Our preseason rankings have finished in the top five in total accuracy in the fantasy industry each of the last six seasons. Our tight-end rankings have finished number one overall in three of the last four! Finding the right tight end can be tricky because there’s a scarce number of impact players at the position.
We will update these rankings weekly heading into the 2022 fantasy draft season. Looking for more draft help? Check out our 2022 Sleeper articles at each position! Without further delay, let’s get to the rankings.
2022 Season Long Fantasy Rankings
Position: QB | RB | WR | TE
Scoring: Half PPR | Latest Update: May 18, 2022
| Rank | TE | Team | Bye |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Travis Kelce | Chiefs | 8 |
| 2 | Mark Andrews | Ravens | 10 |
| 3 | Kyle Pitts | Falcons | 14 |
| 4 | T.J. Hockenson | Lions | 6 |
| 5 | George Kittle | 49ers | 9 |
| 6 | Darren Waller | Raiders | 6 |
| 7 | Dallas Goedert | Eagles | 7 |
| 8 | Dalton Schultz | Cowboys | 9 |
| 9 | Logan Thomas | Commanders | 14 |
| 10 | Hunter Henry | Patriots | 10 |
| 11 | Noah Fant | Broncos | 9 |
| 12 | Evan Engram | Jaguars | 11 |
| 13 | Dawson Knox | Bills | 7 |
| 14 | Cole Kmet | Bears | 14 |
| 15 | Tyler Higbee | Rams | 7 |
| 16 | Mike Gesicki | Dolphins | 11 |
| 17 | Rob Gronkowski | Bucs | 11 |
| 18 | Adam Trautman | Saints | 14 |
| 19 | Pat Freiermuth | Steelers | 9 |
| 20 | Gerald Everett | Chargers | 8 |
| 21 | O.J. Howard | Bills | 7 |
| 22 | Austin Hooper | Titans | 6 |
| 23 | Zach Ertz | Cardinals | 13 |
| 24 | Hayden Hurst | Bengals | 10 |
| 25 | Jonnu Smith | Patriots | 10 |
Our 2022 Tight End Draft Strategy: Draft One Early!
We discussed ad nauseam in our RB Rankings article why we consider RB the most important position in fantasy football. Oddly enough, this is in stark contrast to how the NFL currently views the RB position. Now it’s time for us to go over what we feel is the second most important position in fantasy football, the tight end.
Why are we so passionate about taking a quality tight end in either Round 1 or Round 2 of your fantasy draft? Because, in case you haven’t noticed, there’s a serious shortage of game-changing tight ends in the NFL! Seriously, outside of the Top 5 guys, we think there’s a big dropoff.
For that reason, a lot of folks employ the “Travis Kelce or Bust” strategy. Since Kelce puts up dynamic numbers year after year, that strategy may not be that bad of an idea. Last season, you’d have been sitting pretty if you took Mark Andrews or Kelce in the first round.
If you don’t pick until the latter portion of the first round, consider nabbing either Kelce, Andrews, or Kyle Pitts. If none of those guys are available, go ahead and take the best RB that is left on the board. You can always pick up a decent TE option in Round 2 with a guy like Darren Waller, George Kittle, or TJ Hockenson.
What if things go haywire and none of those six guys are available? You may consider taking a rookie tight end with a high upside like Charlie Kolar from Iowa State or Jeremy Ruckert from Ohio State in one of the later rounds of your draft. Both are 6-6 and 255 pounds and look to be the most NFL-ready tight-end prospects in this year’s draft.
In a perfect world, we like to go RB-TE-RB with our first three draft picks. This formula isn’t rocket science, but it has worked incredibly well for us in the past. Other strategies that have paid decent dividends are the RB-RB-TE and TE-RB-RB formulas.
We’ll be making updates to this list as the season draws closer. Best of luck in finding the perfect tight end for your fantasy football roster. Is it September yet?
