Fantasy Football: Top 10 tight ends to draft in 2015

Tight ends are usually one of the later positions to be selected in any draft outside of exceptional players such as Rob Gronkowski and Jimmy Graham. They can have big numbers that put them on level way above their competition, but as a position it is not one for high demand in drafts because the majority of tight ends in today's NFL cannot keep up with the fantasy production of most teams' no. 2 wide receivers.

Still tight ends are important of note, a consistent tight end that out produces your opponent's tight end every week can be the area where you bank on beating your opponent in at least one matchup every week, and possibly make up for whatever you might be lacking in another position.

As always, we include the APDPA (average playoff defensive points allowed) statistic to account for the strength of defense each player faces in the final weeks of the regular season so you can know who to target for playoff value. The higher the number the better for the player as it averages out the final five defenses that player will face in 2015 and how they played against tight ends in 2014.

Knowing which tight ends to target is key, so here are our top ten lists for tight ends to draft in 2015:

Dani Bostick

Notes: You can't argue against Chip Kelly's offense, which is why I have Ertz in my second slot, well ahead of where many would place him. I'd pick Heath Miller ahead of most TEs on my list because the offense is on fire, and I think Haley could mix things up by targeting Heath while the defense is worried about Antonio Brown, Martavis Bryant, and Markus Wheaton. My last potentially controversial choice is Vernon Davis. The 49ers are a mess. New coach, mass exodus of players. They are in bad shape. Davis is a proven veteran and will be a reliable target for Colin Kaepernick.

Jeff Hartman:

Notes: Sleeper Picks: Tyler Eiffert, Jordan Cameron

The tight end position has been more trendy than what the hottest celebrities are wearing on the red carpet. In one day, out the other. The days of Antonio Gates and Anthony Gonzalez going in the early rounds are gone, and you are left with only a couple tight ends who would be considered draftable in the early rounds of your Fantasy Football draft. After Graham in my rankings is a pretty steep decline in production and talent. Kelce is a great threat, but the Chiefs offense struggles to score points, which means you struggle to score points. Same can be said for Delanie Walker with a rookie quarterback. There is a lot of guessing after spots 1 and 2 in my rankings, but these players could be the swing players you desire to help win you games week in and week out. Again, unless you are drafting Gronk or Graham, hold off on the tight ends until the mid-rounds...most will still be there.

Christopher Carter

Notes: I foresee Graham as having a monster year in Seattle and upstaging Gronkowski in fantasy. Russell Wilson could really use big target in the red zone and Graham will be that guy for the Seahawks as they continue to terrorize the NFC. Gronkowski will still have a huge year provided that he remains healthy and Olsen will see a jump in his stats with a better, and healthier Cam Newton this season. Fleener will be a big point getter in Indianapolis with Andrew Luck tossing the ball everywhere. Gates is coming off a 12 touchdown season and is still the man in San Diego, so he'll have a good season despite his aging. Cameron will see a better year than his past now that he can work with Tannehill and could be a great playoff asset as he faces some of the weakest defenses in the NFL against the tight end position, as does Jason Witten.