Ian Hartitz …

Free agency is almost here. Jobs will change, dollars will fly, and we will enjoy it—because what else is a football diehard supposed to do in March?

Today we're answering the three biggest questions facing the free agent TE class:

  • What "TE" is actually pretty much a WR?
  • Is there a free agent who makes a lot of sense in Sean Payton's "Joker" role?
  • Which elderly option at the position might not be washed just yet?

As always: It's a great day to be great.

Looking for my breakdowns on the top free agent QBs, free agent RBs for 2025 , and free agent WRs? Read here!

The Top 2025 Free Agent TEs In Fantasy Football

A TE in name only: Mike Gesicki

  • 2024 receiving stats: 65 receptions, 665 yards, 2 TD
  • 2024 advanced receiving stats: 1.59 yards per route run (12th), 19.9% targets per route run (15th)
  • Fantasy PPR points per game: 8.3 (TE18)

Mike Gesicki, or "Mike G" according to Joe Burrow, found new life in Cincinnati last year, racking up his most yards since his 2020-21 seasons in Miami.

If back in Cincy, Gesicki can supply some big slot goodness while also more or less serving as Tee Higgins insurance considering the longtime stud WR has suffered a hamstring injury of some degree in each and every year since 2019.

Seriously: Just look at Gesicki's performance in five games with Higgins sidelined last season:

  • Week 1: 3 receptions-18 yards-0 TD (4 targets)
  • Week 2: 7-91-0 (9)
  • Week 8: 7-73-0 (8)
  • Week 9: 5-100-2 (6)
  • Week 10: 4-30-0 (9)

Now, Gesicki isn't really a TE considering he spent just 12% of his snaps inline last season (he doesn't even celebrate National TE Day!), but that should only help Cincy—or another team's—cause in getting some cheap-ish pass-game weapons outside of their high-priced WRs.

Ideal landing spot: Bengals. Gesicki's 83 targets last season were within shouting distance of what he managed in 34 games the previous two years (97) combined; returning to Cincy is rather easily his best-case scenario. We could talk ourselves into the Broncos or Chargers too—more on the former squad shortly—but ultimately being attached to Burrow and having the freedom to essentially work as the offense's No. 3 pass-game option is too good of a situation to overly speculate about anywhere else. 

There's an untapped ceiling here: Juwan Johnson

  • 2024 receiving stats: 50 receptions, 548 yards, 3 TD
  • 2024 advanced receiving stats: 1.34 yards per route run (20th), 16.2% targets per route run (28th)
  • Fantasy PPR points per game: 7.2 (TE26)

Like Gesicki: Juwan Johnson is more of a WR than TE in many ways. The longtime Saint is a bit undersized (6-foot-4, 231 pounds) relative to a usual inline TE and has more juice (4.58-second 40-yard dash back in the day) than most players at the position. However, unlike Gesicki, Johnson has made more of a habit of actually functioning as an inline option (55% of snaps last season).

Wherever he's lined up: Johnson has done a great job creating separation and getting open.

Top TEs in ESPN's "Open Score" metric from 2022-24:

  1. Mark Andrews
  2. George Kittle
  3. Travis Kelce
  4. Darren Waller
  5. Juwan Johnson

Johnson actually comes in tied for sixth with Sam LaPorta as ESPN's highest-rated TE overall during this span. Not every efficiency measure paints the former undrafted free agent as a world beater; just realize this is a player capable of making some VERY athletic plays at the position.

Ideal landing spot: Broncos. Many have theorized about Taysom Hill potentially reuniting with Sean Payton, but what about his other former TE? Payton's fascination with the "Joker" role and willingness to feature WR-esque players at TE over the years—looking at you, Jimmy Graham—make Johnson a rather perfect match. There's minimal pass-game competition in Denver outside of Courtland Sutton, and the NFL's continued neglect of the TE position would likely lead to an affordable contract opportunity for an organization still feeling the fallout of the Russell Wilson contract.

Old but not forgotten: Zach Ertz

  • 2024 receiving stats: 66 receptions, 654 yards, 7 TD
  • 2024 advanced receiving stats: 1.3 yards per route run (24th), 18.1% targets per route run (23rd)
  • Fantasy PPR points per game: 10.4 (TE10)

The 34-year-old veteran is fresh off posting his best numbers since 2021, as his 66-654-7 receiving line was good for TE10 status in PPR points per game. Ertz's season-ending 11-104-0 revenge-game special against the Eagles was more evidence that the old man still has some gas in the tank.

