Evan Engram has had a couple of strong years but has mostly been a middling tight end option in fantasy football. His best seasons have come when his offenses haven’t had anyone else to throw to. With only Courtland Sutton soaking up targets, could Engram return strong TE1 value in his first year with the Denver Broncos?
Evan Engram Fantasy Outlook
After bursting onto the scene as the extremely rare (at the time) rookie tight end who was a fantasy force in 2017, Engram’s career with the Giants didn’t quite take off as it looked poised to do. His second and third seasons were mired by injury. After that, the Giants gave up on him being a focal point of their offense, resulting in two dismal years in 2020 and 2021.
In 2022, Engram revived his career with the Jaguars, but at 10.4 fantasy points per game, he was nothing more than replacement level, despite his TE7 finish.
However, in 2023, Engram exploded. In the best season of his career, he set career highs in targets (143), receptions (114), yards (963), and fantasy points per game (13.6).
Curiously, in 2024, Engram somehow managed to earn an even bigger target share: 25.1%. While injuries reared their ugly head again, he was only averaging 9.9 PPG when he was lost for the season.
With the Jaguars revamping their franchise, building around Brian Thomas Jr., adding Travis Hunter, and a new coaching staff, they moved on from Engram. He quickly found a new home in Denver.
This is about as good of a landing spot as Engram could’ve asked for. Similarly to when he joined the Jaguars, there’s not much in the way of target competition.
.@MatthewBerryTMR thinks Evan Engram could EAT in Sean Payton’s offense. 🍽️
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— Rotoworld Football (@rotoworld_fb) March 15, 2025
The Broncos have Courtland Sutton entrenched as the top target-earner. Behind him, though, it’s been the running backs.
While Sean Payton’s teams have always targeted the running back position at a high rate, there remains an abundance of targets up for grabs. As much as fantasy managers may want a lot of them to go to Marvin Mims Jr., the Broncos do not seem to view him as anywhere near a full-time player. The door is open for Engram to be second on this team in targets behind Sutton.
It will be hard for Engram to do any better than the astounding 33.2% targets per route run rate he had last year. But there is the potential for Engram to be more efficient. Bo Nix is, by far, the most talented quarterback Engram has ever caught passes from.
Even if Engram is merely a safety blanket, he should be able to volume his way to TE1 numbers.
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With all that said, that doesn’t necessarily make Engram someone for fantasy managers to target. He comes with a TE8 average draft position (ADP). My general outlook on tight ends is nothing revolutionary. Either pay up for an elite difference-maker or punt/stream the position.
Most years, only a handful of tight ends provide a meaningful edge over the standard 10 PPG you can get from back-end TE1s and streamers. If you think Engram can get back to 13+ PPGx, then there may be merit to drafting him. I fully intend to be one of the last teams to draft a tight end in every league this season. Therefore, despite ranking him as my TE6, I don’t anticipate targeting Engram in drafts.
Dan Fornek’s Evan Engram Fantasy Projection
Evan Engram entered the 2024 season coming off back-to-back top 8 tight end finishes. Unfortunately, injuries robbed him of hitting that benchmark for the third straight year. Engram was limited to just nine games in 2024 thanks to hamstring and shoulder injuries.
When healthy, Engram continued to be a reliable target underneath for the Jaguars, averaging 7.1 targets, 5.2 receptions, and 40.6 receiving yards per game with one touchdown. He finished third among tight ends in target share (25.1%) and third in target rate (33.2%). Unfortunately, his 5.6 average depth of target (TE28) yielded just a TE12 finish in PPR points per game (9.9).
The veteran hit free agency this offseason, landing with the Denver Broncos on a two-year, $23 million contract. Denver’s passing attack has a clear number one wide receiver (Courtland Sutton), but it relied heavily on complementary role players in 2024 to fill out its passing attack. Engram could quickly emerge as the secondary target in the passing attack, which is essential given his 5.8 career average depth of target.
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The reviews from training camp suggest that Engram has been everything as advertised since joining the Broncos. We also know that Sean Payton can design plays to maximize the talents of hyper-athletic tight ends, given his history with Jimmy Graham in New Orleans.
If Engram can continue to impress and earn the secondary pass-catching role while staying on the field (a tough one for him historically), he can be a dark horse to finish as a top-five tight end in 2025. Even so, he’s a safe low-end TE1 based on the potential volume he could see in his first season with Denver.
