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Our Footballguys staff recently sat down to discuss their favored options at tight end when playing in a salary cap league.

• $200 cap
• 12 teams
• Full PPR
• Starting Lineup
  • 1 QB
  • 2 RBs
  • 3 WRs
  • 1 TE
  • 1 flex (RB, WR, TE)

How do you approach the tight end position in a salary cap draft? Feel free to discuss price enforcement and budget allocation. 

Thoughts from Jason Wood

I'm open to myriad strategies at the tight end position, but my general goal is to secure one of the elite tier options, which usually consists of six to eight players.

I will try to spend no more than $12-$15, and then I'll rely on my own depth of knowledge and have two or three $1 lottery tickets I throw out in the end game and grab whichever one doesn't get bid up to $2.

I won't price enforce at tight end because roster construction makes it hard to have more than two on your roster, and enforcing can upend your build. 

Thoughts from Drew Davenport

Tight end, for me, will often look like the quarterback position. I'll plan ahead of time to be thrifty at the position, but if the right value falls, I'll have no problem stretching the budget a little bit. Usually, if I save some money at running back or wide receiver, I'll decide to throw it at quarterback or tight end, but not both.

Like how I approach quarterback with price enforcing, I'm not too concerned with that at the tight end position. I do want the top guys (at least the top three) to get over $20, but that's about as far as I'm willing to push it. If I get "stuck" with Trey McBride for $19, then I'm completely fine with that, and I'll find the money somewhere else.

But, absent a deal like that, I'm going to really hone in on David Njoku or Jake Ferguson for approximately $5 to $8. That's my preferred route. But if that doesn't work and the roster size allows it, I'll take two, or I even have no problem grabbing three, knowing I'll drop one quickly after the season starts when I see who isn't involved in their offense.

But, most of the time, I'll end up with two guys, and I'll try to mix and match between a number of late-round guys like Pat Freiermuth, Tyler Conklin, Dalton Schultz, Noah Fant, or Hunter Henry. The scattershot approach to tight end has proven to be a good one in salary cap drafts. 

Thoughts from Andy Hicks

Tight end will be similar to the quarterback position in preparation. If possible, I would hope to get an elite option if the value presents itself. Otherwise, I would be looking at three options in the eighth to twentieth area of my list, saving as much money as possible.

If I can spend 10% of my allocation and be happy with the players chosen, then it would be mission accomplished. Cole Kmet, Hunter Henry, Pat Freiermuth, Isaiah Likely, and the Green Bay pair of Luke Musgrave and Tucker Kraft would be players I would be delighted to have as my three cheaper tight ends.

Thoughts from Jeff Bell

The greatest lie we tell ourselves every summer is "tight end is deep." My goal at a "one-off" position (a position where you only start one player, usually QB and TE) is to roster a top-five finisher.

Quarterbacks can lean into the matchup, and the position's depth can allow aggregate production to cross that threshold. Tight end can not.

I have eight tight ends with a shot to finish inside the Top 5: Travis Kelce, Sam LaPorta, Dalton Kincaid, Mark Andrews, Trey McBride, Evan Engram, George Kittle, and Kyle Pitts. Brock Bowers is a complete wild card. My goal is not to be one of the four teams in a 12-team league praying for touchdown luck. In a salary cap format, I simply want the best value on one of those top eight players.

Unlike quarterbacks, you can get away with price enforcing at the position, especially if any premium is placed on the scoring. Landing two of those top eight at reasonable prices shrinks the pool and leaves a league mate hunting touchdowns. It is a solid offensive play, given current values.

A 15% budget for the position is within my comfort level. I recognize that I may be aggressive relative to the field, but I value the position.

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