Ian Hartitz ranks his top 27 tight ends for Week 2, sorts them into five tiers, and stops after every tier for a bigger question about the position. Trey McBride opens at TE1, Colston Loveland holds at TE2 after the Week 1 goose egg heard round the world, Dalton Kincaid jumps all the way to TE3, Isaiah Likely lands at TE5 in his first season as a Giant, and Travis Kelce sits at TE13.
📈 Get 40% OFF Rotowire All-Access — promo code IAN40
👉 https://www.rotowire.com/all-access/
⚡ Sign up for Betr and get $200 in No Sweat Entries
👉 https://engagebetr.onelink.me/auSX/HARTITZ
New users only. Ts and Cs apply.
Ian Hartitz ranks his top 27 tight ends for Week 2, sorts them into five tiers, and stops after every tier for a bigger question about the position. Trey McBride opens at TE1, Colston Loveland holds at TE2 after the Week 1 goose egg heard round the world, Dalton Kincaid jumps all the way to TE3, Isaiah Likely lands at TE5 in his first season as a Giant, and Travis Kelce sits at TE13.
The Kincaid case in one line: a 77% snap rate and a 69% route rate finally gave him a true full-time role, and on a per route run basis over the last 12 months he belongs in a group with Puka Nacua, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Amon-Ra St. Brown. Ian does not need more than one hand to count the tight ends he would rather have the rest of the season.
The Likely case: an 8-78-2 opener looks a lot like his 9-111-1 opener in 2024, and he finished that year as the TE20 in points per game. What is different now is that there is no Mark Andrews to share the field with, so he is the focal point of the Giants passing game behind Malik Nabers.
THE FIVE TIERS
Tier 1: The big three
Tier 2: Cemented TE1s that you can feel good about
Tier 3: Studs with a question mark
Tier 4: Would be a lot cooler if you had a better option
Tier 5: You never know
THE KEY QUESTIONS
Can you fully buy into Dalton Kincaid as a top-five fantasy tight end? Yes, and the film backs the numbers: he beat Derek Stingley on a jump ball, ran away from two defenders on a crosser to set up the game winner, and now plays as the clear number two option in a Josh Allen offense that threw more in Week 1 than it did all last season.
Was Isaiah Likely's Week 1 boom another fluke? We have seen this open before, but never without Mark Andrews on the field. A near full-time role in an offense with no clear second target, and a young quarterback who has played well, is a very different setup.
Who have been the league's most productive tight ends over the last half season? Trey McBride at 21.1 points per game, then George Kittle at 16.4 and Kyle Pitts at 13.7, with Brock Bowers, Dallas Goedert and Colby Parkinson close behind. Ian's takeaway: FREE KYLE PITTS.
What defenses have been the worst on paper at stopping tight ends over the last 12 months? Spoiler, it is the Bengals, which is exactly why Dalton Schultz is this week's flyer.
Who are the best under-owned tight end bench stashes? Oronde Gadsden is the name Ian is most intrigued by, with Terrance Ferguson worth one more week in the stash. Both fit the same profile as Kincaid and Likely: talented receivers waiting on a full-time role.
CHAPTERS
0:00 Top 27 tight ends, and the bigger questions
0:21 Tier 1: The big three
2:49 Key question: Buy Dalton Kincaid as a top-five TE?
5:01 Tier 2: Cemented TE1s you can feel good about
7:21 Key question: Was Isaiah Likely's boom real?
8:57 Tier 3: Studs with a question mark
13:25 Key question: The most productive TEs of the last half season
14:14 Tier 4: Would be cooler with a better option
17:07 Key question: The worst defenses against tight ends
17:56 Tier 5: You never know
20:02 Key question: The best under-owned bench stashes
21:53 Wrap
Use code IAN40 for 40% off RotoWire All-Access.