In the Trenches

Tight Ends & Kickers: Crucial or Confused?

There has always been a great deal of varying opinion about the fantasy value of tight ends and kickers.  Some believe that taking a top-tier player for each category is a necessity to ensure league dominance, while others prefer to spend their draft picks on potential wide receiver sleepers and backup running backs and only picking up a serviceable tight end and kicker later in the draft.  I happen to be somewhere in the middle.

Whatever your preference, you must have at least one tight end and one kicker on your fantasy squad.  It behooves you to take the best one possible, which is written down somewhere in the halls of fantasy antiquity.

But which one is the best?  When should I take a tight end?  What about a kicker?  Aren't they all pretty much the same?  Read on, fantasy inquisitor.  Your answers are waiting . . . .

First of all, a tight end should not be selected before the fourth round.  Usually, I wait until about the fifth or sixth, depending on how the rest of my league is drafting.  Of course, the benefits of taking certain tight ends early is obvious, especially when you consider that they have as much fantasy value as a wide receiver that will still be available for another round or two.  The fact is, though, if you don't take one of those certain tight ends early, then you should wait until after you have at least two backs, a QB and at least one top-flight wide receiver already.  The talent pool plateaus after the top two tight ends, so waiting is advised.

Kickers should not be taken until you have at least one QB, three backs, two WRs, a TE and a defense.  In other words, the ninth round is the EARLIEST a kicker should be taken.  Their stats are so comparable that you can get almost the same kicker two rounds later.

Tight ends:

Tony Gonzalez (Kansas City) -- There is no better tight end.  Career receptions and yards in '04 (102 and 1,258, respectively).  Trent Green has to throw those 20-something touchdowns to someone, and I doubt it will be Freddie Mitchell.

Antonio Gates (San Diego) -- Just signed a six-year extension, but has to sit out the first game unless the Chargers have Gandalf on the payroll.  A dropoff in production should be expected with Keenan McCardell, Reche Caldwell and LaDanian Tomlinson in the mix, but he still is the solid No. 2 TE in the biz.

Alge Crumpler (Atlanta) -- Let's face it:  Crumpler is the only guy on the Falcons squad that can catch the ball. We all know it and Michael Vick knows it, too.  When it counts, Vick will look for Crumpler and his confidence in the explosive tight end will be rewarded with another solid year.

Jeremy Shockey (New York Giants) -- He's Eli Manning's favorite target.  Shockey finished '04 with 61 catches for 666 yards and six TDs.  Pay no attention to the ominous numerological meaning in last season's yardage; Shockey will produce this year as long as his health is solid.

Bubba Franks (Green Bay) -- As of this writing, Franks still had not signed his one-year transition tender, but as soon as he does, he will once again be a force to reckon with in fantasy tight end-land.  Franks has caught at least seven TDs in three of the last four seasons.

L.J.Smith (Philadelphia) -- I'm expecting big things from Smith this season, in part because of the uncertainty regarding Terrell Owens.  Smith had a mediocre year last season, but Smith is proving so far this preseason that he can make the tough catches.  Look for a much-improved year and no drama from L.J.Smith.

Jason Witten (Dallas) -- Witten had a great 2004 season with 887 receptions for 980 yards.  Many, including ESPN football analyst and former Cowboy receiver Michael Irvin, are picking the Cowboys to make it to the playoffs and Witten will be a big part of that.

My tight end sleeper?  Ben Troupe (Tennessee) -- Someone has to fill the void left by Derrick Mason and who better than the young, atheletic Troupe.  He caught 33 passes for 329 yards last season while only playing in 14 games.  Look for Troupe to hook up with my quarterback sleeper pick Steve McNair early and often en route to a breakout season.

Since I am so adamant about kickers not being drafted until late in the draft, here is a list of five kickers that will fill your kicker spot very well.

Adam Vinatieri (New England) -- Vinatieri owned the highest field goal percentage and most field goals made categories last season.

Josh Brown (Seattle) -- Brown had the second highest field goal percentage in the NFL last season behind New England's Adam Vinatieri.

John Kasay (Carolina) -- He's looked good so far in training camp and is looking for lots of PAT opportunities with the Carolina offense in high gear this season.

Ryan Longwell (Green Bay) -- Longwell has a career 82.4 field goal percentage and he could get plenty of opportunities if the Packer offense struggles.

My kicker sleeper pick?  Neil Rackers (Arizona) -- If the Arizona offense gets going, look for an increase in field goals and PATs. 

There you have it.  If you have any questions or comments, feel free to email me at hungrychristian12@yahoo.com.

Michael Jackson is a journalism student at the University of South Carolina Upstate.