Now this category is where you can gain separation from the competition in your dynasty league. If you can unearth the next Gronk, Kelce, or Kittle, you’ll have one position on your roster set for years, while most of your league will be scrambling. Is there a difference-maker like that in this year’s draft class? Let’s take a look!
- Kyle Pitts, Florida: Kyle Pitts is not ranked this high just because he’s 6’6” and 246 lbs. He’s ranked this high because, in the last three seasons against SEC competition, he averaged 14.9 yards per catch! His longest catch of 2020 was 71 yards. Dude has got some wheels if he can outrun safeties and corners. On only 43 catches last season, he scored 12 touchdowns! He will be the number one tight end drafted in the NFL, and he should be the number 1 rookie tight end drafted in your leagues.
- 2. Pat Freiermuth, Penn State: He’s already nicknamed Baby Gronk, but then again, so is every big-bodied tight end. As a true freshman in 2018, Freiermuth caught 8 T.D.’s on just 26 catches. He had seven more T.D.’s in 2019, and in an injury-shortened 2020 season, he had 23 catches in only four games, including a 74-yard grab.
- 3. Tony Poljan, Virginia: Tony Poljan is ranked here because he is 6’7” tall and 265 lbs. You know that some smart NFL coach will make him an endzone target just because of his height, especially when he has some 5’10” safety covering him. Fun fact about Tony, he graduated from Virginia, but he spent his first three years at Central Michigan where, in addition to playing tight end, they also gave him 91 carries for 248 yards. They’ll find a way to use that athleticism in the NFL.
- 4. Brevin Jordan, Miami: It looks like Tight End U, as Miami is known, may have another alumnus who will make them proud. Brevin Jordan had 38 catches in just eight games but turned those limited opportunities into seven T.D.’s. He has wide receiver skills in a tight end body, and if he lands in the NFL with a good Q.B. and O.C., he could be the next tight end you can plug and play.
- 5. Hunter Long, Boston College: Hunter Long led all tight ends nationally in catches and was second in yards. Nothing about him wows you. He’s got prototypical tight end size, and he runs and catches well. There’s nothing outstanding, but there’s also nothing weak about his game either. He’s a good tight end that got better each year of college, and if he lands in the right spot in the pros, he could surprise in a year or two from now.
- 6. Kenny Yeboah, Mississippi: In an abbreviated season, Kenny Ya Boy played his best against the best. Up against ‘Bama, he put up 7 for 181 and two trips to the endzone. Against Florida, Kenny went 5-91 with a touch. Vanderbilt isn’t good, but he bludgeoned them with two T.D.’s on three catches.
In the NFL and every fantasy league that I know of, tight-end is still a scoring position. If you want an edge on the other managers in your league, keep an eye on these guys to see how they do at the combine and where they land after the draft. Coming up next Thursday…The 2021 Top 24 Rookies!
