Fantasy football season is here! In the midst of mock drafts, rankings, projections, and more, one of the most enjoyable aspects of playing fantasy football is identifying a handful of players that you feel will outperform their preseason expectations. The summer is sleeper season, and we here at The Draft Network will go through each and every position ahead of your fantasy drafts to help you identify key players to put a star next to that your leaguemates may be overlooking.

We’re all just trying to find a crumb of value at the TE position in fantasy football leagues these days. Unless you’ve got an elite option, you’re searching each and every week for someone to plug into your TE spot in hopes of just getting a few fantasy points. That’s why I typically wait on drafting a tight end if I don’t get a Travis Kelce-like player because odds are, I’ll be streaming the position throughout the season anyway. However, there are a few guys I’m targeting late in drafts that should be on your radar.

Full Half-PPR Fantasy Rankings can be found here.

Fantasy Football TE Sleepers

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Jelani Woods (TE – IND)

My Rank: TE16
ADP: TE34
ECR: TE29

When searching for a TE sleeper, one area you want to project is touchdown potential. The 6-foot-7, 253-pound Jelani Woods fits the bill as a strong red-zone option for rookie quarterback Anthony Richardson. Woods had three touchdowns on 40 targets as a rookie and has a chance to emerge from a crowded TE room in Indianapolis.

Although Woods’ touchdown production came early in the season, he grew into an expanded role from Week 12 on last year. In his final six games, Woods garnered 27 targets, catching 18 of them for 233 yards. The potential for an expanded role with high touchdown potential is worthy of a late-round flier in fantasy drafts.

Projection (6.50 FPPG): 75.00 targets | 46.88 rec | 585.00 rec yards | 4.75 TDs

Jake Ferguson (TE – DAL)

My Rank: TE17
ADP: TE33
ECR: TE39

Dalton Schultz may no longer call Dallas home, but I have a hard time believing Dak Prescott will just ignore the TE position in 2023. While projecting forward is never as simple as taking a previous player’s stats and applying them to someone new, there is plenty of room for Jake Fergerson to step into a decent target share in Dallas. My projections have the Cowboys as the second-most pass-happy team in the NFL this season (37.96 pass attempts per game), so there’s plenty of work (and fantasy points) to go around.

The Cowboys have three young tight ends: Ferguson, Peyton Hendershot, and 2023 second-round pick Luke Schoonmaker. While the latter could become the long-term answer at the position, it’s difficult for rookie tight ends to hit the ground running after transitioning from the college game to the NFL. Ferguson has a year of experience in the offense under his belt and has the tools to become Prescott’s safety blanket. Given the volume of plays the Cowboys are expected to run, Ferguson doesn’t need to have a major target share in order to be fantasy-relevant.

Projection (6.00 FPPG): 63.88 targets | 51.10 rec | 553.84 rec yards | 3.50 TDs

Taysom Hill (TE – NO)

My Rank: TE14
ADP: TE32
ECR: TE26

There are only 11 TEs that have scored 10-plus fantasy points at least eight times over the last two seasons. Taysom Hill is one of them.

Hill’s role in New Orleans is unique, but you shouldn’t care—fantasy points are all that matter. He is listed as a TE, but his fantasy value comes from his rushing upside, and his rushing touchdowns in particular. Over the last three seasons, Hill has 33 total touchdowns with 20 of them coming on the ground (plus three receiving and 10 passing). Hill ranked as the TE7 in average fantasy points per game last season (8.8) and should continue to have his hybrid role in 2023—if Sean Payton would take Drew Brees off the field for Hill, I’m sure Dennis Allen will do the same despite having Derek Carr.

Hill has near matchup-winning potential any week and is going largely undrafted right now. If you wait on taking a TE, please grab Hill in the last round and you may end up outsmarting your leaguemates.

Projection (7.09 FPPG): 10.75 rec | 585.00 rush+rec yards | 8.25 total TDs