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Perhaps no one was happier to see Lamar Jackson re-sign with the Baltimore Ravens than Mark Andrews. The Ravens tight end has established himself as Jackson's number-one target and consistent safety outlet over the last few seasons.
Fantasy football owners who have or covet Mark Andrews will also be glad to hear that Jackson stayed in Baltimore, as this means that one of the most reliable tight ends in the game will likely have another strong receiving season. Now entering his sixth season, here is what fantasy football players can expect from Mark Andrews in 2023.
Mark Andrews' 2023 Fantasy Football Outlook
2021 an outlier?
Tight end Mark Andrews had a career year in 2021, hauling in 107 catches for 1,361 yards and 10 touchdowns and earning First Team All-Pro honors. Andrews had a surprising connection with backup QB Tyler Huntley that year, averaging 1.7 more catches per game and 13 more receiving yards per game when Lamar Jackson was out. The Ravens were notably 1-5 in those contests.
Taking away that extraordinary season, Andrews averaged 65 catches, 800 yards per year across 2019, 2020, and 2022, including 73 catches for 847 yards a year ago. Those are still solid numbers, as the former third-round pick finished third among tight ends in both categories in 2022. He should continue to be a reliable option in 2023.
New targets in town
Mark Andrews has an established rapport with Lamar Jackson, making him the quarterback's top target in Baltimore. Andrews has led the Ravens in targets in three of the last four years, with the gap between the next most popular pass-catcher widening to nearly 40 targets last year. His only competition during this period was Marquise Brown, who recorded 100-plus targets in 2020 and 2021 before being traded away by the franchise in April 2022.
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This year, the Ravens added free agent wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. as well as rookie first-round pick Zay Flowers to their pass-catching group. Beckham has not managed a 1,000-yard receiving season since 2019, suffering two ACL injuries since — the second of which caused him to miss all of 2022. Still, OBJ is the second wideout on the Baltimore depth chart. Meanwhile, Flowers set Boston College career records for catches, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns, surpassing 1,000 yards and scoring 12 times in his senior season.
These new wide receivers should open up the Baltimore passing game but will also challenge Mark Andrews' status as the top target for Lamar Jackson. Even so, Andrews has established his role in the Ravens' offense, and the off-season additions will need to prove themselves and build trust with Lamar Jackson before prying away opportunities from the veteran tight end.
Overall outlook
Mark Andrews currently clocks in as the number two tight end in ESPN's fantasy football rankings, both for PPR and non-PPR leagues. The website also ranks him at number 21 overall for PPR leagues. He slots in behind consensus top pick Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — who is in search of his eighth consecutive 1,000-yard campaign.
Andrews also leapfrogs George Kittle. The San Francisco 49ers tight end had a career-high 11 TDs last year in his own outlier year (his previous season-best was six touchdowns), who may be hindered by the uncertain quarterback situation in the Bay Area. Another tight end in play is T.J. Hockenson. The Minnesota Vikings man is coming off a career-high 914 receiving yards but has yet to string together prolific seasons in his career.
What sets Andrews apart from these other tight ends is consistency. He has at least 55 catches and 700 yards in each of the last four years — something only Travis Kelce can also say. This makes him, at worst, a top-five tight end. With such a dropoff after the first few tight ends in fantasy football this year, Mark Andrews is the clear number two option behind Kelce and worthy of a third-round pick in most drafts.
