Free agency moves deepen the fantasy tight end pool

Oh how quickly things can change in the National Football League… and in .It was just a year ago when fantasy pundits all agreed that the tight end position, aside from the likes of,, and, was quite thin. It was very thin in fact, and seemingly getting thinner with Graham traded to the. But something happened during the course of the 2015 campaign. happened. So did, Coby White Jersey, and. All of a sudden, the position wasn't so thin anymore.After what happened on the first day of the NFL's new league year, well, tight end is now a virtual fat cat.First, the retained on a four-year, $29 million contract. Before you scoff at his value, keep in mind that he scored eight touchdowns in 13 games in 2014. Allen was waiver-wire fodder last season, as he mi sed time due to injuries and was asked to block more than be a weapon in the pa sing game, but offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski has promised him an increased role in the offense moving forward. That's good news for Allen, as is the presence of Chudzinski (a former tight ends coach who has coached, Olsen and Kellen Winslow in the past).Suddenly, Allen has some potential late-round value.Next, Gates Denzel Valentine Jersey re-signed with the. Sure, he's not a spring chicken anymore (he turns 36 in June), but he still produced 630 yards and scored five touchdowns in 11 games last season. If Tony Gonzalez could retain No. 1 fantasy value at the same age (and older), why can't Gates? He also still has quite the rapport with his pal in an offense that loves to throw the football. To me, Gates is a top-10 fantasy tight end.The next domino to drop was, Allen's former running mate, who signed a five-year, Zach LaVine Jersey $36 million deal with the. This move followed the team losing Watson to the, so Fleener entered a tremendous situation to improve on his production. In fact, there's a good chance he'll follow in the footsteps of Graham and Watson and be the third tight end in the last three seasons to be a top-10 fantasy player at the position. That's what happens when you catch pa ses from .Of course, Fleener's departure also opens the door for Zach Norvell Jr. Jersey Allen to see more work in the pa s attack for the .As if this weren't enough to deepen the position, then signed a four-year, $20 million deal with the. Are you kidding me? A player who fantasy analysts have been pining over for years goes to arguably the best offense in the league? And with the retirement of Heath Miller, Green becomes the top tight end in the Steel City. No questions asked. You want to talk about upside? Green is dripping with it.Oh, and his absence from the offense means fantasy fans no longer need to be concerned with him as a statistical road block for Gates.So at the end of what was Shaquille Harrison Jersey a fantastic day for the fantasy tight end position, we added four No. 1 (or potential No. 1) options in Gates, Fleener, Green and Allen. Add that to a list of names that includes Gronkowski, Olsen, Reed, Eifert, Olsen, Kelce, Walker,, Graham, and, and fantasy owners suddenly have a whole wealth of options to consider in 2016 drafts.Why wait? to get your 2016 NFL season started.Michael Fabiano is an award-winning analyst on NFL.com and NFL Network and a member of the Sports Writers A sociation (FSWA). Have a burning question on anything fantasy related? Tweet it to __ or send a question via!