Is Mike Gesicki Or Erick All the TE1 for the Bengals?

A receiving option attached to Joe Burrow at least raises an eyebrow, especially with the quarterback being one year removed from back-to-back seasons of at least 4,400 passing yards and 34 touchdowns.

While Burrow does concentrate his targets to the dynamic wide receiver duo of Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins, he and coach Zac Taylor get running backs and tight ends involved in the passing game. The tight end depth chart, however, isn't cut and dry.

Below, we'll dive into whether Mike Gesicki or Erick All is the top tight end in Cincinnati and whether either is worth drafting for fantasy football this season.

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Who is the Cincinnati Bengals’ TE1?

It's fair to say that Mike Gesicki disappointed fantasy managers in his last two seasons. In his lone season playing for Mike McDaniel in Miami, his reception (32) and yardage (362) totals were sliced in half from his 2021 career year (73 catches for 780 yards). Things went from bad to worse in New England last season, when Gesicki posted his lowest numbers since his rookie season (29 catches for 244 yards and two touchdowns).

McDaniel hasn't utilized receiving tight ends to his advantage in his Miami offense (not that he needs to with Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle swallowing most of the targets). New England was one of the worst passing offenses in football last year and finished last in points per game. Playing second fiddle to Hunter Henry, Gesicki was never made a priority. But, before situations changed following the 2021 season, he did finish as the TE8.

.@MikeGesicki showed us the "Miami Leap" on #NationalTightEndsDay. 💪@MiamiDolphins | @InsideTheNFL pic.twitter.com/UZY4kHP49f

— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) October 26, 2021

A dip in numbers led to just a one-year, $2.5M deal in the offseason. The Bengals, who had just endured a season-long rotation of Tanner Hudson and Drew Sample, longed for an extra receiving threat at the position. It's the same strategy they've deployed the last two offseasons, nabbing Irv Smith Jr. in free agency last offseason to replace Hayden Hurst, who was signed to a one-year deal before the 2022 season.

Instead of continuing to play tight end roulette for the foreseeable future, the Bengals invested a fourth-round pick on Erick All, hoping the rookie will be their TE1 for several seasons to come. That may not happen initially, however. While All has the talent to be a starting tight end, he is recovering from a torn ACL that ended his sole season at Iowa. He transferred to the Hawkeyes from Michigan after a back injury ended his 2022 season. A clean bill of health will be All's first hurdle to meaningful playing time in the NFL.

Who Should I Draft in Fantasy Football?

Truth be told, Mike Gesicki is not a fantasy football priority. But he's flashed enough receiving skill to earn the deep sleeper label, being attached to one of the great quarterbacks in the game.

Even though Cincinnati hasn't had the top talent at tight end, it's still a position utilized under head coach Zac Taylor. Hayden Hurst averaged four receptions in 13 games in his brief stint in Cincinnati. The Bengals' top three tight ends last season (Hudson, Sample, and Smith) combined for 79 targets.

Free Samples in the end zone

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📱: Stream on #NFLPlus https://t.co/T6GLEfxpQv pic.twitter.com/Nm97eSmNYY

— NFL (@NFL) November 6, 2023

Like a math test, here's a Sample problem. Cincinnati coaches (and PFF) love his blocking skills. Sample saw 44 percent of the offensive snaps last season and got rewarded with a three-year, $10.5M contract. Blocking, of course, doesn't matter for fantasy football. But it does bring the receiving tight ends off of the field, preventing them from putting up points.

That makes Gesicki not worthy of a redraft pick this summer but he is worth keeping an eye on early in the season, especially for managers that don't prioritize the tight end position. The Bengals let Tyler Boyd leave in free agency and replaced him with three-round rookie Jermaine Burton. Chase and Higgins will attract the defense away from Gesicki's excellent seam route. Gesicki could put together some spot-starter weeks where he scores a long touchdown or two but it will be difficult to determine when those will come.

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