Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski were a seminal duo in the NFL, one of the most prolific passer-receiver combinations in league history. Their 90 passing touchdowns are second all time in the regular season.
But Brady will be without Gronkowski for the first time since 2019, when Gronk missed a season after retiring. Gronkowski retired (again) this offseason, leaving the Buccaneers with a depth problem at tight end. They addressed it by signing veteran Pro Bowler Kyle Rudolph, who will join Cameron Brate as the 1A in the tight end room.
Rudolph, who spent last year with the Giants after spending the first 10 seasons of his career with the Vikings, is a good blocker and an average receiver. He and Brate are very similar in height, although Rudolph is a bit heavier.
Ultimately, neither is likely to singlehandedly match Gronkowski’s 89 targets from last season, but they likely will total about 130 targets.
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Buccaneers’ TE depth chart
Rudolph and Brate are the only two veteran tight ends on the Bucs’ roster, and they’re going to see the field the most. Tampa Bay recently added training camp warrior Bug Howard, who played for the Philadelphia Stars in the USFL. But he’s likely a camp body to challenge rookies Cade Otton (fourth round) and Ko Kieft (sixth round).
The Bucs, then, are in an odd position. They evidently wanted to invest in the position without overspending, and Rudolph was added after the draft, likely after hope of a Gronkowski return had waned.
Buccaneers TE depth chart
| Player | Year | Rec | Yds | TDs | Catch % |
| Cameron Brate | 9 | 253 | 2,683 | 33 | 65.9% |
| Kyle Rudolph | 12 | 479 | 4,745 | 49 | 68% |
| Cade Otton | R | — | — | — | — |
| Ko Kieft | R | — | — | — | — |
| Bug Howard | 1 | — | — | — | — |
The question, of course, is: Are the Bucs in trouble at the position? Brate and Rudolph both have had seasons of high-volume targets, but it may be hard for them to reach the 146 targets that Gronkowski and Brate combined for last season.
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What does this mean for the Buccaneers’ passing game?
Frankly, the passing game shouldn’t suffer if Brady transfers targets to wide receivers Mike Evans, Russell Gage and, potentially, Chris Godwin at start the season (Godwin is practicing but still recovering from a torn ACL suffered toward the end of last season).
Ultimately, it may mean we don’t see a lot of two-tight end sets from the Buccaneers. They ran 12 personnel (one running back, two tight ends) about 22 percent of the time last season, so they could well move off that grouping in the majority of situations.
Should Rudolph or Brate be coveted in fantasy?
Tight end is usually a great position for easy red-zone touchdowns in fantasy. Drafters should gravitate toward Brate before Rudolph.
Rudolph had just one touchdown last season on a Giants team that was devoid of targets (and a more anemic offense in general), whereas Brate caught four touchdown passes despite the targets taken up by Gronkowski.
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Brate could end up getting the lion’s share of targets this year despite Rudolph’s superior size. Brady has also worked more with Brate, something that has a lot of value.
While neither one should be prized this season, Brate should be worth taking a flier on.
What about the rookies?
The Buccaneers spent fourth-and sixth-round picks on tight ends this year, but Otton is coming off an ankle injury and Kieft was drafted for his blocking.
Neither one is likely to get a lot of work in the passing game this season, and Otton in particular may struggle to see the field.
The Buccaneers picked up Rudolph because they had a need at the position. They’ll no doubt expect him to fill it.
This part of the Buccaneers’ depth chart doesn’t really project any breakout candidates. Brate is the most likely to have a greater impact, but it will likely be tempered by the depth of the wide receiving corps. There are only so many targets to go around, even with Tom Brady at the helm.
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