One way to get an edge over your fellow fantasy football leaguers? Draft players before their breakout seasons! Here, the Yahoo Fantasy team highlights five of their favorite TE candidates to consider in drafts.
It’s odd to predict a breakout for a tight end who already had a 1,000-yard season, but we didn’t see the best of Pitts, who had just 68 receptions and one touchdown while reaching the 100-target mark in his rookie year. His 176.6 PPR points were nothing special, as they paled in comparison to the 234.9 points that Lions TE Sam LaPorta put up in his rookie season in 2024. And things only got worse for Pitts over the next two campaigns, as the combination of a stubborn offensive coordinator and woeful QB play made it impossible to showcase his skills.
Everything seems to be going well now, though, as Kirk Cousins is generally letting his weapons shine, and Pitts, who is just 23, joins Drake London and Bijan Robinson as a three-headed monster that should give defenses nightmares. Pitts is currently the seventh TE off the Yahoo! draft board but could reign in his position by the end of the season. Fred Zinkie
Ferguson is already recognized as a utility player, but he could improve further if he becomes more effective at the goal line. Ferguson led the position in red zone targets last year, but had a slightly disappointing five total touchdowns. If that conversion rate increases in 2024, Ferguson could easily become a top-five tight end this time around. Ferguson’s role in Dallas is secure, as he’s the No. 2 target after CeeDee Lamb. Scott Pianowski
Isaiah Likely has finished among the top five fantasy tight ends three times in the last five weeks, due to Mark Andrews’ absence last season. He was also the TE8 in Week 18, despite only being targeted by two players as Baltimore rested several of its starters.
The Ravens have a glaring weakness at WR2 and use their tight ends in the red zone far more than any other team in the league, so Likely should have a larger role this season even if Andrews stays healthy (Andrews has missed multiple games in three of the last four seasons). Reports suggest Likely could be Baltimore’s second receiving option in 2024, and he has top-three TE potential if Andrews goes down again. Dalton Del Don
One attribute I like to look for to increase my chances of landing a tight end in the late round is players who have good offenses without an obvious No. 1 receiver. Packers tight end Luke Musgrave checks both of those boxes. While the Packers have a fairly deep receiving cap, none of their players stand out as obvious targets. That opens the door for someone like Musgrave to take a leap forward and grab a bigger piece of the volume pie.
The Packers invested second-round draft capital to take Musgrave last year, and he was solid in his nine starts. If Musgrave can establish himself as a bigger red-zone threat for Jordan Love, who threw for 32 touchdowns last year, I…
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