1. Ladarius Green, UL-Lafayette
If Green stays on the field in 2010, he'll have a huge season. A neck injury robbed him of four games last year, but he still managed to lead his team with 533 receiving yards. Green really caught fire at the end of the year, catching 12 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns during the last two games. It wouldn't be surprising if Green approaches the 1,000-yard range this year, which makes him easily our top tight end target. He's valuable in all formats.
2. Lance Kendricks, Wisconsin
Kendricks was very impressive as a junior last year, totaling 458 yards from scrimmage and three touchdowns despite serving as Wisconsin's second tight end. But Wisconsin's top tight end from a year ago, Garrett Graham, is no longer around, so Kendricks will have the offense to himself. Don't be shocked if he ends up leading Wisconsin in all receiving categories this year. Kendricks gave a glimpse of what's to come in 2010 with his bowl game performance against Miami, when he caught seven passes for 128 yards.
3. Jordan Reed, Florida
This is almost undoubtedly a much higher ranking for Reed than you've seen other places, but Reed is the favorite to start at tight end for Florida this year, and that makes him a top option by default. Aaron Hernandez led the Gators with 68 receptions from the tight end position last year, and Reed has the athleticism to plug into the same role, even if he can't match Hernandez's production. Another thing to consider with Reed is the possibility that he will play as a wildcat quarterback from time to time, in which instances he'll be a good bet to pick up yardage and touchdowns as a runner. It's worth noting, however, the drop-off from the top tight end tier (Green and Kendricks) will perhaps be substantial, so grab one of the top two if you really value top-notch tight end production.
4. Lee Smith, Marshall
Smith only caught 23 passes for 335 yards last year, but that was as the second tight end option in the Marshall offense. His numbers should increase drastically in 2010 because he will inherit the role of the now graduated Cody Slate, who put up more than 2,600 yards and 24 touchdowns from the tight end spot the last four years at Marshall. If the ending of 2010 was any indication, Smith is more than prepared for the new job, as he finished the final four games with 16 catches for 251 yards. As a Tennessee transfer and former four-star recruit, Smith figures to be a major mismatch for Conference USA in 2010.
5. Kyle Rudolph, Notre Dame
Rudolph was very good as a sophomore last year, catching 31 passes for 346 yards and three touchdowns in nine games before a shoulder injury ended his season in the 10th game. He was particularly effective in the first five weeks of the season, totaling 267 yards and all three of his touchdowns in that span. He definitely hit a wall after that, even before the injury struck, but he has the talent to be a playmaker for the duration of the 2010 season. Rudolph has more motivation to play well this year than most other tight ends on this list, as he could find himself going in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft if he performs to his full potential.
6. George Bryan, North Carolina State
It's difficult to say how Bryan's value is affected by the presence or absence of quarterback Russell Wilson, but it's hard to imagine his productivity dropping much even if Wilson takes off for baseball and Mike Glennon ends up starting. Bryan's production might actually go up a bit if Glennon were on the field, because he's presumably less developed as a downfield passer than Wilson, meaning he'd be looking toward Bryan more often on the short and intermediate routes. In any case, Bryan caught 40 passes for 422 yards and six touchdowns last year. It would have been nice to see a little more consistency in his numbers, but it's hard to complain about that total. He caught four touchdowns as a freshman the year before, so history says he'll pick up where he left off when 2010 starts.
7. Vance McDonald, Rice
If you're the type who likes to take risks, you might want to rank McDonald higher. He enters a Rice offense that's been extremely good to tight ends recently, particularly in 2008. But even in last year's weak Rice passing offense, starter Taylor Wardlow caught 31 passes for 347 yards and a touchdown. McDonald managed ten catches for 104 yards at the same time, but the hope is he'll be more like James Casey in 2010 than Wardlow. There's no way you should expect McDonald to remotely approach Casey's 2008 numbers (111 catches for 1,329 yards and 13 touchdowns), but it wouldn't be shocking if he make it about halfway to that point. In a Rice offense that figures to bounce back significantly in 2010, McDonald will be one of the key indicators of its success.
8. Darian Williams, Florida Atlantic
At 6-3 and just about 190 pounds, Williams' title as a tight end is laughable. But that's his technical title in the Florida Atlantic offense, and so he'll be classified in your fantasy league as the same thing. He caught 14 passes for 214 yards and two touchdowns as a sophomore last year, but he should be in line for a major increase in production in 2010. Florida Atlantic had five seniors who caught more passes than Williams last year, and two were tight ends. Obviously, the Florida Atlantic offense gives a great deal of production to its tight ends, even if they're all wide receivers on any other team. It's hard to imagine Williams failing to approach the 40-catch mark this year.
