The top tight ends from the 2022 NFL season in yards per route run

Yardage or reception totals don’t always paint the full picture of how productive a player was in a given season, but by looking at players on a per-snap basis, we can get a clearer picture and highlight those who are perhaps deserving of more snaps.

PFF’s yard per route run metric divides a player’s receiving yards total by the number of routes they ran, giving us a much better look at their efficiency. Here are the top 10 tight ends in that category from the 2022 regular season.

1. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs

YPRR: 2.23

Kelce was the only tight end in football to see 50-plus targets and average more than 2.0 yards per route run. He played 27 more receiving snaps than any other tight end and produced 424 more yards than the next best at the position in the regular season.

2. Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens

YPRR: 1.95

Injuries limited Andrews to 434 receiving snaps in 2022, tied for 10th at the position, but his 847 receiving yards trailed just Kelce and T.J Hockenson.

3. Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles

YPRR: 1.82

Goedert was on the field for just 385 receiving snaps but ranked seventh among all tight ends with 702 receiving yards, averaging 12.8 yards per catch.

4. George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers

YPRR: 1.73

Kittle’s 12.8 yards per reception tied with Goedert for the best mark among tight ends, with the 49ers standout ranking fifth at the position with 765 receiving yards.

5. Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons

YPRR: 1.69

Arguably the biggest fantasy bust of the season, Pitts was the fifth-most productive tight end on a per-snap basis, producing 356 yards on just 211 snaps in his second NFL season.

6. Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers

YPRR: 1.68

Freiermuth ran 435 routes in 2022, racking up 732 receiving yards on 63 receptions to rank sixth at the position in both.

7. T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings

YPRR: 1.60

Hockenson played for both the Lions and Vikings in 2022 and finished the season trailing only Travis Kelce with 914 receiving yards on 573 routes run.

8. David Njoku, Cleveland Browns

YPRR: 1.55

Njoku ranked 15th among tight ends with 405 snaps as a receiver, but he placed eighth at the position with 628 receiving yards.

9. Evan Engram, Jacksonville Jaguars

YPRR: 1.46

Engram crossed 700 receiving yards in a season for the first time since his rookie year in 2017, producing 766 receiving yards on 523 routes run.

10. Tyler Higbee, Los Angeles Rams

YPRR: 1.43

Higbee rounds out the top 10 among tight ends despite averaging 8.6 yards per reception. He pulled in 72 receptions for 620 yards on 434 routes run in 2022.