Tight end is a conundrum when it comes to fantasy football. There's often a case for sleepers at the position who go later in drafts, and end up letting drafters down.

The only sure thing at the position over the last handful of years has been Travis Kelce. After that, there are some nice players that are unlikely to make a huge difference.

Today, we'll look at David Njoku. He's one of the most athletic players at the position in the NFL. Does it make sense to target him as a later tight end in 2023?

David Njoku Fantasy Football Projection

(Projections via numberFire)

2023 Projected Points: 107.1 points (113.0 in 2022)
numberFire Positional Projection: TE10
2023 Projected Stats:

• 51.97 receptions
• 79.53 targets
• 580.44 receiving yards
• 3.84 receiving TDs

David Njoku Fantasy Football Outlook

Inconsistency Plagues Beginning of Career

Njoku was a first-round pick by the Cleveland Browns in 2017. Obviously, big things are expected for any player selected in the first round.

Unfortunately, Njoku played his rookie season on one of the worst NFL teams we've ever seen. The Browns went 0-16 in 2017, and the franchise was a bit of a mess. Njoku didn't contribute much with 32 catches and 386 yards, but rookie tight ends are rarely able to succeed for fantasy purposes.

The next season was when Njoku started to show some promise. He recorded 56 catches and had a career-high 629 yards. The wheels were pointed up for him, playing in an exciting offense with Baker Mayfield coming off a solid rookie season.

After that, things did not go as planned. Njoku suffered an injury in 2019 that saw him play just four games. The Browns were a major disappointment after a ton of optimism was shown on them because of their young talent.

Therefore, Cleveland brought in Austin Hooper the following offseason, which cut into Njoku's playing time. He was also injured in 2020 and caught just 19 passes.

Njoku was potentially looking like a bust at this point but went on to log two seasons that saw him going in a positive direction. He finally played 16 games again in 2021 and outproduced Hooper despite them both playing the same amount of games.

In 2022, Njoku was finally healthy and the starting tight end. He did miss a few games but managed a career-high in catches in 14 games. He saw 15.8% of the team's targets and also was targeted on 20.6% of his routes. Both of these numbers are very solid for a tight end.

Some of the optimism for Njoku is definitely back after his ending to the season.

Breakout in 2023?

In 2023, Njoku has very little competition for playing time at his position. He may lose playing time on running plays, but he'll be the main tight end running routes.

The Browns' passing game has a decent amount of mouths to feed now. Amari Cooper had a very nice year in his first season with Cleveland. Donovan Peoples-Jones also had the best season of his career in 2022, catching 61 passes. They added Elijah Moore from the New York Jets, who likely will work in the slot.

These three could take away potential targets from Njoku. There's an even bigger question mark over the Browns' passing attack, and that would be the quarterback.

When Deshaun Watson returned from a suspension last season, it wasn't pretty. He had a completion rate 3.3 percentage points below expectation, per Next Gen Stats. If he performs this poorly, it will be tough to have multiple catchers have fantasy success.

Njoku did have some rapport with Watson when they were on the field together. He was targeted 18.9% over the five games they played together, and 10 of the 28 targets were in the red zone, as well. That's exactly where we want our tight ends to get the ball.

A definite positive for Cleveland heading into the season will be their offensive line. They are ranked as the second-best unit in the league by PFF. Obviously, this will give Watson time to throw and should allow Njoku to run routes instead of having to help with blocking.

Njoku doesn't have the elite passing game or the dominant target share to make him a top-three tight end, but it should be good enough to at least keep him in fantasy lineups.

Where Should We Draft David Njoku in Fantasy Football in 2023?

Currently, Njoku is being selected as the TE10 and the 101st player overall, according to Fantasy Pros.

That's right where numberFire's projections have him. He's in a tier of tight ends that we're fairly certain of their role, and they are unlikely to completely breakout. However, the same thing could potentially be said about a few of the tight ends going ahead of him.

If you take a look at Darren Waller, there are definitely some holes you can poke in him. He hasn’t played a full season since 2020 and will turn 31 after Week 1.

Waller is changing team and is presumed to be the number one target in the passing game for the New York Giants, but we don’t actually know how the target hierarchy will shake out for them, and they aren’t the most prolific passing offense in the league on paper.

A similar argument could be made against Dallas Goedert. He is at best the third option in the Philadelphia Eagles' passing game. They have a low volume passing attack that likes to run the ball near the goal line.

These players aren't terrible picks, but you would have to pass up other enticing players at other positions. Waller's ADP is 55 and Goedert's is 69; you can wait to get Njoku a few rounds later, and the bet isn't much worse.

The tight ends going below Njoku consist of many players that have upside but definitely don't offer the same security in their role as Njoku does. If you aren't able to draft Travis Kelce, you can target David Njoku in a later round and feel good about a player with star-level athleticism and a potentially improved offense.

The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.