The NFL’s Next Generational Tight End Has Officially Arrived

Tyler Warren is already rewriting history.

The Colts’ rookie tight end entered Week 6 leading all NFL tight ends in receiving yards (not just rookies) with 307 through five games.

Then he went out and did it again: six more catches, 63 more yards, and a touchdown.

Warren has now scored in back to back weeks and leads all rookie tight ends in first downs, explosive plays, and overall production.

At this point, “impressive for a rookie” doesn’t apply anymore. He’s been flat out dominant.

A Rookie Season for the Record Books

GettyColts Rookie TE Tyler Warren

Warren’s 17 first downs are the most by any rookie tight end in the PFF era (since 2006). His 2.81 yards per route run against zone coverage ranks second among all tight ends in the NFL. And through six weeks, he’s tied for the most 15 plus yard receptions ever by a rookie tight end in PFF’s database.

That’s not supposed to happen. Historically, tight ends need a full season, sometimes two, before they even sniff that kind of production. Over the past decade, fewer than half of all tight ends drafted in the first three rounds have topped 100 receiving yards in their first five games.

Warren hit 307.

Of course, the league isn’t short on young tight end talent. Brock Bowers shattered rookie records last season in Las Vegas, and Sam LaPorta’s breakout year in Detroit before that changed the way teams view the position.

But what Warren is doing in Indianapolis stands right alongside those names. It took Bowers until Week 9 to reach 10 explosive plays of 15 plus yards. Warren got there by Week 5.

Where most of today’s tight ends live detached from the formation, Warren is old school in all the right ways. Of the top five tight ends in receiving yards this season, he’s the only one who lines up in line more than 40% of the time.

And he’s not just there for show. Warren owns a 72.7 PFF blocking grade, fifth best among tight ends with 100 or more blocking snaps. That’s a massive leap from his final year at Penn State, when his blocking ranked outside the top 100 in the Power Four conferences.

Shane Steichen’s offense uses that versatility to its full extent: seam routes, flat concepts, screen game, even the occasional short yardage carry. Warren’s skill set lets the Colts toggle between spread formations and downhill, smash mouth football without substituting.

A Star in the Making

GettyColts Rookie TE Tyler Warren

The tight end position demands everything: blocking, running routes, vision, and trust. Most rookies spend their first season trying to survive.

Tyler Warren, on the other hand, already looks like he belongs. What separates him isn’t just the numbers (as crazy as they are), it’s the way he’s changed the flow of the Colts’ offense.

At 5-1, the Colts are one of the surprise stories of the NFL season. Most of the praise has gone to Daniel Jones, but dig a little deeper, and you’ll find that Warren has been one of the biggest reasons it’s all working.

He’s become Jones’ security blanket, mismatch creator, and drive extender. Warren is redefining what a rookie tight end can be and in the process, helping redefine what the Colts can become.

Indianapolis didn’t just find a complementary weapon.

They found a game changer.

They found the NFL’s next generational tight end.

Texans Veteran Emerges as Team’s Unsung Hero in 2025 Turnaround - GM Nick Caserio Says He’s Playing His Best Football Yet

The Houston Texans, in their past two showings, have proven to have taken some major jumps from how they started their season, ultimately leaping from an early 0-3 deficit to now elevating to 2-3 heading into their Week 6 bye.

Among those various improvements, the Texans have continued to see steps forward in their offensive line performance, specifically, the pass protection in front of quarterback C.J. Stroud, to really help this offense be at its best, and iron out their offensive line worries that plagued them before the season kicked off.

Week 5 was the strongest output yet from the Texans' offensive line. Houston kept Stroud clean on 80.0% of his throws and a season-low six pressures, showing some gradual overall improvement following a bit of disarray in the offensive trenches right off the bat through three weeks.

The biggest standout on the Texans' evolving offensive line might be the only starter who stayed on from last season, veteran Tytus Howard; Houston's current starting right tackle and best-graded pass blocker (73.5) through five games

per PFF.

Howard's performance through five weeks even landed some significant praise from general manager Nick Caserio in his latest presser, giving special credit to the Texans veteran in the midst of giving a pat on the back to Houston's offensive line as a collective.

"They've improved," Caserio said of the offensive line. "Tytus [Howard] has played really good football. We haven't really talked about Tytus, but he's probably played as good of football as he has at any point in his career. So, a lot of credit to him and respect."

"I mean, he's literally played all four positions, other than center, and he's done a lot for the team."

In five starts, Howard's logged 299 total snaps, allowing just five pressures on the year and zero sacks, remaining as one of the more versatile, experienced, and consistent names the Texans are able to throw into their starting offensive front.

And so far this season, it seems staying committed to Howard, a slightly different approach from their flurry of other changes on the offensive front, has proven to be a sound decision in getting this protection up to par.

Moving deeper into the year, remaining strong upfront will be critical for the Texans. Those pass protection lapses started to rear their ugly head towards the latter half of last season that ultimately sunk the ship of Houston's offense in the end, and it's a trend that can't continue into their 2025 campaign.

But if the offensive line can continue to show consistent steps forward as they have through the past two weeks, Stroud's protection might be a bit more organized and effective than the consensus was led to believe.