Latest news with #tightends
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ravens dominate ESPN's tight end rankings with two players in the top 10
With so much attention being paid to the game today, everything seems to be under scrutiny. Brilliant players and seasons can be reduced to the memories that one or two plays produce. Such is the case with Mark Andrews' most recent game on the Baltimore Ravens' roster, a gut-wrenching loss vs. the Buffalo Bills during the AFC's Divisional Round. There isn't a Baltimore citizen or member of the Ravens fan base who doesn't remember Andrews' fumble or his drop during the final two-point attempt. We apologize for bringing that up and any painful memories it may evoke. The point is this. Advertisement No one feels worse about those mistakes than Andrews. He shouldn't be judged solely on a bad game. His resume has proven that. Dec 25, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely (80) celebrates tight end Mark Andrews (89) touchdown reception against the Houston Texans in the second half at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Thomas Shea-Imagn Images Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely are ranked among the NFL's top tight ends by NFL executives. ESPN's Jeremy Fowler has offered an interesting series to help kick off the NFL summer. He has been polling coaches, scouts, and front office personnel and using the information gathered to rank the top ten players at every position. Recently, the topic shifted to tight ends. Two Ravens, Andrews and Isaiah Likely, cracked the list at six and eight, respectively. "Elite instincts. A QB's best friend. (He) Dominates the middle of the field (and) understands zones and man-to-man better than anyone outside of Kelce. Baltimore is a totally different team without him. Bummer about the playoff game thing because this guy is a total G." That was an unnamed NFL coordinator's take on Andrews. A veteran head coach said the following about Mr. Likely. "He's a matchup guy. Very loose... (He) can separate... Big catch radius... Pretty diverse route tree..." Andrews and Likely sandwich T.J. Hockenson on this ranking. Both land behind Brock Bowers, George Kittle, Sam LaPorta, Trey McBride, and Travis Kelce. They land ahead of Dallas Goedert and David Njoku. Advertisement One could make the argument that, based on the criteria, fellow Raven Charlie Kolar also could have landed in the top ten. He won't catch many passes, not in this offense, but he provides value in so many other ways. This is the NFL's best trio at the position. All are in contract seasons. Decisions need to be made, but until then, Lamar has a wealth of talent at his disposal. No one needs scouts or front office personnel to tell them that. This article originally appeared on Ravens Wire: Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely land in the top 10 of NFL TE rankings
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
One big question for Brenton Strange, other Jaguars' TEs in training camp
The Jacksonville Jaguars' rookies will report for training camp on July 19th, the veterans on July 22nd, and the first practice will take place on July 23rd. So with training camp almost here, we will be taking a position-by-position look at the Jaguars' roster, specifically examining the one big question that faces each unit. Up next are the tight ends. If you missed any of our other previews, you can find them below. Quarterbacks Running backs Wide receivers How big of an impact can Brenton Strange have on the Jaguars' offense? Given how bullish the Jaguars are on Strange, the answer to this question right now seems to be that he can have a fairly substantial impact on the offense in 2025. For one, Strange now finds himself at the top of the depth chart, and with that, there will be more opportunities. But also within Liam Coen's offense, the tight end can be a heavily targeted player in the passing game, as we saw last season in Tampa Bay. In 2024, the Bucs' Cade Otton would rank ninth among all tight ends with 84 targets on the year. Over the middle and on those short to intermediate routes is where we could see Strange heavily involved. However, while the passing game will grab the attention, Strange's impact can go well beyond that facet of the game. His versatility allows him to line up across the formation, and he's a capable run blocker as well. When an offense has that do-it-all presence at tight end, it adds a level of unpredictability with that player able to fill so many roles. This then not only opens up opportunities for Strange to take advantage of, but it can for his teammates as well. "His work ethic, first and foremost, is hopefully a leadership attribute that the guys can model and see what he does on a day-to-day basis," offensive coordinator Grant Udinski said. "But from a leadership standpoint and just from a player standpoint, you see a guy with a lot of potential to just continue to grow, whether it's in the pass game or the run game. "A guy with a lot of physical traits that can be that balanced tight end and do a lot of different things that this offense will ask him to do." Bonus question: How does the rest of the Jaguars' tight end depth chart shake out? Behind Strange on the depth chart are free agent signings Johnny Mundt, Hunter Long, and Quintin Morris. How the playing time amongst these three ends up shaking out remains to be seen. The primary role for TE2 will come as a blocker, which is primarily what each of these three tight ends has been asked to do in their NFL careers. So whoever can stand out most in that regard may have the upper hand when it comes to snaps. A differentiator could be the ability to impact the passing game. While TE2 likely won't be seeing a ton of targets, having a well-rounded skill set in Coen's offense, where the emphasis is on multiplicity, can be quite valuable. But step No. 1 for Mundt, Long, and Morris is to be able to contribute as a blocker. This article originally appeared on Jaguars Wire: Jaguars training camp: Big question for Brenton Strange, other TEs
