Koerner’s Fantasy Football TE Tiers: Rankings for Redraft Leagues

The tight end position continues to be one of the most challenging and strategically important positions in fantasy football drafts. With a steep drop-off in production after the elite tier and unpredictable breakouts emerging throughout the season, knowing when to draft a tight end—and when to wait—can make or break your fantasy season.

In my tight end tiers, I’ve broken down the 2025 landscape into seven distinct groups, from the elite trio of Brock Bowers, Trey McBride, and George Kittle down to the deeper options that could emerge as league winners. My analysis emphasizes a crucial strategy: the importance of remaining flexible at the position, especially if you don’t secure one of the top three options.

This article is a bit shorter than my other positional tier articles, but you can hear more in-depth detail in our latest tight end podcast:

And if you’re looking for something to do in Chicago this weekend, Chris Raybon and I will be hosting a draft party.

Tier 1 – Elite TE1

Brock Bowers
Trey McBride
George Kittle

This is the elite tier of TEs worth drafting early in most formats.

Brock Bowers is the clear TE1 after finishing as the overall TE1 in his rookie season. He essentially operates like a wide receiver and should offer elite production for years to come. I have him ranked around 26th overall, which makes him an early third-round pick in my view. He tends to go in the mid-second round, but if he slips into the third in a 12-team, 0.5 PPR format that starts three WRs, he is absolutely worth taking.

Trey McBride and George Kittle are not far behind in value. Kittle in particular tends to go around 36th overall, which is exactly where I have him ranked, making him one of the most pivotal picks at that range. He is technically on the wrong side of 30 and in the “decline” phase of his career, but he showed no signs of that last season, finishing as the TE1 in points per game. He usually misses a couple of games each year, but that is not a strong enough reason to fade him here.

The 49ers’ pass-catching situation sets up Kittle for another massive season. Considering you can often draft him right at value, he allows you to secure RBs and WRs in the first few rounds before locking in an elite TE at the top of the position. The drop-off after him is steep (nearly 30 points separate Kittle from TE4 Sam LaPorta in my projections), which makes Kittle one of the most valuable picks in fantasy drafts this season.