Even more wild was the reality that Ertz actively functioned as Jayden Daniels' No. 2 pass-game option throughout the season. Obviously Terry McLaurin (117 targets) easily led the way, but Ertz (91) finished far ahead of Olamide Zaccheaus (64) and Noah Brown (56).

Say what you will about Ertz's after-the-catch ability (he did hurdle a man!), but he's consistently managed to demand targets at a high level even in his later years. Just look at 2023 with the Cardinals when Ertz managed to post a 23.4% target per route run (6th!) before getting injured and giving way to Trey McBride.

Turning 35 next November, Ertz's best football is certainly in the rear-view mirror; just realize he's still good enough to out-slow plenty of linebackers around the league,and accordingly is capable of keeping a younger, more exciting TE firmly on the bench (see: Sinnott, Ben).

Ideal landing spot: Falcons. AFTER they finally trade Kyle Pitts to the Bengals (a man can dream). Of course, simply returning to Washington makes the most sense for Ertz, but where's the fun in predicting that! Heading down to Atlanta would give Michael Penix a stable source of production and would most likely come with a relatively low-cost deal to help the franchise add some level of upgrade while continuing to suffer the consequences of the Kirk Cousins contract. The Falcons should be plenty familiar with him at this point after the ex-Eagle/Cardinal caught 2 TDs against them last December.

More Free Agent Tight Ends To Monitor

Tyler Conklin: Has caught at least 50 passes in four consecutive seasons—something only Travis Kelce, George Kittle, and Dalton Schultz can also say. He'll be 30 in July, so Conklin probably isn't someone who should be expected to carry a passing game, but a 1B committee role would make sense.

Gerald Everett: The YAC BEAST never quite got a real chance to do much in Chicago last season (8-36-0 in 17 games), but if believing in a TE with the confidence to rock a dark visor and wear a single-digit number is wrong, I don't want to be right. A one-year deal to reunite with longtime fan Shane Waldron in Jacksonville makes a lot of sense.

Stone Smartt (RFA): Was thrust into a near full-time role late in the season and managed to post respectable 3-54-0, 5-50-0, and 3-37-0 lines. Small-sample size be damned: Smartt managed the eighth-most yards per route run (1.79) among 65 TEs with 15-plus targets last season.

Hayden Hurst: Didn't manage to earn much action alongside Will Dissly last season and will be 32 in August. The former first rounder did put together a solid season all the way back in 2020 with the Falcons (56-571-6), but expecting more than a 1B role somewhere at this point is probably wishful thinking.

Irv Smith: The former 50th overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft remains just 26 years old, although it's getting tougher and tougher for truthers (me) to see a breakout on the horizon after Smith failed to catch on in Cincinnati, Kansas City, and Houston alike. That said: You could imagine what it'd be like if Smith ever got a true shot to lead a TE room.

Austin Hooper: Surprisingly posted top-12 numbers in both yards per route run (1.67, 7th) and targets per route run (20.7%, 12th) last season among 31 qualified players at the position, and notably better than teammate Hunter Henry in the same offense.

Tommy Tremble: The 24-year-old former third rounder never quite got a real shot at handling a full-time role in Carolina, but the Notre Dame product remains a quality athlete and perhaps has untapped upside as a pass catcher.

Mo Alie-Cox: This is a massive human being who has seen his receiving yards go down in four consecutive seasons since going for a career-high 394 yards back in 2020. Turning 32 in September, Alie-Cox probably isn't someone who will command a full-time role anywhere, but it'd be pretty cool if he did!

Johnny Mundt: "The best third TE in the NFL," according to Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell, Mundt nevertheless failed to gain even 35 yards in a game during T.J. Hockenson's extended absence to start the season. Mundt's career average of 5.6 yards per game reflects the reality that we aren't exactly looking at a future fantasy star here.

Harrison Bryant: The former Mackey Award winner was good enough to weasel his way into a committee including Austin Hooper and David Njoku early in his career, but failed to catch on behind Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer in Las Vegas. In both instances: Makes sense! Don't be too quick to count out the 26-year-old talent who posted a 1,000-yard season back in his final season at Florida Atlantic in 2019.