantasy football owners do with the tight end position?
Last season, Jimmy Graham was the frontrunner for the position, and many fantasy football owners took him in the middle portion of the first round. The gamble didn’t pay off, with Graham finishing slightly ahead of tight end Greg Olsen for third place in scoring.
Now, it’s New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski as the darling of the tight-end position. Gronkowski returned from injury last year and ran away with the scoring title for tight ends with 30 more points than second-place Antonio Gates.
Currently, Gronkowski is going off at 14th overall in average draft position in fantasy football drafts. That puts him available early in the second round for 12-team fantasy football leagues. If Gronk is still available in the later portion of the first round, he’s worth a draft pick.
The key to fantasy football drafts is taking the best player available at specific positions. Sure, you’re not going to take the best kicker early in a draft, but Gronk should be head and shoulders better than any other option at the position, giving fantasy football owners an edge each week at that position. He also should score enough points each week to make a difference on fantasy football rosters.
After Gronkowski, though, there are still a few options for tight end. Jimmy Graham has new scenery in Seattle, and he should get plenty of looks in the red zone.
Olsen was one of two tights ends with more than 1,000 yards last season, and is currently a sneaky pick at 46th overall, and should be available late in the fourth round.
From there, the position gets thin. Two sleepers could be Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce and Denver Broncos tight end Owen Daniels. Kelce has an average draft position of 48 and quarterback Alex Smith hasn’t shown the ability to throw touchdowns to wide receivers in the past, so Kelce holds strong upside inside the red zone.
Although we’re not high on quarterback Peyton Manning, he is known for giving tight ends opportunities at career years. Daniels will be Manning’s main target at the tight end position and he’s being drafted 117th overall at this point. If you hold off until later rounds, Minnesota tight end Kyle Rudolph, current ADP of 155, and Indianapolis Colts tight end Coby Fleener, ranked 142nd in ADP, are two tights ends able to score points on a weekly basis.
