Fantasy Football Draft Steals: 6 Tight Ends Who Could Crush Their 2026 ADP
Avoid reaching for an elite tight end and instead target these undervalued options with breakout potential.
Let's continue the fantasy football draft bust/steal series by going over the tight end position. We will cover some possible draft steals here.
Check back soon for the tight end draft bust article. Here are the stories for the quarterback (busts and steals), running back (busts and steals) and wide receiver (busts and steals) positions.
Fantasy football average draft position data can be found on FantasySP in the leadup to the 2026 NFL season! Conduct your fantasy football mock drafts through FantasySP too - you can now customize the scoring settings to tailor to your fantasy leagues!
Kyle Pitts Sr. - Atlanta Falcons
Let's start by discussing Pitts, who is the sixth fantasy tight end off draft boards so far. He's going near pick 72 on average. Pitts was the No. 2 fantasy TE last season.
Atlanta has some QB questions to answer, but Pitts should be a big part of the offense regardless of who is throwing the ball. Drake London is the team's top receiver, and Bijan Robinson will soak up a bunch of touches, but after that, it could be Pitts.
Being a third option offensively could lead to another big fantasy season from Pitts, so I'd be happy to take him near his ADP, and be expecting him to outperform that draft slot by at least a bit.
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Tucker Kraft - Green Bay Packers
Kraft is the seventh tight end being taken, going at pick 76 on average. He was on his way to a big season in 2025 before getting injured.
Kraft is expected to play right away in week 1 this year, and if he picks up where he left off, he could be a high-end fantasy TE this season. If he stays healthy, I see him surpassing his draft slot value, and being a draft steal by the end of the year.
He's falling between the cracks after his injury, and with a number of playmakers around in Green Bay, but he very well could lead the pass catchers, so be targeting him near that ADP.
Sam LaPorta - Detroit Lions
LaPorta is the eighth tight end being taken, going near pick 85 so far. Injuries slowed him in 2025.
I see LaPorta bouncing back from that showing and looking more like he did in his first two seasons in the league. He's the third option in the passing game, at least, but I think there's enough there for LaPorta to still deliver for fantasy owners.
Take advantage of his lower ADP and grab a possible high-end fantasy tight end for a later draft pick.
Jake Ferguson - Dallas Cowboys
Ferguson is going near pick 110, and he's the 11th tight end off draft boards. He was TE5 a season ago, so I'm a bit surprised to see Ferguson going that late.
He had eight touchdowns, after not scoring at all in 2024, so that's really the make-or-break stat for the Dallas tight end. I see the Cowboys' offense being good enough to support Ferguson again, even with CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens around.
Grab Ferguson in the TE2 range and you might end up starting him most weeks, depending on who else you have at the position. I see draft steal written on Ferguson for 2026.
Dallas Goedert - Philadelphia Eagles
From a Dallas tight end to a tight end named Dallas. Goedert is TE14 right now, and he's being taken near pick 120 on average.
He was TE7 a season ago, and that was with A.J. Brown around. With Brown gone, Goedert could finish even higher this coming season.
I understand why he is expected to regress - he scored 11 touchdowns last year, something that isn't sustainable. With Brown gone though, pass catchers need to step up, and I think Goedert does enough to at least be worth drafting him near his ADP - I see Goedert outperforming that draft slot and being a draft steal.
Juwan Johnson - New Orleans Saints
Johnson is the 17th fantasy tight end off draft boards so far. He's going near pick 140 on average, so sometimes he's not even being taken in standard leagues.
Johnson was TE7 a season ago, so I'm a bit surprised to see the Saints' TE going so late. He only scored three touchdowns, but had a breakout year in pretty much every other stat.
I like his outlook still in New Orleans, even after the team signed Noah Fant and drafted Oscar Delp. Chris Olave is the top pass catcher, and rookie Jordyn Tyson is another possible big part of the offense. I still see Johnson thriving in this offense, and that should make him worth more than his ADP, and possibly being a draft steal for those leagues that actually take him.