New York Times
5 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
The fantasy football tight ends to draft … and those to avoid
In the final 'Draft Chasms of Doom' installment, we shift our focus from quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers to tight ends — and look at the significant value drop-offs in my Value Over Replacement Player (VORP) rankings. And man, do they drop. At the top of the rankings are major dips among the top four picks, a sharp decline at No. 5 after Travis Kelce, and then another after TE13. Advertisement However, I don't (and won't) consider Kelce part of Tier 1, despite the projections saying he could be. I put him in the next group, as his best days are behind him. The only caveat would be if Rashee Rice is suspended six games or more. Then my ranks will come closer to the projections shown here. Everyone from Kelce to Mark Andrews could finish as TE4 or miss the Top 10, and it wouldn't be a surprise. That's why, despite Tier 1 showing a solid group of options, I'm unlikely to end up with any of them, as there are similar ceilings with many end-game options. So, it's the same strategy as with the quarterbacks for me: If a Tier 1 tight end is there in Round 3-5, I'll pounce (maybe I'd even use the last pick or two of Round 2 for Brock Bowers). Otherwise, the Tier 2 options would need to reach Round 8 or later for me to draft them, and most don't. LaPorta currently has a Round 5 ADP, while T.J. Hockenson, Kelce, Andrews and Evan Engram range from Rounds 6-7. The chart, which visually depicts the drop-offs, illustrates that Hockenson, Andrews, Engram, and even LaPorta are in the same value tier, while Kelce is in Tier 1 (again, I disagree with the projection). So why reach for LaPorta when the value difference among these players is so little? And that's what we're looking at in this series, where the major cliffs in positional groups are and why drafting the next-best player at a position of need isn't always the best strategy. While rankings show value, they don't show the difference in value between individual players or among a group of players. If I'm looking later in the draft for TEs, some of my favorite late-round fliers include Tucker Kraft, Kyle Pitts (hey, he's free now), Jake Ferguson, Dallas Goedert, Brenton Strange and rookie Colston Loveland. The best part about taking a tight end super late is that the position is 'bleh,' as shown in the positional comparisons chart. It takes a mere 60/500/5 line to crack TE1 status. Whoop-dee-do, Basil! I'm aiming for Top 5 (or close) breakout upside, and if the flier I take misses, I'm off to the waivers for someone who might have it. Jonnu Smith (190 ADP), Zach Ertz (198) and Tucker Kraft (308) were all Top 10 last season and undrafted. Heck, Bowers was TE10-11 in ADP last year! (Photo of Brock Bowers: Ethan Miller / Getty Images)
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
George Kittle's all-around excellence earns him the honor of top tight end in AP rankings
Perhaps no position requires a wider range of skills to succeed in the NFL than tight ends, who are asked to thrive as receivers in the middle of the field as well as being key parts to the run and pass games with their blocking. While many teams divide those roles among multiple players, George Kittle's ability to do it all for the San Francisco 49ers as one of the most efficient receivers and top blockers helped him score the honor of being voted the top tight end in the league by The Associated Press. A panel of eight AP Pro Football Writers ranked the top five players at tight end, basing selections on current status entering the 2025 season. First-place votes were worth 10 points. Second- through fifth-place votes were worth 5, 3, 2 and 1 points. Kittle got five first-place votes and three seconds to win the voting. Las Vegas' Brock Bowers was the only other player selected on all eight ballots and came in second with two first-place votes, five seconds and one fifth. Kansas City's Travis Kelce got the other first-place vote and finished third, followed by Arizona's Trey McBride and Baltimore's Mark Andrews. Detroit's Sam LaPorta and Minnesota's T.J. Hockenson also received votes. 1. GEORGE KITTLE, San Francisco 49ers Kittle is coming off one of his most productive seasons as a receiver, catching 78 passes for 1,106 yards and eight TDs for an injury-riddled San Francisco offense. He led all tight ends and ranked third overall with 2.62 yards per route run in a sign of how efficient he is as a receiver. Kittle also remains one of the top blocking tight ends, helping him earn first or second-team All-Pro honors in five of the past seven seasons. 