Fantasy Football Draft Debate: Harold Fannin Jr. vs. Kyle Pitts

Going over who is a better fantasy football pick between Atlanta Falcons TE Kyle Pitts and Cleveland Browns TE Harold Fannin Jr.

Sep 7, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Browns tight end Harold Fannin Jr. (44) reacts after a play during the second half against the Cincinnati Bengals at Huntington Bank Field. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In the last few seasons, 2026 looks to have one of the better TE groups for fantasy football. A couple of TEs listed at similar ADPs with breakout fantasy potential are Cleveland Browns TE1 Harold Fannin Jr. and Atlanta Falcons TE1 Kyle Pitts. Here is a breakdown of who is the better pick in fantasy football this season between the two.

Kyle Pitts

Dec 21, 2025; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts Sr. (8) against the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Kyle Pitts in 2025 had his best fantasy football season in his five-year NFL career. He had 928 receiving yards on 88 receptions (career-high) and five TDs (career-high). Atlanta will have pretty much the same offensive skill group around Pitts next season, with the only major variable being who will be the Falcons' starting QB.

The Falcons are in the midst of a QB battle for the starting job between Michael Penix Jr. and Tua Tagovailoa. Last season, the Falcons had two QBs log starts: Penix Jr. and Cousins. When Penix Jr. went down with an injury, Cousins took over.

For Pitts' sake, he did perform better when Cousins was the Falcons' signal-caller. With Penix Jr., Pitts had no games with over 80 receiving yards in 2025 and had one TD. With Cousins, Pitts had three games with over 80 receiving yards and had four TDs.

Penix Jr. in 2025 started in nine games Cousins started in eight.

So the QB situation for people thinking of drafting Pitts needs to be monitored. Pitts would have more fantasy upside if Tagovailoa won the job. Back in 2024, he showed he could help a TE to an elite fantasy season. TE for the Miami Dolphins, Jonnu Smith, in that season had 88 receptions for 884 receiving yards and eight TDs. He finished as TE4 in PPR.

ESPN for the 2026 season for PPR formats has Pitts ranked as TE5.

Harold Fannin Jr.

Jul 29, 2026; Berea, OH, USA; Cleveland Browns tight end Harold Fannin Jr. (44) talks to the media during training camp at CrossCountry Mortgage Campus. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

TE6 in PRP formats in 2025, Fannin Jr. had one of the biggest breakouts fantasy-wise among rookies. He is due for an even bigger season in 2026 as he will be the Browns’ TE1 to start the season.

Fannin Jr. in 2025 had 72 receptions for 731 receiving yards and six TDs.

Cleveland also has a QB battle going on with Shedeur Sanders and Deshaun Watson fighting for their starting job. Unlike Atlanta’s QB situation, neither of the two has been meaningfully successful in the NFL over the past three seasons. Though the better starting option to help Fannin Jr.’s fantasy case is Sanders.

Fannin Jr. has already proven he can be successful with Sanders. Watson, in the three seasons he has logged games for the Browns, has not had one game where he has thrown for over 300 passing yards and has thrown just three total TDs to TEs.

ESPN for th 2026 season in PPR formats has Fannin Jr. ranked as TE6.

Final Verdict

When it comes to who is a better option in fantasy football drafts between Fannin Jr. and Pitts, Fannin Jr is. Both have questionable QB situations, and although Pitts’ is slightly better, there are fewer top-tier NFL weapons around Fannin than Pitts. That alone gives Fannin Jr. a higher chance to have a better fantasy season than Pitts. He could foreseeably become the number one option in Cleveland's passing game.