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2024 Fantasy Football Rookie TE Rankings: Brock Bowers makes history

The Peacockys: '24 Fantasy Breakout Player of Year
Happy Hour chooses the Fantasy Breakout Player of the Year, with James Cook, Brock Bowers, Jayden Daniels, Brian Thomas Jr. and Malik Nabers as finalists ... but not before picking Berry's Acting Performance of the Year.

With one game left in the 2024 NFL season, it’s time to take stock of the rookie class. This week I’m breaking down and re-ranking the tight end position. Be sure to check out my quarterback and running back rankings as well.

No. 1: Brock Bowers, Raiders

Bowers’ record-setting rookie season wasn’t just great in the context of his lack of experience. It was one of the best seasons for a tight end we’ve ever seen, first year or not. He came up four catches short of the single-season record for receptions by a tight end and logged the 16th-most yards at 1,194. Add in 13 rushing yards and he is just one of 15 tight ends in league history to top 1,200 yards from scrimmage. Bowers wasn’t just a compiler. He was one of four tight ends to top two yards per route run and he did so while leading the league in total routes. Vegas instantly recognized Bowers as their top target and moved him around the formation with ease. He led all tight ends in slot routes and ranked third in routes run from out wide. This was all while catching passes from Aidan O’Connell, Gardner Minshew, and Desmond Ridder. Even if the quarterback situation doesn’t get much better, Bowers is the undisputed TE1 in all formats.

No. 2: Ja’Tavion Sanders, Panthers

Sanders amassed 342 yards on 32 grabs, quiet numbers for fantasy purposes but impressive totals for a fourth-round rookie at his position. He was relatively inefficient, averaging 1.1 yards per route run, and only scored once. Sanders had an impressive receiving profile coming out of Texas. He earned a 21 percent College Dominator as a sophomore and averaged 1.9 YPRR in his junior season. His blocking left a lot to be desired and this proved true in the NFL. Pro Football Focus graded him as a below-average run and pass blocker. If you read my wide receiver rankings, you’ll know I’m not overly optimistic about Xavier Legette. With Adam Thielen set to turn 35 before the start of the next season, Carolina desperately needs one of their young pass-catchers to step up. I don’t know if Sanders can be the engine of a team’s offense, but you rarely get the chance to find out, making him a solid bet heading into year two.

No. 3: Ben Sinnott, Commanders

The historical data for rookies as unproductive as Sinnott, who caught five passes for 28 yards and a touchdown, is not kind. Since 2000, of the 42 Day Two rookies to catch a single-digit number of passes, only two have gone on to post a TE1 season later in their careers. That’s also not entirely fair to Sinnott. Plenty of those rookies were drafted as blockers, destined never to approach fantasy relevancy. Grouping Sinnott with those players like Charlie Kolar and Josiah Deguara makes things look worse. Still, his almost complete absence from the Commanders’ Pro Football Reference page remains a red flag. He did, however, give us a fun play to end the year on.

Lastly, a very similar story played out in Arizona with Trey McBride, coached by Kliff Kingsbury, playing behind Zach Ertz for over a year. I like Sinnott as a buy-low in dynasty leagues knowing that Ertz, now 34 years old, won’t be playing much longer.

No. 4: Theo Johnson, Giants

Johnson is in a similar boat as Sanders. He went for 11 fewer yards on three fewer catches and also scored a single touchdown. Johnson averaged a pitiful .9 yards per route run and was targeted on 12 percent of his routes. Johnson is a super-athlete who posted a near-perfect RAS at the NFL Combine.

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He then got on the field as a rookie. Those are all great indicators. On the other hand, his production was terrible when he got on the field. That matches his profile coming out of Penn State. With no obvious answers at quarterback to save the day, Johnson is just a bench stash for dynasty managers.

No. 5: AJ Barner, Seahawks

Barner picked up some snaps as a backup and made a few spot-starters when Noah Fant, who is a potential cap casualty this offseason, missed time. He finished the year with a 30/245/4 receiving line. Barner ranked second among the rookie tight ends (min. 30 targets) in YPRR at 1.1 and first in yards after the catch per reception at 5.8. He was a good but not great athlete with low-end production across Indiana and Michigan. He’s probably nothing more than a backup, but a solid rookie season should keep him on dynasty rosters for a few months.

Notes

This is a catch-all (pun intended, wait for it) section for tight ends who could have some dynasty value down the road.

Erick All was successful in a part-time role with Cincinnati to start the year. He caught 20 passes for 158 yards through nine weeks including a three-game streak of four-catch performances. All tore his ACL—the same one he tore in college—in Week 9. He was targeted on 20 percent of his routes and earned a respectable 1.5 yards per route run. He would be an exciting dynasty stash given a normal recovery timeline, but All is expected to miss the 2025 season due to complications related to the ACL tear.

Chiefs’ fourth-rounder Jared Wiley is in an interesting spot despite catching just one pass as a rookie. Travis Kelce could retire at the end of the year, leaving Wiley and Noah Gray to carry the torch. Gray was extended through 2027 just ahead of the season, keeping him around for years to come. That doesn’t mean Wiley can’t surpass him on the depth chart, but Gray should be projected as the starter for 2025 if Kelce hangs up the cleats.

Dalton Schultz struggled in 2024, averaging just over one yard per route run while posting a pedestrian receiving line of 53/532/2. Cade Stover could force more of a committee next year, though Schultz can’t realistically be cut until next offseason. At best, Stover is a year out from being a year out.