2. BROCK BOWERS, Las Vegas Raiders Bowers burst on the scene during a record-setting rookie season when his 1,194 yards receiving were the most ever by a rookie tight end and his 112 catches were the most ever by any rookie. Bowers was a first-team All-Pro and quickly established himself as perhaps the top receiving threat at the position. 3. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs Kelce is one of the most productive tight ends ever, with his 1,004 catches and 12,151 yards receiving ranking third all time at the position. But he showed signs of slowing after turning 35 last October. He still managed 97 catches for 823 yards, but his 8.5 yards per reception were down 4 yards from his career average entering 2024 as he had significant drops in yards after catch and missed tackles forced. 4. TREY MCBRIDE, Arizona Cardinals McBride has made steady improvement since being drafted in the second round in 2022 and reached star status last season, when his 111 catches and 1,146 yards receiving trailed only Bowers among tight ends. The only thing missing for McBride was success in the red zone, where he had only two TD catches — tied for the second-fewest ever for any player in a 100-catch season. 5. MARK ANDREWS, Baltimore Ravens Andrews has been one of the top tight ends for years, but his production has started to tail off since he was an All-Pro in 2021. After missing significant time with injuries in 2023, Andrews had 55 catches for 673 yards and led all tight ends with 11 TD receptions last season. Unfortunately for Andrews, his season might be best remembered for a dropped 2-point conversion late in a 27-25 playoff loss to Buffalo. ___ AP NFL:
Associated Press
16-07-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
George Kittle's all-around excellence earns him the honor of top tight end in AP rankings
Perhaps no position requires a wider range of skills to succeed in the NFL than tight ends, who are asked to thrive as receivers in the middle of the field as well as being key parts to the run and pass games with their blocking. While many teams divide those roles among multiple players, George Kittle's ability to do it all for the San Francisco 49ers as one of the most efficient receivers and top blockers helped him score the honor of being voted the top tight end in the league by The Associated Press. A panel of eight AP Pro Football Writers ranked the top five players at tight end, basing selections on current status entering the 2025 season. First-place votes were worth 10 points. Second- through fifth-place votes were worth 5, 3, 2 and 1 points. Kittle got five first-place votes and three seconds to win the voting. Las Vegas' Brock Bowers was the only other player selected on all eight ballots and came in second with two first-place votes, five seconds and one fifth. Kansas City's Travis Kelce got the other first-place vote and finished third, followed by Arizona's Trey McBride and Baltimore's Mark Andrews. Detroit's Sam LaPorta and Minnesota's T.J. Hockenson also received votes. 1. GEORGE KITTLE, San Francisco 49ers Kittle is coming off one of his most productive seasons as a receiver, catching 78 passes for 1,106 yards and eight TDs for an injury-riddled San Francisco offense. He led all tight ends and ranked third overall with 2.62 yards per route run in a sign of how efficient he is as a receiver. Kittle also remains one of the top blocking tight ends, helping him earn first or second-team All-Pro honors in five of the past seven seasons. 2. BROCK BOWERS, Las Vegas Raiders Bowers burst on the scene during a record-setting rookie season when his 1,194 yards receiving were the most ever by a rookie tight end and his 112 catches were the most ever by any rookie. Bowers was a first-team All-Pro and quickly established himself as perhaps the top receiving threat at the position. 3. TRAVIS KELCE, Kansas City Chiefs Kelce is one of the most productive tight ends ever, with his 1,004 catches and 12,151 yards receiving ranking third all time at the position. But he showed signs of slowing after turning 35 last October. He still managed 97 catches for 823 yards, but his 8.5 yards per reception were down 4 yards from his career average entering 2024 as he had significant drops in yards after catch and missed tackles forced. 4. TREY MCBRIDE, Arizona Cardinals McBride has made steady improvement since being drafted in the second round in 2022 and reached star status last season, when his 111 catches and 1,146 yards receiving trailed only Bowers among tight ends. The only thing missing for McBride was success in the red zone, where he had only two TD catches — tied for the second-fewest ever for any player in a 100-catch season. 5. MARK ANDREWS, Baltimore Ravens Andrews has been one of the top tight ends for years, but his production has started to tail off since he was an All-Pro in 2021. After missing significant time with injuries in 2023, Andrews had 55 catches for 673 yards and led all tight ends with 11 TD receptions last season. Unfortunately for Andrews, his season might be best remembered for a dropped 2-point conversion late in a 27-25 playoff loss to Buffalo. ___ AP NFL:
