The Greatest Tight Ends of All Time Football Players (American)

The Greatest Tight Ends of All Time

original ranker Hardtack  1,915 views 28 items 6 followers
The greatest tight ends of all time are those dynamic National Football League players who have played the position better than anyone else. The tight end position is a unique one as it has evolved from a blocking player to one that focuses more on receptions meaning each of these best NFL tight ends dominated the role as it was played during their prime.

There is a reason that the Mackey Award is given out each year to the top tight end in college football. That's because John Mackey is easily the best tight end ever to play football. The now Pro Football Hall of Fame member dominated the position with the Baltimore Colts and San Diego Chargers and made the position one to recognize.

Following in Mackey's footsteps are dozens of other talented tight ends such as Tony Gonzalez, the first tight end to catch over 1,000 passes, Kellen Winslow Sr. who dazzled at tight end for the San Diego Chargers, the great Mike Ditka, who before coaching or broadcasting averaged 19.2 yards per catch and notched 12 touchdowns as a rookie and Shannon Sharpe, who topped an amazing 10,000 yards over his career in Denver and Baltimore.

But the top tight ends in the NFL don't stop there. Young stars have taken the offensive position to an entire new level and fascinated fans everywhere along the way. Rob Gronkowski of the New England Patriots is a perfect example of that as he has become the envy of other teams, fans and players with his talent.

Who do you think played the best at tight end of all time? Vote for your favorites, add any not listed or re-rank this list your way all below! Want more football rankings? Check out the greatest linebackers of all time and the greatest NFL punters of all time too!
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Rank     Name
  1. 1
    Up 33
    Down 13
    1976
  2. 2
    Up 24
    Down 10
    1941
  3. 3
    Up 17
    Down 6
    1957
  4. 4
    Up 25
    Down 6
    1982
  5. 5
    Up 17
    Down 5
    1939
  6. 6
    Up 20
    Down 9
    1968
  7. 7
    Up 17
    Down 7
    1980
  8. 8
    Up 14
    Down 9
    1956
  9. 9
    Up 15
    Down 10
    1951
  10. 10
    Up 12
    Down 7
    1989
  11. 11
    Up 10
    Down 9
    1956
  12. 12
    Up 13
    Down 8
    1979
  13. 13
    Up 7
    Down 6

    Charlie Sanders

    1946
  14. 14
    Up 7
    Down 8
    1940
  15. 15
    Up 3
    Down 4

    Brent Jones

    1963
  16. 16
    Up 5
    Down 4
    1950
  17. 17
    Up 4
    Down 3

    Raymond Chester

    1948
  18. 18
    Up 5
    Down 6

    Mark Bavaro

    1963
  19. 19
    Up 2
    Down 2

    Jeremy Shockey

    1980
  20. 20
    Up 1
    Down 5

    Jay Novacek

    1962
  21. 21
    Up 2
    Down 2
    1969
  22. 22
    Up 1
    Down 2
    1965
  23. 23
    Up 1
    Down 2
    1943
  24. 24
    Up 1
    Down 3
    1980
  25. 25
    Up 1
    Down 4
    1966
  26. 26
    Up 0
    Down 5

    Rich Caster

    1948
  27. 27
    Up 2
    Down 1
    No image

    Stu Voigt

    1948
    added by: JBK1
  28. 28
    Up 1
    Down 0
    No image

    Steve Jordan

    1961
    added by: JBK1
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