5. Timothy Wright, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Many people outside of Tampa don’t even know who Wright is. The rookie from Rutgers turned some heads this season as he played exceptionally well for the Buccaneers. In five of his 16 games he posted 10 or more fantasy points in standard leagues and had a total of 571 receiving yards all year. This youngster has a bright future in the NFL if he keeps up the good play and may be a top 10 fantasy tight end next year if he can build some more chemistry with quarterback Mike Glennon.
4. Charles Clay, Miami Dolphins
Clay was hit or miss for most of the season but managed to be a part of the top 10 tight ends of the year in fantasy scoring. He was a favorable target for Ryan Tannehill and averaged over four receptions per game so in PPR leagues that makes him a very good quality tight end that deserves to start. Clay had five touchdowns on the season and over 750 yards receiving. Like Wright, Clay wasn’t in the end zone too often but still played a big contribution in moving the ball down the field and had five games where he scored over 10 fantasy points.
3. Jordan Reed, Washington Redskins
Another rookie makes our list and Jordan Reed is who it is. He sustained a serious concussion injury midway through the season and it put him of the injured reserve list that ended his year. Before the injury, Reed played a big part of the Redskins offense. Robert Griffin III was very reliant to Reed when pass plays broke down. Reed averaged five receptions per game in just the nine games that he played in. You can only imagine how well his season would’ve been if he didn’t get hurt. It is quite possible that he would be in the running for rookie of the year had he stayed healthy.
2. Jordan Cameron, Cleveland Browns
A big surprise this season was the emergence if Jordan Cameron. Many were high on him while watching him perform very well in the preseason. The first four games of the season Cameron was on fire. He had 30 receptions for 360 yards and five touchdowns in those games and many had high hopes that would continue. Then the Browns remembered that they were the Browns and started to have injury issues at the quarterback position which led to Cameron having fewer yards throughout the season. He had six games where he posted over 10 fantasy points and could’ve been more if the browns didn’t have quarterback issues.
1. Julius Thomas, Denver Broncos
Thomas is by far the most surprising tight end of the 2013 season. We all know how Peyton Manning love his tight ends and Julius Thomas was reaping the benefits from it all season. He averaged just under five receptions per game in the 14 games he started and led the AFC with 12 touchdown catches by a tight end. In seven of those 14 games he started, Thomas posted at least 10 fantasy points and two of them were over 20 points. The Broncos have been waiting a long time for Thomas to be healthy and their patience is paying off. Thomas will be a top tight end for years to come; especially with Peyton Manning under center.