Late-Round Fantasy Football Draft Targets For The TE Position In 2026
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There are great accomplishments that people share while carving the turkey every Thanksgiving, but the biggest thing you'll want to brag about to your family is finding THE late-round tight end that has been carrying your fantasy football team to a potential championship.
And that’s why we're here today. I know it's June, but the time to lock in for your fantasy drafts is right now, because you want to stay ready so you don't have to get ready.
Finding that late-round tight end gem is no easy feat, and there's no exact science, but a handful of tight ends are going outside the top 100 picks on Underdog that have a chance to seriously outperform their ADPs.
Mark Andrews (ADP: 127)
Mark Andrews was fourth among tight ends in end zone targets last season, and I'm betting on more touchdowns for the 30-year-old tight end. He scored just five touchdowns last season, finishing as the TE23 in fantasy points per game. And while it's been two down seasons for Andrews, a new coaching staff and Isaiah Likely leaving are pivotal for an Andrews turnaround.
Likely has missed four games in two seasons, and when he was out, Andrews saw an 80% route participation rate and averaged 12.2 fantasy points per game.
He's going to score more touchdowns in an offense that's hungry to prove that a Super Bowl is within reach.
Chig Okonkwo (ADP: 149.5)
You know when people say the grass might be greener on the other side? I think that fully describes Chig Okonkwo's situation for 2026.
Now with a new three-year contract signed with the Commanders, a breakout could be coming. I hate to say his talents were wasted in Tennessee, but jumping to a situation where Jayden Daniels is now your QB1 is a massive upgrade. The Commanders didn't add many game-changing weapons in the offseason for Daniels, so is Okonkwo being the No. 2 option in this passing game really out of the question?
He's got the YAC ability and is one of my favorite tight ends to get towards the end of drafts.
Isaiah Likely (ADP: 131.4)
I've talked about Isaiah Likely a lot via articles and on shows, but we're going to do it again here. Malik Nabers is the obvious focal point in this offense, but who is next? I think John Harbaugh signing him to a three-year, $40 million deal means that we are going to see his full potential. It's not just on Likely, though. Jaxson Dart has to improve as a passer, averaging just 6.92 adjusted yards per attempt, and Theo Johnson will still be involved, but Likely has shown us upside before, and he's a bet I'm willing to make.
George Kittle: (ADP: 116.6)
Is there risk in drafting George Kittle? Sure, no way around it. He's going to be 33 years old in October and is coming off a late-season Achilles tear. However, we're being told that Kittle is "on track" for Week 1, so this price won't hold much longer. We honestly don't need to go into too much detail with Kittle; you know how good he can be—plus, the price is right.
If you’ve had Josh Allen in fantasy any year since 2020, you’ve been more than happy. He’s been the QB1 five times in that span, the only year he didn’t finish up top being 2022, when he fell all the way to QB2. He just finished his follow-up to his 2024 NFL MVP season with 3,668 passing yards and 25 TDs, adding 579 rushing yards and 14 more scores on the ground. Betting against him continuing his fantasy dominance for another five years would be ill-advised.
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If you’re drafting for stash plays in best ball, you’re embracing the unknown. And, boy, we’ve got that covered today.
Injury concerns. Murky depth charts. Potential trades. Suspensions. Delayed returns. It’s all on the table once you reach the later rounds and begin searching for players capable of dramatically outperforming their ADP. While your final picks won’t define your draft on their own, they absolutely can help win leagues.
You’re not looking for consistency at this stage.
You’re chasing contingent upside, second-half spike weeks and players whose value could look wildly different a couple of months from now.
Sure, first-round pick Jadarian Price projects as Seattle’s future workhorse after arriving to replace Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker, but let’s not suddenly pretend Charbonnet wasn’t highly productive before suffering a torn ACL during the Seahawks’ divisional-round win over the 49ers.
Last season, Charbonnet suited up in 16 games and established career-highs with:
184 carries
208 touches
730 rushing yards
12 touchdowns
His role has grown steadily in each of his three seasons.
Now, the obvious issue is that we may not see Charbonnet play meaningful snaps until midseason.
That’s what makes him a stash.
But that’s also what creates the discount.
Even if Price immediately seizes the lead role, head coach Mike Macdonald has consistently leaned toward split backfields and physical running attacks. Seattle’s remaining depth options, George Holani and Emanuel Wilson, shouldn’t prevent Charbonnet from reclaiming a meaningful role once healthy.
And while much of his fantasy value is touchdown-dependent, scoring opportunities haven’t exactly been rare. Charbonnet found the end zone in 10 regular-season games last year.
If you can survive carrying a possibly inactive roster spot for a while, the second-half benefit here is very real. And in time for the playoffs.
Fantasy football draft season is in full swing. Whether you’re playing best ball, dynasty or redraft, you’ll probably be on the clock soon, maybe even while you are reading this. Throughout your drafts, you will face a number of tough decisions where it almost feels like you should flip a coin to make your decision. When you're on the clock, you have to make a decision in a short amount of time, so we at Fantasy Life are going to help you be prepared to make those decisions by putting those players under a microscope to arrive at a final verdict on who to take.
For this series, we will be evaluating players on three primary criteria:
Talent
Opportunity
Bust risk
Talent and opportunity combine to create the upside profile, but we must always balance that against the risk of a player letting you down.
For the second edition, we’re going to examine two former teammates who are now the top WR on Super Bowl-contending teams: A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith.
🦅 The Case for DeVonta Smith
Smith is 1.5 years younger than Brown and firmly still in the prime of his career, while there are real concerns about AJB's injury history. Most of the headlines focused on the fact that Brown was unhappy with his role in Philadelphia and that his relationship with Jalen Hurts had clearly deteriorated. At the same time, the Eagles didn't seem to put up too much of a fight to avoid losing their WR1. I consider Philly a sharp organization, particularly the front office, so it is notable that they were so willing to move on from Brown. This decline in efficiency, injury history and the Eagles' willingness to let him go should at least make us consider the possibility that he could be a player in decline.
The Eagles also have a new offensive coordinator, which opens the door to improved efficiency and a slightly different role for Smith now that he is the clear WR1. This is firmly in the 'unknown' category, but a bounceback season for this offense will probably require Smith stepping into a larger role and proving that he is capable of handling WR1 volume and carrying the offense at times.
