Trying to figure out who’s the Indianapolis Colts starting tight end has been frustrating fantasy football managers for years. So it should come as no surprise that we’re rolling into the 2023 season with no clear answer once again. However, changes on the coaching staff and offseason rumblings are pointing toward Jelani Woods having a leg up on that job for the coming year.
Colts starting tight end: Jelani Woods
Despite Mo Allie-Cox having the edge in starts, the then rookie third-round pick Woods led the team’s tight ends in production. He had 312 yards and three touchdowns. Alie-Cox also had three scores, but just 19 catches on 28 targets for 189 yards. Kylen Granson actually had more catches—31 to Woods’ 25—than Woods and 302 yards, but no touchdowns. Remember, this was all happening in one of the NFL’s three worst offenses last season, a unit that averaged just 17 points per game with the ghost of Matt Ryan under center.
All three of those guys are still on the roster this season, so what gives Woods an edge heading into the season? New head coach Shane Steichen comes to the Colts via the Philadelphia Eagles. Early offseason talk from OTAs, via the beat reporters from the Indianapolis Star, is that Woods fits the bill for the Dallas Goedert role from the Eagles.
While we won’t really know how the snaps will shake out until the preseason wraps, Woods is clearly the best player the Colts have at the tight end position.
Who is Jelani Wood’s backup on the Colts TE depth chart?
Despite some talk this spring that Alie-Cox would be a cap casualty, he’s still there and likely to be the No. 2 tight end. (Look for the Colts to cut him next spring, when they’d be left with no dead money from his contract.)
Granson will have to have a really good camp and preseason to make his case to stay on the roster because the Colts also have Will Malory, a fifth-round pick this year, and Andrew Ogletree, who’s returning from a knee injury.