2017 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Tight Ends

Tony Fortier-Bensen

2017 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Tight Ends image

Consistent and durable tight ends are hard to find in today’s NFL. By the end of the season, every fantasy football team usually ends up with multiple TEs on the roster due to injuries (Rob Gronkowski) or fallen expectations (Coby Fleener), which makes finding a sleeper tight end all the more important on draft day.

With such a small group of elite TEs, more than likely you’ll have to draft one or two lower-ranked players and hope you come up with someone who has a breakout season. Tampa's Cameron Brate was a surprise last year and became a top-eight TE in standard leagues, and Martellus Bennett took advantage of Gronk's multiple injuries en route to a bounce-back season. It’s almost a guarantee that more than one sleeper will break out this year, but it’s not a guarantee he’ll be on your team. So, it's time to dive deep into the pool and find that sleeper TE.

This year, we have our eye on many players looking to improve upon last year’s success, get back to their lofty expectations, or make a splash out of nowhere. 

2017 RANKINGS:
QuarterbackRunning backWide Receiver | Tight End | D/ST | Kicker

2017 Fantasy Football Tight End Sleepers

Hunter Henry, Los Angeles Chargers

The rookie may have been behind Antonio Gates on the depth chart last year, but that didn’t prevent Henry from having a breakout season and tying for the league lead in touchdowns among TEs (8). This year, he's expected to move up the depth chart, and you should do the same with Henry in your rankings. 

Gates is 37, and Old Man Father Time is creeping up on him. The Chargers have been looking for the future Hall-of-Famer’s replacement, and Henry seems to be the guy. He was the top 10 in TE fantasy points last year, finishing only a couple shy Gates despite receiving 38 fewer targets. He will get more playing time and more targets this year, which should translate into more receptions, more yards, and most importantly more fantasy points.

Coby Fleener, New Orleans Saints

Almost immediately, Fleener was scratched off, thrown away, forgotten, and left for dead after his disappointing 2016 season. Following Benjamin Watson’s success replacing Jimmy Graham in 2015, Fleener was expected to come in and do even better last year. Instead, he did worse.

He still managed to finish with 50 receptions, 631 yards and four touchdowns (one rushing), placing him 13th among TEs in standard leagues. Right now, Fleener’s stock could not be any lower for a tight end in a prolific offense, but there’s no reason to believe it will stay low.

Brandin Cooks, now in New England, and his 117 targets will have to be redistributed elsewhere, and it’s possible Fleener could see a majority of those targets in an offense that likes to use the tight end position profusely. He also had 18 targets in the red zone, seventh-most among TEs last year.  When everyone else is leaving him for dead, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to give him a second chance at life.

MORE SLEEPERS:
Quarterback | Running backWide Receiver | D/ST

Jack Doyle, Indianapolis Colts

With Dwayne Allen in New England, Doyle is the main guy at tight end for the Colts. After four years playing backup to Fleener and Allen, Doyle got to start in 14 games last season and posted career highs in almost every major statistical category.

Even as the second guy in the depth chart last year, he had more targets, receptions, yards, touchdowns and red-zone targets than Allen in the same amount of starts. Allen’s departure means Doyle will get a chance to increase the production from last year that gave him a TE14 ranking in standard leagues.

Andrew Luck loves to throw and throw often, and he targets tight ends just as much as his other positions. Last year, he targeted tight ends on 27 percent of his throws, third highest in the NFL. If the Colts weak offensive line can protect Luck and keep him healthy the whole season, Doyle has a chance to rule.

C.J. Fiedorowicz, Houston Texans

The Texans play in an offense that lives off the success of its tight ends.Combined, the tight ends actually equaled the touchdowns of the wide receivers in 2016, and toward the end of the season, Fiedorowicz began to separate himself from Ryan Griffin.   

Fiedorowicz could start off the season getting a bump in targets, and if his quarterback play is remotely better than last year, he could easily improve upon last year's TE17 ranking. Just a slight bump in receptions could’ve easily jumped him into the top 12 tight ends in PPR leagues.  

Eric Ebron, Detroit Lions

Ebron had a disappointing year for fantasy owners, only recording one touchdown catch. He still managed to finish top eight in receptions and yards among TEs, but it was only good enough to be a TE15 by the end of the season.

Anquan Boldin received the lion’s share of red-zone targets (24) last season, seven more than anyone else on the team, but he’s currently a free agent. Matthew Stafford will have to find a new favorite in the red zone, and Ebron’s large 6-4, 250-pound frame may be the one he chooses. In 2015, Ebron was tied second on the team for most red=zone touchdowns,behind Calvin Johnson.  There’s no reason Stafford can’t go back to what once was so good.

MORE: FREE Fantasy Football Draft Guide from Fantasy Alarm

David Njoku, Cleveland Browns

The Browns must see something special in Njoku considering they cut Gary Barnidge, a top-15 tight end last year, almost immediately after drafting him. Cleveland dropped back in the draft to get Njoku in the first round, and he’s one of the many pieces they plan to build around in their youth movement.

Njoku left Miami early after a breakout year (43 catches, 698 yards and eight TDs). The Hurricanes have a long line of producing talent at the tight end position like Greg Olsen and Jimmy Graham, and Njoku could be next. Like Graham, he’s an athletic tight end who excels more at running routes and catching balls than blocking.  

The Browns still have a shaky quarterback situation, but the quarterback can’t only throw to wide receiver Corey Coleman the entire game. Kenny Britt is one option, but Njoku is likely to be involved, too. Growing pains are expected as a young rookie, but he has the potential to really do some damage at the tight end slot.

Benjamin Watson, Baltimore Ravens

Two injuries have led to Watson getting the starting job for the Ravens. One, Dennis Pitta was released after dislocating his hip in June.  Second, Crockett Gilmore suffered a knee injury in training camp and he'll go into surgery and likely be out for the season.  So now Watson is inserted into a passing attack that relies heavily on the tight end position. 

Pitta finished top five in targets (121) and had the most receptions (86) among tight ends last season. With Pitta gone, it’s next man up, and that man is now Watson.  Watson will be coming off his own injury, a torn Achilles' tendon that cost him the entire 2016 season. Previously in 2015, he finished the year in the top 10 among TEs in targets, receptions, yards and touchdowns as a member of the Saints.

Austin Hooper, Atlanta Falcons

If you enter the last couple rounds of your draft and Hooper is on the board, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to draft-and-stash him. The rookie burst onto the scene with two big games early last season before slowing down due to injuries and sharing time with Jacob Tamme, but he came back strong in the later part of the regular season and the playoffs and had a bug Super Bowl, leading the team with six targets and scoring a touchdown.

With Tamme gone, Hooper is the clear favorite to start at tight end, and many people like his potential. He recently spent the offseason in southern California with Matt Ryan to further develop their chemistry together. The Falcons are again expected to have a high-scoring offense, and Hooper is in line to be a big part of it.  
 

Tony Fortier-Bensen