The Fantasy Football Impact of Evan Engram to the Denver Broncos
On Wednesday, March 12th, it was announced that the Denver Broncos would bring veteran tight end Evan Engram on board with a two-year, $23M contract. Engram will fill a void in Denver that’s lasted a decade, and better yet, Sean Peyton gets to employ him in his now-infamous “Joker” role. As a volume-needy fantasy piece, let’s see how the new tight end will impact the sophomore quarterback and the surrounding Broncos cast.
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Evan Engram’s Tight End Profile
Coming out of the 2017 NFL Draft as a first-round selection, Evan Engram notched a 115-target rookie season for the New York Giants to showcase what was surely about to be a promising, fantasy-point-laden career. Things took a sharp downturn in the following four seasons with the Giants, though, seeing his playing time wane behind the likes of Rhett Ellison, Kaden Smith, and Kyle Rudolph.
Much to the chagrin of fantasy managers, Engram’s fair-to-poor blocking kept him off the field in favor of more well-rounded options, but that wouldn’t be an issue in Jacksonville, where he eclipsed 600 routes in his first season (508 was his previous career-high).
| Year | G | Targets | Receptions | Yards | Touchdowns | YPRR | aDOT | Half-PPR FP/G | FP/G Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 16 | 109 | 63 | 654 | 1 | 1.29 | 7.4 | 6.8 | TE22 |
| 2021 | 15 | 73 | 46 | 408 | 3 | 0.89 | 5.4 | 5.6 | TE25 |
| 2022 | 17 | 98 | 73 | 766 | 4 | 1.45 | 6.1 | 8.5 | TE8 |
| 2023 | 17 | 143 | 114 | 963 | 4 | 1.56 | 5.0 | 9.7 | TE7 |
| 2024 | 9 | 64 | 47 | 365 | 1 | 1.51 | 5.8 | 7.3 | TE15 |
With the Jaguars using Engram in more of a pure pass-catching role, the veteran put back-to-back top-10 finishes on his ledger, including a massive 114-catch performance in 2023 that saw him utilized as the main underneath option for Trevor Lawrence. While a big year was never out of the question, the usage was almost shocking, considering the team had a pass-catching back in Travis Etienne and fellow underneath specialist Christian Kirk roaming the field.
The resulting pass game had Lawrence attempting 58.9% of his passes nine or fewer yards down the field, and Engram was —for better or worse— the main beneficiary, with only 19 of his 143 targets coming ten or more yards down the field. The resulting 5.0 average depth of target highlighted his run in Jacksonville; a consistent underneath target who was very rarely asked to stretch the seams.
This could be construed as uninspired play-calling, but at 30 years old, it’s a better bet that this is just how NFL teams see him as his most impactful. But if anyone has historically squeezed fantasy goodness out of his team’s tight ends, it’s Sean Payton.
How Evan Engram Fits in Denver
To say that the tight end position has been rough for the Denver Broncos over the last decade would be an understatement. In the last two years alone, Adam Trautman, Chris Manhertz, Greg Dulcich, Lucas Krull, and Nate Adkins have combined for a total of 90 receptions.
While we could use this as a datapoint that Payton has moved away from the position in his offensive scheme, one need look no further than that list of underwhelming names and this recent $23M contract for Engram to put the kibosh on that.
This lack of a TE weapon didn’t seem to impact Bo Nix much as a rookie, but there’s no denying that the Broncos could use a reliable pass-catching option behind the smattering play of Marvin Mims, Devaughn Vele, and Troy Franklin. Having a down-to-down, middle-of-the-field body should help the continued growth of Nix, who finished the ‘24 season with a 3,075-26-8 passing line. And as referenced by Engram’s lowly 5.0 and 5.8 aDOT over these last two seasons (and most of his career), this is exactly where he operates.
When filtering Sports Info Solutions’ database to “left middle”, “middle”, and “right middle” targets, less than ten air yards down the field, Engram not only led all tight ends with 92 targets in 2023, he bested second place (David Njoku) by 19 targets. In 2024, he ranked 15th with 39 targets in those same perimeters, despite playing in only 8.5 games while dealing with hamstring and shoulder injuries.
Though these may not be the most high-upside looks from a fantasy perspective, they will give Nix a high-catch-rate option throughout drives, particularly when the veteran can sit down in a zone and make a handful of yards after the catch.
Fantasy Outlook for the Broncos’ Pass-Catchers
From a macro view, it’s hard to look at the current Broncos depth chart and consider Engram anything lower than the No. 2 receiving option behind Courtland Sutton as we creep toward the 2025 season. Though that could easily change by the time August (or April) rolls around, it’s not likely to turn out to be good news for the receivers behind Sutton.
With TE crossed off the list of team needs, the links between the Broncos and a first-round option (i.e., Colston Loveland) are all but broken, which gives the team the option of taking a wide receiver or running back —or both— with their first three picks. This would push Vele, Mims, and Franklin even further down the rotation, and it’s not like any of them were consistent producers without the competition.
New rookie faces, a veteran who could easily surpass the team’s 71 combined TE targets from a year ago, and a more reliable rushing attack wipe these ancillary options out of typical redraft league consideration.
Expect Sutton to reprise his role as a WR2/3 option, while Engram fights at the back-end of TE1s for another potential top-10 outcome.
Bottom Line
- Though Evan Engram has felt disappointing at times, the wasteland that is the TE position after the top-8 options makes him a low-risk, moderate-reward bet, year in and year out.
- With Sean Payton having his “Joker” option after two seasons with below-average tight end play, this signing is very likely going to put a severe cap on ancillary pieces such as Devaughn Vele, Troy Franklin, and particularly Marvin Mims.
- Courtland Sutton’s fantasy production should be in the clear, but this eliminates the need for a high draft capital tight end, so we’ll need to keep an eye on who the Broncos now look to target in the first two rounds.
- According to current Underdog ADP, Engram is coming off boards as the TE16 (137.8). The connection to Payton will undoubtedly move him up through the offseason, but there’s a good chance drafters are weary of a 30-year-old coming off of an injury-riddled season. He makes for a great target up into the TE1/2 fringe and could absolutely land a top-8 season with a little touchdown variance.
