BPN's Fantasy Football Files: Picking your Tight End

By Brett Neal

Two tickets to the gun show

ESPN's Top 10 TE's

1. Jimmy Graham (29)

2. Rob Gronkowski (41)

3. Tony Gonzales (57)

4. Jason Whitten (61)

5. Vernon Davis (70)

6. Kyle Rudolph (83)

7. Owen Daniels (90)

8. Greg Olsen (93)

9. Antonio Gates (96)

10. Brandon Myers? (106)

I don't even know why ESPN still ranks tight ends, and who the hell is Brandon Myers? Jimmy Graham of the New Orleans Saints would be a clutch grab if he is still available in the late 3rd or early 4th round, but go ahead and plan for life with out him. I may take Gronkowski in the late 5th, but not while there are still starting running backs like DeMarco Murray and Reggie Bush that fit nicely in the flex position. Oh, and a word of advice: don't draft Antonio Gates.

  

One guy I would wait on is Minnesota's Kyle Rudolph "the red-zone reindeer," currently projected to go in the early 9th round. One thing everyone in the NFL can agree on is that Adrian Peterson is really good at running the football. But He's just so much better when he has more field to work with. Once you get down in the red zone, teams will double down to stop Peterson, putting 8 or 9 guys in the box. That means its Kyle Rudolph time. With only two years of experience under his belt, Rudolph has already become a safety net for young QB Christian Ponder, as he's reeled in 20 of 23 red-zone targets. Rudolph's 87% catch rate from under 20 yards to the end zone is an unbelievable. Second best in that time span is Gronkowski at 65%, over 20 points lower. Although he only had 502 receiving yards, his 8 touchdowns was third among tight ends. He also was named NFC MVP of the Pro Bowl. 

Beyond the top 6 guys is a shot in the dark, so have some fun and draft a guy who you can live with for three weeks until the hot hand shows himself in the free agency. If I don't get a top 6 guy, I'm probably going to take a chance on Green Bay's Jermichael Finley, Chicago's Martellus Bennett, or Washington's Fred Davis. 

BPN's top 10 TE's

1. Jimmy Graham

2. Rob Gronkowski

3. Jason Whitten

4. Kyle Rudolph

5. Tony Gonzales

6. Vernon Davis

7. Greg Olsen

8. Owen Daniels

9. Antonio Gates

10. Martellus Bennett

Oh, and apparently this drunk guy is Brandon Myers...