Welcome to our 2026 Dynasty Risers and Fallers at Tight End breakdown!
Today, we continue on with the Dynasty Risers and Fallers series here at Fantasy In Frames for you all in 2026, and examine the Tight End position. As you know, the NFL is always a rapidly changing environment, and factors such as trades, coaching/scheme changes, and overall offensive stability greatly reshape the Dynasty fantasy football landscape from year to year, in more ways than one. With that being said, let’s look at some players that are trending up and down in these formats at WR, shall we?
Riser: Chig Okonkwo, Washington Commanders
Yes, I know…Chig Okonkwo hasn’t done anything particularly impressive in his career to date to be considered a true “riser” in this discussion. I am just betting on the exciting skill set and profile here, though, and you should be too. Okonkwo is a top-tier athlete at the TE position, as evidenced by ranking 7th in YAC/rec and 5th in MTF/rec amongst all TEs that ran at least 200 routes last season. The usage and deployment back up the elite athleticism profile here as well; in 2025, he had a 46% slot rate and a 27% designed-play rate, both of which are very high for a TE.
Looking ahead to Okonkwo’s fit in Washington… It’s PERFECT, if you ask me, especially considering the franchise’s recent history with TEs. Zach Ertz has totaled 88 targets and 71 targets in this offense in 2024 and 2025, respectively. Jayden Daniels clearly LOVES to throw to his TE, especially in the redzone (Ertz has had 14 end zone targets and 11 TDs over the last two years combined).
Chig Okonkwo cannot be stopped!
— NFL (@NFL) December 28, 2025
NOvsTEN on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/vrs4HBP8yx
The Commanders signed the hyper athletic TE to a big three year deal earlier this offseason, so the contract insulation that we love to see for the long term is definitely there, and this is a player who is coming in as the immediate #2 target for this team behind only Terry McLaurin (I like Antonio Williams as much as anybody, but he’s just a third round rookie at the end of the day). Chig Okonkwo is a player who is getting a lot of overlooked right now, but he honestly shouldn’t be, if you ask me, based on his elite traits and upside alone.
Faller: Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills
Dalton Kincaid is such a difficult player to evaluate in Dynasty because the flashes and displays of athleticism have absolutely been there, but the consistency we want to see has not. Kincaid has been viewed as an analytical marvel at times throughout his career, as his recent deeper metrics are outstanding. In 2025, amongst TEs that ran at least 150 routes, he ranked 1st in TPRR, 1st in YPRR, and 7th in YAC/rec. Additionally, within that same qualifier, he ranked 1st in 1D/RR and 1st in FP/RR as well.
That all seems pretty fantastic, right? My point is, though…what does any of that matter when you’re only playing 37% of the snaps, which is what Kincaid was doing last season? This isn’t just a one-off situation either, as through three years in the NFL, the young TE’s snap share has never exceeded 65% in a single season. If we’re going to rely on a player for fantasy purposes, we need full-time snap shares, or at least somewhat close to it.
Dalton Kincaid might be the most overhyped fantasy football player ever. Much better irl than fantasy
— Keep It Simple Scouting (@KISSproductions) July 14, 2026
Everyone seems encouraged by the fact that this is a player who does his best damage in the slot, but that gets a bit dicey, if you ask me. Khalil Shakir is a slot-only receiver, DJ Moore does his best work out of the slot, and fourth-round rookie Skyler Bell does his best work out of the slot as well. A very congested area of the field for the Buffalo Bills. If you have someone in your league who still believes in Dalton Kincaid’s athleticism and first-round draft capital/pedigree, I would capitalize on that personally.
