​Tight end is a difficult NFL position to predict. Players who make the leap to the pros have to juggle blocking and receiving duties in more complex schemes, against faster defenders, than they’ve ever faced before. Years of wear and tear can break an All-Pro candidate into an also-ran in a single play.Thus, it’s incredibly difficult to accurately rank each team’s tight end units in the preseason. In 2019, I ranked the Raiders 32nd out of 32 teams… only for Darren Waller to suddenly and explosively reach his potential, kicking off a wave of angry/satisfied emails and social media mentions from Raiders fans that continues to this day (I apologized to Waller for the disrespect on Radio Row four years later. He seemed OK with it!).This is all to say, these rankings are not only subjective, but immensely subject to change. Young prospects will rise up and claim their potential. Veterans will see a dropoff or stage impressive revivals. But going off the data we currently have, here’s how the preseason 2026 tight end unit rankings look. Stats are from NFL Pro and Sumer Sports where applicable.32. Cincinnati Bengals: Mike Gesicki, Drew Sample, Erick All Gesicki turns 31 this season. He hasn’t had a positive yards after catch over expected (YACOE) since 2020 and saw his numbers drop off after a successful Bengals debut in 2024. Sample is an unexciting but useful piece who gets where he needs to be even if he offers modest returns as a receiver. All could be the guy who boosts this group into the top 20, but he’s also the guy who’s played only nine NFL games in two seasons. Until he proves he can fulfill his potential, Cincinnati is stuck here.31. Carolina Panthers: Tommy Tremble, Ja’Tavion Sanders, Mitchell Evans No Carolina tight end had a target share higher than 9.19 percent, which seems about right for this crew. The average target distance for this group was fewer than five yards downfield and they combined for… ZERO deep targets in last year’s NFC South-winning season. Sanders may still grow into something useful in the passing game, but this group is a relative non-factor aside from its blocking.30. Denver Broncos: Evan Engram, Adam Trautman, Nate Adkins Engram turns 32 this season and is coming off the lowest yards per route run (YPRR) of his career (1.25, 41st-best among TEs). He’s had a negative expected points added (EPA), a negative catch rate over expected (CROE) and negative YACOE over the last two seasons. It’s hard to imagine that changing all that much. Trautman is a fine “small doses” option. Adkins will battle with rookie fifth round pick Justin Joly for snaps; Adkins has the advantage as a blocker, Joly brings more upside as a receiver, even if he lacks ideal size to be an in-line guy.29. Miami Dolphins: Greg Dulcich, Ben Sims, Will Kacmarek Over the last half of the season, Dulcich put up a 50-catch, 632-yard 17-game pace. Was that a sign he was finally fulfilling his potential at a position that demands patience? Or was it