Bills’ recent first-round pick dubbed potential ‘breakout’ candidate

Those who were disappointed with what Buffalo Bills tight end Dalton Kincaid accomplished in his rookie season simply weren’t paying attention.

The pass catcher was compared to Travis Kelce after Buffalo traded up to select him in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft, establishing an immediate set of almost unattainable expectations for the former Utah tight end. Although he didn’t quite reach Kelce’s stats, he was incredibly productive, finishing third on the team in receiving with 673 yards on 73 receptions. The 73 catches were good enough to break a long-standing team record – it supplanted Pete Metzelaar’s record for most catches by a Buffalo tight end in a single season (68).

Kincaid was already an important part of the Bills’ offense, and his role should further expand in his sophomore campaign given the offseason departures of Stefon Diggs and Gabriel Davis. The two combined for 1,929 receiving yards and 15 touchdowns last season; After a year in which he has already been targeted 91 times, we can expect even more targets for Kincaid in 2024.

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The idea that Kincaid could establish himself as one of the league’s premier receiving options in the upcoming season is shared by several league experts, including ESPN’s Field Yates, who recently identified tight end as a potential candidate to watch. for your fantasy football team this season.

“But perhaps the biggest beneficiary of the (Stefon Diggs) trade, in terms of what it means for his workload, is TE Dalton Kincaid, who is primed for a mammoth season that should include Buffalo leading in catches (he was behind only Diggs last season),” Yates wrote “Kincaid saw at least seven targets in seven games as a rookie, and that kind of workload could look like. a quiet day at the office this season.

“In addition to general target usage, Kincaid should see an increase in touchdown opportunities in 2024. He only managed two touchdowns last season, a number I hope to increase in part because of his expanded role and partly because I think Josh Allen has an MVP-level year in him.

It may be a little early to name Kincaid as Buffalo’s top pass catcher for next season, but his opportunity is advantageous; he’s the team’s primary returning receiver, and his already-established relationship with Josh Allen could be one that the signal-caller leans on as soon as he develops in-game chemistry with his revamped receiving corps.