-2023 NFL Schedule -Strength of Schedule
MOCK DRAFT
Ask the Commish.Com 2023 Draft Kit
Oliver is coming off his best receiving season, where he totaled 149 yards and two touchdowns on 14 receptions. Oliver is an excellent blocking tight end and will likely be the third tight end option on the roster.
Mike Gesicki is one of the most athletic tight ends in the league, but he was a complete nonfactor in fantasy last season. After a 73-catch, 780-yard season in 2021, Gesicki was franchised-tagged by the Dolphins last year, only to become an afterthought in head coach Mike McDaniel's offense. Gesicki averaged just 3.1 targets per game in 2022 and finished with 32 catches for 362 yards and five touchdowns. Gesicki has since signed with the Patriots, where he'll be reunited with his college coach at Penn State, Bill O'Brien, who's now the Patriots' offensive coordinator. Gesicki could become a more appealing fantasy option in 2023 if O'Brien is committed to better utilizing Gesicki's impressive skill set.
Dalton Schultz signed a one-year deal with Houston, where he should have ample target opportunity but will be paired with rookie QB C.J. Stroud. Schultz was TE3 in fantasy scoring in 2021, catching 78 passes for 808 yards and eight touchdowns. But his production tapered off in 2022. He finished with 57-577-5 and dealt with an early-season knee injury that cost him a pair of games. Schultz isn't particularly athletic, and he's averaged just 6.5 yards per target last season, suggesting that his 2021 numbers aren't likely to be repeated.
Manhertz is primarily a blocking tight end and spent the last two years in Jacksonville. He has 24 receptions for 255 yards and two TD in his seven-year career.
Hooper will come in to help replace some of the snaps lost when the Raiders moved Darren Waller to the Giants. Alongside TE OJ Howard, Hooper can add depth at the position for new QB Jimmy Garoppolo. This also opens up the door for Chig Okonkwo in Tennessee and likely means free agent TE Foster Moreau will not return to Vegas in 2023.
Tonyan will stay in the NFC North as he moves from Green Bay to division rival Chicago. The 28-year-old tight end tallied 470 receiving yards and two touchdowns on 53 receptions last season. Fantasy managers should expect Tonyan and Cole Kmet to see the bulk of the snaps at tight end in 2023.
The Patriots paid Smith big money a couple seasons ago, but he never caught on in New England and operated behind TE Hunter Henry. Arthur Smith, the Falcons head coach, coached Jonnu in Tennessee and brings him back to join a tight end room already sporting Kyle Pitts. It’s unknown how Jonnu will factor into the Falcons’ offense, but the staff is familiar with him and could revitalize his career.
After catching 26 passes for the Falcons in 2021, Hayden Hurst had 52 receptions for the Bengals in 2022, but he averaged a career-low 8.0 yards per catch and scored only two touchdowns. Now with the Panthers, Hurst will be entering his age-30 season. The change of venue improves Hurst's target outlook, but those targets will probably be coming from a rookie quarterback and won't be as valuable as targets from Joe Burrow.
Saubert recorded 148 yards and one touchdown on 15 receptions last season with Denver. While all of those marks are career highs, it is unlikely that Saubert will hold fantasy value in Miami’s offense.
After putting together back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2019 and 2020, Darren Waller has missed 14 games due to injury over the last two years. In 2021, a knee injury forced Waller to miss five late-season games. In 2022, a hamstring injury wiped out nearly half of his season. Now with the Giants, Waller could see a lot of targets for a team short on talent and size at the WR position. Waller has been reasonably productive when healthy the last two seasons, but he now has to be considered at least a mild health risk, and the big tight end will turn 31 in September.