Fantasy Football 2012 Week 3 Rankings: Top 25 Tight Ends

While the injury to Aaron Hernandez has certainly hurt fantasy owners, there have been numerous tight ends who have stepped up and appear to be viable options. Let’s take a look at who the best options are for the coming week:

1. Rob Gronkowski – New England Patriots – at Baltimore
2. Jimmy Graham – New Orleans Saints – vs. Kansas City
3. Vernon Davis – San Francisco 49ers – at Minnesota
4. Jason Witten – Dallas Cowboys – vs. Tampa Bay
5. Jermichael Finley – Green Bay Packers – at Seattle
6. Brandon Pettigrew – Detroit Lions – at Tennessee
7. Antonio Gates – San Diego Chargers – vs. Atlanta
8. Dennis Pitta – Baltimore Ravens – vs. New England
9. Tony Gonzalez – Atlanta Falcons – at San Diego
10. Brent Celek – Philadelphia Eagles – at Arizona
11. Jermaine Gresham – Cincinnati Bengals – at Washington
12. Jared Cook – Tennessee Titans – vs. Detroit
13. Martellius Bennett – New York Giants – at Carolina
14. Kyle Rudolph – Minnesota Vikings – vs. San Francisco
15. Coby Fleener – Indianapolis Colts – vs. Jacksonville
16. Brandon Myers – Oakland Raiders – vs. Pittsburgh
17. Owen Daniels – Houston Texans – at Denver
18. Fred Davis – Washington Redskins – vs. Cincinnati
19. Dustin Keller – New York Jets – at Miami
20. Jacob Tamme – Denver Broncos – vs. Houston
21. Heath Miller – Pittsburgh Steelers – at Oakland
22. Greg Olsen – Carolina Panthers – vs. New York Giants
23. Scott Chandler – Buffalo Bills – at Cleveland
24. Dallas Clark – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – at Dallas
25. Marcedes Lewis – Jacksonville Jaguars – at Indianapolis

Thoughts

 - It has become crystal clear to fantasy owners that Dennis Pitta is going to play a major role in the Ravens offense this season. Through two weeks he is tied with Jimmy Graham for the most receptions by a tight end (13) and fourth in yardage (he has 138). It will be interesting to see how he fares against the Patriots, but in what could be a shootout I would definitely consider him a TE1 at this point.

- While Antonio Gates missed Week 2, it would be surprising to see him miss a second game due to the rib injury. We’ll have to monitor the news, but I would plan on using him this week.

- Vernon Davis already has three touchdown catches on the season (eight receptions for 116 yards).  Is there any question who Alex Smith’s go to receiver is at this point? He needs to be considered one of the best options in the league until proven otherwise.

- While Brent Celek has yet to find the end zone, he is leading NFL tight ends with 222 receiving yards and is one behind the leaders with 12 receptions.

Of course, he had 157 yards in Week 2, a number he isn’t going to be able to continue (especially if both DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin return to health). That said, he should be a big part of the offense and is worth using as a low-end TE1 in all formats.

- Who is Brandon Myers? Well, fantasy owners are going to need to become familiar with the Raiders tight end, as he has amassed 11 receptions for 151 yards over the first two games. Considering he has at least five receptions in each of the first two weeks, it is clear that he isn’t just an aberration and is going to be a part of the offense.

It’s hard to trust him yet, but as a TE2 he does have value with the potential to be a TE1 in the future.

- If Dustin Keller is healthy he will have value as a TE2, even with the questionable Jets offense. We’ll have to monitor the news, though, and see if he is going to be healthy enough to play.

Make sure to check out the rest of our Week 3 rankings:

Top 25 Quarterbacks