How do Bills TEs stack up against league's best in new ranking?

Both Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox rank in the Top 20 of PFF's new NFL tight end rankings.

Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid (86) jumps into the stands to celebrate his 22-yard touchdown reception. / Jamie Germano/Rochester Democrat and

Buffalo Bills general manager Brandon Beane prompted a fair number of eyebrow raises on the first night of the 2023 NFL Draft when he traded up to select Utah tight end Dalton Kincaid with the 25th overall pick.

Few questioned the player—Kincaid was almost universally viewed as the best pass-catching tight end in the class and a potential difference-maker for any offense he joined—but the fit seemed a bit off. Buffalo already employed one of the better tight ends in the league in Dawson Knox, a demonstrably talented receiving option who had just inked a four-year, $54 million extension with the Bills the prior September. 

The tight end room went from above average to stacked, with many questioning how the team would juggle the two. Fast forward to today, and few are questioning Beane’s decision.

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Both players performed well throughout the 2023 season, with Kincaid, in particular, establishing himself as one of the league’s better young tight ends. He finished third on the team in receiving, catching 72 passes for 673 yards and two touchdowns. Knox, for his part, played admirably, as well; his role decreased and he missed some time due to an injury, but he still caught 22 passes for 186 yards and two scores.

The two, when healthy, make for one of the better tight end rooms in the NFL. This idea is reflected in PFF’s recent NFL tight end rankings, with both Kincaid and Knox ranking within the top 20.

Kincaid fares better than his colleague in writer John Kosko’s ranking, coming in at No. 13. 

“Kincaid made teammate Dawson Knox an afterthought, as he racked up 777 yards and averaged 1.51 yards per route run on 101 targets,” Kosko wrote. “Kincaid had a great rookie season that was somewhat overlooked because of [Sam] LaPorta's phenomenal campaign.”

Knox slots in at No. 20 on the list, with Kosko writing “Knox never graded especially highly, which led to the Bills shooting for upside and drafting Kincaid. As a result, Knox took a back seat to the rookie’s season, as he saw career lows in targets and receptions. Still, Knox has shown to be a reliable option over the middle of the field.”

The Bills are one of two teams who have two players ranked within the outlet’s top-20 tight ends; the Chicago Bears are the other club, with Cole Kmet and Gerald Everett ranking at No. 11 and No. 19, respectively.

Both rankings seem generally fair; one could make an argument that Kincaid could be ranked a bit higher—at least above the likes of Evan Engram and the aforementioned Kmet—but No. 13 isn’t egregious. It’s also strange to see Las Vegas Raiders rookie Brock Bowers—who hasn’t taken a professional snap—ranked significantly higher than Knox (No. 14), but it, too, isn’t egregious seeing as Bowers was a top-15 pick and was widely viewed as one of the best tight end prospects in recent years.

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Kincaid and Knox may move in opposite directions in future renditions of these rankings; an ascending 24-year-old who could increasingly steal snaps and targets from Knox, Kincaid figures to feature prominently in Buffalo’s revamped passing attack sans Stefon Diggs and Gabriel Davis next year. The tight end could realistically lead the Bills in targets in the 2024 season.

That said, Knox, too, could have an increased role in the passing game as he returns to full health. Beane touted his team’s tight ends during a recent appearance on The Athletic Football Show, implying that the team has high hopes for both of them.

“The other thing people are just looking at is the people that line up in the wide receiver room, but our tight ends, they can catch the ball too," Beane said. "Those guys are heavily involved in the passing game with Dawson [Knox] and Dalton Kincaid. Don’t forget those guys. I would say if you look at the Chiefs run, they’ve done a good job, I would say that thing is built around—it’s obviously built around [Patrick] Mahomes—but the receiving corps, it starts with [Travis Kelce].”