9. Drake Dunsmore, Northwestern
Dunsmore is really something like a fullback, but he'll be listed at the tight end position for fantasy purposes. He caught 48 passes for 532 yards and three touchdowns last year, and he'll hopefully improve on those numbers with the two top Northwestern pass-catchers from 2009 (Zeke Markshausen and Andrew Brewer) no longer on the team. As is the case with most tight ends, Dunsmore isn't very consistent, but it's something you'll just have to live with if you miss out on one of the top options.
10. Rob Housler, Florida Atlantic
Like his teammate, Darian Williams, Housler is in reality nothing more than a tall receiver. But his formal distinction as a tight end makes him very valuable in fantasy football, because the Owls offense is largely built on its tight ends. Housler redshirted last year after catching 32 passes for 519 yards and four touchdowns in 2008, so he'll be an instant factor again this year. We ranked Williams barely ahead of Housler just because we figure Williams has a bit less rust and a bit more upside, but the truth is that their values are probably interchangeable until one establishes himself as Florida Atlantic's definite top target at tight end.
Sleepers
Luke Stocker, Tennessee
Stocker just barely missed our top-ten, and he is too good to go unmentioned. He finished 2009 with 29 receptions for 389 yards and five touchdowns, but he might be able to do better in 2010. Tennessee's new quarterback, whether it's Matt Simms or Tyler Bray, won't be as good at throwing the ball downfield as Jon Crompton was last year. That means there will be more check-down passes, which could result in Stocker receiving more catches than last year.
Dwayne Allen, Clemson
Allen is a relative unknown at the moment, but he should make an impact in 2010. He's a former four-star recruit who could have played just about anywhere, and he earned regular playing time as a redshirt freshman last year. Despite playing as the team's second tight end, he caught ten passes for 108 yards and three touchdowns. Allen is a good blocker, so you know he'll be on the field for red-zone and play-action situations, which maximizes his production potential. Michael Palmer started at tight end for Clemson last year and caught 43 passes for 507 yard and four touchdowns. Expect Allen to do something similar, if not better.
David Paulson, Oregon
Paulson inherits the role in the Oregon offense that was previously held by Ed Dickson, one of the top fantasy tight ends of 2009. Paulson caught 12 passes for 185 yards as the team's second tight end last year, demonstrating a good amount of big-play ability and reason to believe he'll succeed in 2010. It's a little much to expect Paulson to match Dickson's 2009 numbers (42 catches for 551 yards and six touchdowns), but it'd be a disappointment if he didn't emerge as one of the best options in the Pac-10.
Busts
D.J. Williams, Arkansas
You can certainly do worse than Williams, and he remains a decent option in SEC-only leagues, but we don't at all buy the talk of him being one of the best in the country. His 61 receptions for 723 yards and three touchdowns in 2008 was more indicative of the team's inability to throw the ball downfield than it was of Williams' actual effectiveness. Williams still posted a respectable total of 32 catches for 411 yards and three touchdowns last year, but we think those numbers will drop a bit more in 2010. Arkansas' very young wideouts from 2009 return, and as many as four will catch more passes than Williams this year. Jordan Reed, Luke Stocker, Orson Charles, Weslye Saunders and Marcus Green are all better options in the SEC.
Ben Guidugli, Cincinnati
Outside of Big East-only leagues, Guidugli doesn't have even a bit of value. Besides his performance against Illinois, in which he caught seven passes for 149 yards and two touchdowns, Guidugli totaled just 20 catches for 215 yards and a touchdown last year. Furthermore, the new offense of coach Butch Jones, formerly of Central Michigan, has no history of utilizing tight ends. Central Michigan's tight ends caught 28 passes the last three years, which means Guidugli's production might all but disappear in 2010.
Jeffery Anderson, UAB
Anderson showed last year that he didn't need many catches to rack up the touchdowns, as he found the end zone five times despite catching just 26 passes. The worry with him in 2010 is that long-time UAB quarterback Joe Webb is no longer around, and the new guy, David Isabelle, is a complete unknown as a passer. Anderson remains valuable in CUSA-only leagues, but outside of them he might not be worth much consideration.