Colts' Tyler Warren Believed to Reach Remarkable Achievement in 2026

Last season, the NFL saw the emergence of Indianapolis Colts tight end, Tyler Warren. Then, a rookie, Warren looked like anything but a player who was finding his footing.

Warren earned a Pro Bowl, set the Colts' single-season rookie reception record (76), and accumulated 817 receiving yards and five all-purpose scores.

This is why it should come as no surprise that he made Matt Okada's second-year breakout candidate list for the 2026 season. Okada believes Warren has First-Team All-Pro potential.

"Warren’s floor should be close to 120 targets, and he could realistically reach 140-150 in a breakout campaign.

With a step forward in efficiency and touchdown production -- and ideally a healthy Jones -- Warren would emerge as instant competition for Trey McBride and Brock Bowers (among others) in the pursuit of the coveted first-team All-Pro designation."

Tyler Warren looks like he beefed up even more… pic.twitter.com/1xMXyCV9ft
— John Frascella (Football) (@NFLFrascella) May 5, 2026

Warren immediately became a go-to target for Daniel Jones in Shane Steichen's offense upon hitting the field in 2025.

Warren concluded the year just five receptions shy of leading Indianapolis, trailing only Michael Pittman Jr., who finished with 80.

Once Jones went down with an Achilles injury that derailed his season, Warren's numbers understandably dropped when Philip Rivers and Riley Leonard took the offensive reins.

Given how incredible Warren looked in his rookie season, it's hard to imagine he won't build upon that in year two, and in a big way.

For Okada to place Warren into the First-Team All-Pro designation for 2026 isn't crazy, and he's already on track to be in the same conversation as the likes of Trey McBride and Brock Bowers.

Something interesting that Okada brings up is that he might be on pace for around 150 targets. When examining last year, Warren caught 76 of his 112 targets for an efficiency percentage of 67.9.

If this math is applied to, let's say, 150 targets, then Warren would hypothetically stack around 102 catches. To put this into perspective, McBride had 126 in 2025, and Bowers had 112 in 2024.

There's an argument that these two are the best tight ends in the NFL - and Warren can join that type of company as soon as this season.

Tyler Warren looks in a pass. — Indianapolis Colts tight end Tyler Warren (84) pulls in a catch for a first down Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025, during a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. | Mykal McEldowney/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

While Warren is fantastic, a lot of his success could depend on whether or not Jones can remain healthy and stay under center in 2026.

There's also another factor to consider - can Warren be even better than his rookie year without Pittman in the receiving corps to take attention away from him?

This Colts offense is still mostly intact from what they had last year, and while Pittman fell off in production, he was still the top pass-catching option for Indianapolis, and still paced the offense in receptions.

The other side of the argument is that Warren could receive even more targets since Pittman is with the Pittsburgh Steelers, and may even become the best pass-catching option.

It wouldn't be surprising if Warren receives more targets and hauls in more passes than the new WR1 for Indianapolis, Alec Pierce.

The future is as bright as the sun for Warren, and his trajectory after a Pro Bowl rookie season is through the stratosphere.

Indianapolis has themselves a star in Warren. The only question is: can he become one of the best tight ends in football next year?

There's no indication that he can't answer that question with a resounding yes.

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