Will Robert Tonyan Have A Substantial Role In The Bears Offense? Fantasy Football Outlook

Chicago Bears tight end Robert Tonyan enjoyed decent success during his time with Aaron Rodgers on the Green Bay Packers. The veteran TE was on the fantasy radar at times but now has an uncertain role in the Bears' offense.

Quarterback Justin Fields broke out as a rusher and fantasy asset last season, but his passing upside is still unknown, so evaluating all the Bears' pass-catchers is tricky heading into the 2023 campaign.

Will Tonyan have a substantial role in the Bears' offense this season? Let's dive in.

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Robert Tonyan Career Review

After slim playing time for the Packers in 2018 and 2019, Tonyan broke out in 2020. The Indiana State alum caught 52 of his 59 targets for 586 yards and 11 touchdowns (led all tight ends). He finished the campaign as the TE3 in standard leagues and TE4 in PPR leagues.

However, his 2021 and 2022 seasons would leave a lot to be desired. He caught just 71 of his 96 targets for 674 yards and four touchdowns in 25 games over those two years -- failing to finish higher than the TE20 in PPR formats.

During the 2023 offseason, he signed a one-year, $2,650,000 deal to join the Bears. Needless to say, his mediocre salary means he's not guaranteed to be a key contributor.

Robert Tonyan 2023 Fantasy Outlook

Tonyan has been involved with the first-team offense during offseason practices, setting up an expectation for more 12 personnel in 2023 with two tight ends on the field -- Tonyan and Cole Kmet. There hasn't been much of a learning curve for Tonyan this spring either, thanks to his familiarity with offensive coordinator Luke Getsy. The two were together in Green Bay from 2019-21.

However, Kmet will still likely remain the favored pass-catching tight end in Chicago in 2023 and it's improbable this low-volume passing offense will support multiple tight ends. Tonyan will only be worth a waiver-wire pickup during the season if Kmet misses time due to injury and the Bears' passing offense is much improved.

Kmet, DJ Moore, Darnell Mooney, and Chase Claypool should all be firmly ahead in Fields' target pecking order.

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