2023 has not been kind to the tight end position. With the global economy back on track, league revenue on the rise, and new television money on the horizon, things were supposed to go better for tight ends who bet on themselves last season.
Dalton Schulz bet on himself with the Cowboys. The 26-year-old veteran played on the franchise tag in 2022 and expected to cash in big in free agency in 2023. Instead he fell into an underwhelming market and joined the likes of Mike Gesicki and Austin Hooper as tight ends who bet on themselves and didn’t see things work out the way they likely hoped.
After playing for the franchise tag amount of $10,931,000, Schultz accepted a 1-year, $9 million deal in Houston. Gesicki, who also played on the franchise tag in 2022, accepted a 1-year, $4,500,000 contract to play with the Patriots. And Hooper, who signed a one-year prove-it deal in 2022, just signed another one-year deal to play for his fourth team in the last five years.
The biggest tight-end deal of the offseason thus far went to Hayden Hurst. But Hurst’s 3-year $21,750,000 contract only amounts to $7,250,000 in AAV.
While the top tight ends in the NFL (Darren Waller, George Kittle and Travis Kelce) still command top dollar, the general value of the position is not strong around the league.
With only young and inexperienced tight ends on the roster, the Cowboys could look to inexpensive options in free agency to help fill the void left by Schultz or they could set their sights on the highly talented 2023 draft class.
Whichever route they decide, they should be mindful of what the market is telling them in order to get the most bang for their buck.