Nick Simon dives into a few sleeper tight ends to consider for your fantasy drafts this season.
The 2025 NFL preseason is wrapping up and that means fantasy football draft season is underway. We finally made it people.
The key to assembling a roster that could carry you to your league’s championship game in January is hitting on the sleeper picks that you make in August, and that very much applies to who you decide to go with at tight end. Playmakers like Brock Bowers, George Kittle, and Sam LaPorta will be among the first ones taken off the board, but it’s those guys in the tier below that could make a huge difference. That especially rings true in deeper leagues or if one of those elite guys aren’t playing.
Below, I’ll give you three sleeper tight ends for you to consider ahead of your respective drafts. Considering that the average fantasy football league consists of 10-12 teams, I’ll define a sleeper for this exercise as someone currently falling in the 13-21 range of ADP (average draft position) according to FantasyPros. We’ll use PPR rankings for further clarity. Let’s dive in, shall we?
Jonnu Smith, Pittsburgh Steelers
ADP: TE14, 133 Overall
The veteran Smith is coming off a career year with the Miami Dolphins, earning his first Pro Bowl nod by bringing down 88 targets for 884 yards and eight touchdowns. He finished the year as the fourth-ranked tight end in fantasy football and figured to once again play a major role for the Dolphins offense in 2025 until he was dealt to the Steelers as part of the Jalen Ramsey-Minkah Fitzpatrick trade in the offseason.
One would look at him now sharing duties with Pat Freiermuth and think that would significantly decrease his fantasy value. Well hang on, don’t back away just yet. Smith has now been reunited with Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Arthur Smith, who was his head coach with the Atlanta Falcons in 2023. The tight end got plenty of targets working alongside Kyle Pitts that year and that was by design considering that the Falcons ran the most 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends) out of any team that season. Arthur Smith loves utilizing multiple tight end sets and it’s not a coincidence that the Steelers’ own 12 personnel usage significantly increased upon his arrival as OC last season.
It has already been indicated that the Steelers view Jonnu as a hybrid player, meaning that we could see him line up all over the field in the Aaron Rodgers-led offense. If everything goes smoothly, he has the potential to once again sneak into the top 10 of fantasy tight ends and could be a draft steal for you in the middle-later rounds.
Hunter Henry, New England Patriots
ADP: TE19, 165 Overall
Similar to Smith, Henry is another veteran tight end coming off a solid year who could benefit from being reunited with a former coach this season. The 30-year-old was the go-to weapon for rookie Drake Maye last year and he ended up leading New England in receiving with a career-high 66 receptions for 674 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
The Patriots, of course, did a coaching staff overhaul in the offseason and brought back Josh McDaniels for his third stint in Foxborough. Henry thrived in McDaniels’ system in 2021, tying for the league lead in tight end touchdowns with nine that season. Notably, he tied for third in red-zone targets among tight ends with 18 that year and all nine of his touchdowns came from within the 20-yard line. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him emerge as a prime red-zone target for Maye this season and he could easily outperform his ADP.
Isaiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens
ADP: TE20, 182 Overall
Baltimore’s offense is loaded with weapons and Likely figures to once again figures to play a key role as the team tries to get over the hump and live up to its Super Bowl expectations. The presence of Mark Andrews did not stop Likely from experiencing a career year in 2024 as he reeled in 42 targets for 477 yards and six touchdowns.
Having two productive pass-catching tight ends is a key feature of OC Todd Monken’s offense and it’s not a surprise that the Ravens led the league in 12 personnel EPA last season. Andrews and Likely also split red-zone targets as well as the duo combined for 20 receptions, 165 yards, and 15 touchdowns whenever the team got inside the 20. We can expect similar or even better production from the Lamar Jackson-led attack in Baltimore this season and that makes Likely a viable sleeper tight end candidate yet again.
Category: General Sports
