Outlook: If you look back to 2023, Murray and McBride played eight games together. In that time, the tight end collected 53 receptions, 538 yards, and 2 TDs; that's a 113-1,143-4 pace. Last year, that duo took the field 16 times. The final numbers: 111 catches, 1,146 yards, and a pair of touchdowns. That was good enough for fourth in the NFL in receptions and 11th in receiving yardage. He finished second in both categories among tight ends to Las Vegas' rookie Brock Bowers.

While it's difficult to complain too vociferously about a two-year stretch in which McBride has caught 192 passes for 1,971 yards there is one clear eyesore on his resume. Despite checking in at 6-foot-4, 246 pounds, McBride has scored just five times among those 192 receptions. His two receiving TDs last year tied him for 116th in the NFL. After McBride, New Orleans' Alvin Kamara had the most catches with only two touchdowns -- he had 68, which was 43 fewer than McBride.

Yes, the lack of productivity in the red zone is frustrating. Targets are opportunities, however, and McBride was eighth in the NFL in that department. Entering his fourth season and still just 25 years old, he offers more value and upside than anyone at the position not named Bowers.

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Outlook: On a team with almost as much potential as question marks, Kittle is the safest bet. Over the last two years, the veteran has racked up 143 receptions, 2,126 yards, and 14 touchdowns. He's established himself as a favorite target of Purdy, and he's been mostly durable since an injury filled 2020 limited him to just eight games. With uncertainty at receiver, we could see even heavier involvement from Kittle, who is coming off his second-best season statistically over an eight-year career.

If you're looking for risks, there are a couple worth noting. First, Kittle has a lot of mileage on his body due to heavy usage and several deep playoff runs. While he's been durable, you can't dismiss all injury concerns as he enters his age-32 campaign. Second, San Francisco's pass protection relies heavily on Trent Williams locking down the left side. The veteran is an elite talent, but he'll be 37 when the season kicks off and is coming off a year in which he missed seven games. If Williams misses time again, Kittle could find himself having to stay in and help protect Purdy.

Kittle deserves to be viewed as a top five tight end for fantasy purposes. He's a notch below Brock Bowers and Trey McBride, both of whom are featured weapons and ascending talents, but after that you can consider him a viable choice alongside names like Sam LaPorta and Travis Kelce.

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Outlook: The biggest victim of Jameson Williams's and Jahmyr Gibbs' ascension was LaPorta. He saw 37 fewer targets than in 2023 and was nearly invisible for the first half of the season. He did come on in the 2nd half though, piling up five double-digit fantasy games from Week 10 on. LaPorta remains one of the most reliable and consistent pass catchers on the team, and in the NFL, and although he might never reach the lofty numbers of his rookie season, he slots in as an easy top-10 option at the position.

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Outlook: Andrews was nearly invisible until Week 6, sending fantasy owners scrambling. But Andrews found his groove after that, and ended up with a career best 11 touchdowns en route to another top-5 finish. While leg injuries have sapped some of the field stretching speed he had early in his career, and Isaiah Likely has become a bigger part of the offense, Andrews is still an elite option down near the goal line and should push for double-digit scores once again, as he led all tight ends with 15 red zone targets and 10 touchdowns. Even with lower target and yardage numbers, Andrews is in line for another top-5 finish.

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Outlook: A future first-ballot Hall of Famer, Kelce has finally begun to look his age. After posting his ninth straight 1,000-plus-yard campaign in 2022, the veteran has seen his numbers drop over the past two seasons, going from a 110-1338-12 effort in '22 to 93-984-5 in '23 and 97-823-3 last year. He was a nonfactor in the AFC Championship Game (2-19-0) and Super Bowl (4-39-0) as well; his performance in the latter leading to a lot of vows that he'll be better in 2025.

Reports indicate that Kelce has shed some weight, so perhaps that will help the 35-year-old regain some of his lost explosiveness after he averaged a career-low 8.5 yards per reception. He's not a field stretcher, though, which could mean the veteran sees fewer opportunities in an offense that appears focused on more big plays and less underneath passes. That's not to suggest he won't be part of the gameplan. Kelce has been Mahomes' top target for years, and there's a comfort level there born of seven seasons worth of playing in the NFL's biggest showcases.

Kelce has sat at or near the top of fantasy tight end rankings for the better part of a decade, but he no longer belongs in that top tier with the likes of Brock Bowers and Trey McBride. Instead, Kelce resides in the TE1 midrange along with names like T.J. Hockenson and Mark Andrews.

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Outlook: Kraft was a nice surprise last season, busting out for 50 receptions, 707 yards, and seven scores. He was a legit big play threat from a position that the Packers have struggled to fill recently, as Kraft was 2nd among all tight ends with a 14.1 yards-per-catch average. With the renewed health of Jordan Love, and another defense stretching threat in Matthew Golden, Craft should have plenty of room to work, and is a strong bet to repeat his top-10 positional finish from a year ago.

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Outlook: The fact Hockenson was able to come back at all last season and make significant contribution is an amazing accomplishment. After a late 2023 ACL tear, Hockenson returned in Week 9 looking healthy and spry. His first big game came in Week 12 where he went over 100 yards. He only found the endzone once (during the playoffs), but he remained healthy the rest of the season, and enters 2025 once again near the top of the tight end rankings. While the position has seen an infusion of young talent recently, Hockenson was a top-three option before his injury, and will return to being the 2nd most targeted option on the team even with a young quarterback. Due to position, he's a little more insulated from any McCarthy growing pains, and slots easily as a top-10 tight end option.

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Outlook: I'm not sure where to begin with Kyle Pitts. Selected fourth overall in 2021, has his lack of productivity been due to scheme, injuries, or is he simply not as good as his draft capital suggests? Perhaps it's a combination of all three. One thing's for sure: he's finally ranked where he should be: as a TE2. What a slow, steady decline for a once-promising player many called a unicorn upon his arrival to the league. It started great -- a 1,000-yard season as a rookie. Since then, it's been anything but. He's already entering his fifth season, and it will be hard to shake his perception of a slightly above-average player that fantasy owners should not rely on. It's as simple as that. Take him in the double-digit rounds and hope for the best.

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Outlook: Jake Ferguson's 2024 was a fantasy buzzkill. After a breakout 2023 (71 catches, 761 yards, five TDs), he didn't score even once last year. Prescott's injury tanked Ferguson's second half - he couldn't crack 40 yards in any game without his QB - but even when Dak was on the field, Ferguson wasn't delivering fantasy-relevant production. The "touchdown potential in a high-powered offense" hype fizzled fast and he never recovered.

Prescott's return in 2025 is a lifeline, and Ferguson's in a contract year with something to prove. A more explosive offense with Pickens could open things up underneath. But here's the catch: Lamb and Pickens will hog targets, leaving Ferguson with scraps. He's a low-end TE1 at best, banking on red-zone looks to stay relevant, but he's probably more of a TE2 with streaming upside. He's a touchdown-dependent lottery ticket - not the breakout star we once hoped for.

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