We’ve reached the half way point in our division by division analysis of tight ends. The NFC East is the next division to look at. While there are typically some teams who don’t use tight ends much or have their players split the snaps; the NFC East has four teams that all have a clear starting tight end. Jason Witten, Kevin Boss, Brent Celek and Chris Cooley all currently rank in our top 24 tight ends.
The question now becomes when should you draft one of those four tight ends, and if there are any other names in the division to know. To give you a hint, there are two that should be starters in 2011, and one player that if their starter goes down could make for a very helpful free agent pickup.
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The Best of the Best: Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
Current 2011 Projections: 122 TA, 95 Rec., 1047 yards, 8 TD
Analysis: Since 2004, Witten has been the starting tight end for Dallas and has been extremely consistent. He has gotten at least 64 catches each year, with at least 81 the past four years. He has gotten at least 950 yards each of the past four years as well, and his yards per catch and yards after the catch per catch have remained extremely consistent as well.
The only question is how many touchdowns he will score. In 2009 he only had two, where in 2010 he had nine despite all of his other numbers remaining about the same. He has Tony Romo back which should only help his numbers. According to the PFF rankings, Witten is by far the best tight end in the game. If he keeps his touchdown numbers high, he can be the best fantasy tight end in the game as well.
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Moving On Up: Brent Celek, Philadelphia Eagles
Current 2011 Projections: 79 TA, 49 Rec., 608 yards, 5 TD
Analysis: In 2009, Celek was one of the best receiving tight ends in the league. 2010 was a big of an off year for Celek, but there is reason for optimism when you look at his numbers late in the season. In his first nine games of the season, he caught 53% of balls thrown his way, had 237 yards and two touchdowns. In his last five games, he caught 63% of balls thrown his way, had 274 yards and two touchdowns.
While those later numbers aren’t overly impressive, they are still a step in the right direction and a sign that Celek could get back to his 2009 form. For now Celek is worthy of being a backup fantasy tight end, but has the upside to possibly become a low end fantasy starter like he was projected to be coming into the 2010 fantasy season.
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On The Way Down: Travis Beckum, New York Giants
Current 2011 Projections: 10 TA, 7 Rec., 59 yards, 1 TD
Analysis: It was hard to pick someone to go here, as we’re projecting Kevin Boss, Brent Celek and Chris Cooley to all be better in 2011 than in 2010. Because Kevin Boss is a free agent, Travis Beckum is in line to be the starter in New York if Boss leaves. I would guess if Boss leaves, then someone would come in to be the starter because I don’t believe that the Giants trust Beckum as a receiver.
In his two years with the team which includes four games starting, he has never been thrown at more than twice in a game. The most receiving yards he has ever had is 29, and that was all in one pass against Jacksonville. Even as a starter, I wouldn’t trust drafting Beckum unless he is a starter and there are very few starting options left.
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A Name To Remember: Martellus Bennett, Dallas Cowboys
Current 2011 Projections: 42 TA, 31 Rec., 314 yards, 1 TD
Analysis: If I were to ask you who were the top three tight ends in 2010 based on PFF ratings, I’m guessing few would mention Bennett. He does rank third mostly thanks to his run blocking, but has seen the field enough that he is one of the best backup tight ends in the fantasy world.
If he were to get injured, I don’t think he would put up the production as Witten. 25% of the passes thrown at Witten have been thrown for at least 10 yards, where only 7% of passes at Bennett have been that far. Bennett isn’t the deep threat that Witten can be at times. However if Witten were to get injured, Bennett would see a high number of targets which is enough to consider him on your fantasy roster.
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