Too often, we overlook valuable data from the previous season that could give us a real edge in fantasy drafts. One of the most important tools to utilize and exploit during draft season is ADP; yet, once the games begin, we tend to forget where players were actually drafted and focus only on how they finish.
It is often said that we do not dislike players; we dislike their draft cost. By comparing a player’s draft position to their end-of-season finish, we can uncover meaningful insights about their true value. Looking back at ADP versus actual production helps us evaluate whether players lived up to their draft-day price or fell short.
In this article, we will analyze where the top TEs were drafted in 2024 and where they finished, as well as which top finishers were draft-day bargains. The goal is to identify trends and actionable takeaways you can use to gain an edge in your 2025 fantasy drafts.
Check out the first three articles from this series, featuring QBs, RBs, and WRs.
Note: All statistics used are half-PPR scoring per the Ballers’ Consistency Charts found at JointheFoot.com. All ADP data is sourced from Sleeper.
Top-12 Drafted TEs in 2024:
When looking back at last year’s top-drafted TEs, it was not surprising to see Travis Kelce and Sam LaPorta leading the way. Kelce has been a fantasy cheat code for years, and LaPorta shattered rookie expectations by finishing as the TE1 the season before. But both fell flat, turning into major busts relative to their price.
Trey McBride, however, delivered. Those who bet on his breakout were rewarded as he justified his draft capital and proved the hype was real. Dalton Kincaid was the opposite story. Drafted aggressively after a TE15 rookie finish and buoyed by the changes in Buffalo’s offense, he failed to deliver, stumbling all the way to TE26 and cementing himself as one of the year’s biggest disappointments.
Even Mark Andrews, who ended up as TE5 on paper, was a headache for managers. He started the year unusable and relied almost entirely on TDs to stay afloat, making him feel more like a trap than a prize. George Kittle, on the other hand, was a steal. Slightly undervalued in drafts, he rewarded drafters with a TE1 finish and rare week-to-week consistency.
But the story of the season at the position belonged to Brock Bowers. Despite playing in a sluggish offense, he rewrote the rookie record books, finishing as TE2 and putting together the most historic debut season the position has ever seen. Even after LaPorta shattered rookie expectations, Bowers was still drafted far beneath his true ceiling.
Beyond that, the rest of the top 12 was littered with injuries and underwhelming names. Kyle Pitts, as always, teased upside without delivering, reminding fantasy managers once again that he is more reputation than production. Maybe this is finally the year he figures it out… but probably not.
So what’s the lesson here? Outside of Kelce’s prime in Kansas City, TE has been one of the most volatile and unpredictable positions in fantasy. A strong finish one year rarely guarantees the same result the next. The key to real upside is target share, and that was LaPorta’s downfall last season as he was often buried in a crowded Detroit offense with too many mouths to feed.
History has also shown that spending middle-round picks on TEs is usually a losing bet. Even when they sneak into the top 12, the impact is rarely enough to swing a season. The better play is to wait. Take shots on rookies and overlooked names late in your draft, where the risk is minimal and the payoff can be massive. Drafting two of these lottery tickets not only gives you a chance to strike gold but also lets you build a stronger core at the other positions that matter most.
Top-12 TE Fantasy Finishes in 2024 (Weeks 1-17):
Looking at last year’s TE1 finishers, only seven of the 12 were actually drafted as top-12 options. George Kittle and Brock Bowers were already discussed as the biggest draft-day steals, but Jonnu Smith was the true shocker. After years of mediocrity, he suddenly broke into the top five with career highs in targets, receptions, and TDs. Before that, he had never averaged more than 5.8 fantasy points per game.Â
Sam Navarro-Imagn Images
His breakout was fueled by injuries to Miami’s main weapons, which forced the offense to lean on his unique skill set. Unfortunately, a trade to Pittsburgh paired with Arthur Smith calling the plays has erased almost all of the optimism that he can repeat the magic.
Behind Smith, big names like Mark Andrews, Travis Kelce, and Sam LaPorta still finished near the top in points but fell short of justifying their expensive draft prices. The real surprises came from deeper picks. Tucker Kraft, Zach Ertz, Pat Freiermuth, and Hunter Henry all ended up as TE1s despite being drafted outside the top 15. Even so, they were rarely weekly difference-makers.Â
The numbers tell the story: TEs ranked 1–5 averaged 16.6 points per game, while TE6–TE12 managed just 10.1. That gap shows why locking in a consistent elite TE can be one of the biggest advantages in fantasy football. It also reinforces the reality that having a fringe TE1 does little for your roster, and paying up for one is almost always a wasted pick.
Top-12 Drafted TEs in 2025 (Current Sleeper ADP):
Now that we have reviewed and analyzed last season’s ADP compared to actual finishes, we can apply those trends to 2025 fantasy drafts. While ADP will continue to shift over the next couple of weeks, we already have a solid sense of where TEs will be selected.
We have grown accustomed to seeing Travis Kelce sit atop ADP at the TE position, but after last year’s decline, he has finally slipped outside the top five. That was truly a wild sentence to type out… In his place, Brock Bowers, Trey McBride, and George Kittle have become the clear-cut elite options this year. Unlike Sam LaPorta last season, there is little reason to doubt any of these three meeting their lofty expectations, barring injury. The ADP Platform Comparison tool in the UDK helps you see exactly where these top options are being drafted across different platforms, making it easier to spot value picks and gain a strategic edge in your specific league.
Even with their elite upside, it is reasonable to avoid spending a top-two-round pick on them. Instead, hoping they slip to the third or fourth round allows you to secure elite RBs or WRs early. After that tier, LaPorta, T.J. Hockenson, Kelce, and Mark Andrews are all coming off the board within the first seven rounds. LaPorta and Hockenson feel overpriced at those spots, but Kelce still feels more palatable given his discounted ADP and proven track record. A bounce-back season is far from guaranteed, yet his history of elite production keeps the door open.
If you miss on the top names, the smarter play is to chase upside later. Tyler Warren and Colston Loveland stand out as possible double-digit-round values with legitimate breakout potential, and Warren, in particular, benefits from less competition for targets in Indianapolis. Despite back-to-back seasons featuring elite rookie TEs, their potential still appears to be massively undervalued. David Njoku and Tucker Kraft are also strong later-round options, and pairing one with a rookie gives you multiple shots at hitting on a true difference-maker.
For deeper formats, veterans like Zach Ertz and Hunter Henry offer underrated stability at a discount. If you want to swing for upside with your final pick, Brenton Strange and Mason Taylor are intriguing sleepers flying under the radar but with clear paths to meaningful roles.