We spent years neglecting the tight end position in fantasy football. When drafting, we used to look at them like an afterthought in the NFL and our fantasy football drafts.
Nowadays, excellent tight ends elevate your roster into contender mode. We all know the big names to draft, like Travis Kelce, Sam LaPorta, Mark Andrews and more. Today, we will share with you the tight ends outside the top 12 (TE2s) with top-5 potential in your fantasy football league. Some of these tight end sleepers will have safer floors than others, but the beauty of drafting these tight ends is that if they don’t work, you can work the waiver wire all season long as you stream your way to success.
Let’s start with a few of our favorite tight end sleepers to draft outside the top 12 in current rankings.
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Tight End Sleepers: Fantasy Football Draft Values
Taysom Hill (TE-NO)
I’m tired of not utilizing Taysom Hill. His Swiss Army knife toolkit lets you sneak points into your lineup and dominate your opponent. He led the tight end group with 22.7 rushing yards per game. The next closest was .07 with Gerald Everett. He averages 8.2 fantasy points per game. He also produced 81.5 fantasy points in 2023, more than Mike Gesicki, Freiermuth, Tucker Kraft, Musgrave and Noah Fant.
If you want to take a late-round target throw, Hill is calling your name.
Isaiah Likely (TE-BAL)
We know what we need here to see a top-5 performance: an injury to Mark Andrews. We would never wish for an injury, but if Andrews does go down, Likely will likely (see what I did there) produce like a league-winning tight end. When drafting Likely, you must either have drafted Mark Andrews or two tight ends to give your team a chance.
Greg Dulcich (TE-DEN)
There are many moving pieces in Denver, but Greg Dulcich brings a lot of talent to the tight-end position. His most significant issues are injury and his ability to stay on the field. Dulcich’s ADP is 245, which means he can be the last pick of your fantasy draft, allowing for low risk but high reward at the tight end position. In his limited sample size he has averaged 12.1 yards per catch as a pro. Whenever your last pick of the draft can supply that average, you have to take him on your team. Dulcich has shades of when you drafted Mark Andrews as your last pick the year he broke out. Now he just needs to stay healthy.
Colby Parkinson (TE-LAR)
Tyler Higbee had a significant injury at the end of the season. Cooper Kupp is aging before our eyes. Puka Nacua must show us that his monster rookie season wasn’t a fluke, and Kyren Williams is already dealing with more foot injuries. Colby Parkinson was given more guaranteed money than expected, which means the Los Angeles Rams believe they can utilize his skill set in the offense. Don’t be surprised if Parkinson shows up and shows out in 2024 with Matthew Stafford slinging the rock considering 21.9% of his receptions went for 20+ yards which was second best in the NFL with any tight end who saw more than 25 targets
Tight end is a demanding position that can create many headaches between the moments of glory. Identifying the correct TE2s of this bunch will help you navigate your draft, lineup, and season. Remember to continue to read all the fantastic work here at FantasyPros as we guide you through your offseason and into the competitive fires.
If you ever need more help or want a unique look at one of your rosters, don’t hesitate to contact me on X at @jpep20. Good luck in your 2024 off-season drafting!
More Fantasy Football Draft Advice
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