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Bears rookie Colston Loveland dubbed ‘terrifying’ 2025 fantasy football target

Chicago Bears rookie tight end Colston Loveland has tempting upside, but his downside in fantasy football is very real, too.

Published

5 months ago

July 4, 2025

Bryan Perez

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The Chicago Bears’ decision to select Colston Loveland with the 10th overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft was one of the surprising first-round decisions. It’s not because Loveland wasn’t worthy of a top-10 pick, but the presence of veteran Cole Kmet has sparked questions about how many snaps Loveland will get and what role he’ll be featured in in coach Ben Johnson’s offense.

Loveland’s skills are undeniable. The 6-foot-6, 248-pounder runs more like a wide receiver than a tight end. His route-running chops will make him a tough matchup for veteran defenders in 2025, and his underrated traits as a run blocker will give Johnson play-calling flexibility with his rookie first-rounder.

But should Loveland be on fantasy managers’ draft boards in 2025?

One fantasy football analyst thinks it’s a terrifying proposition.

“Despite context clues pointing toward a potential sleeper (Loveland’s currently the PPR TE18 in FantasyPros” consensus expert rankings), the circumstances aren’t favorable,” FanSided’s Liam Lampert wrote. “The reality of the situation is that Kmet’s presence remains, and Moore/Odunze/Burden will get theirs. Plus, the Bears could very well lean on their ground game.”

Chicago Bears tight end Colston Loveland

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The Chicago Bears will be a complicated team to figure out for fantasy football managers in 2025. As Lampert noted, there are a lot of mouths to feed in the passing game, and Johnson does have a propensity to run the ball. Perhaps the safest player to target on this offense is Caleb Williams, who will benefit the most from having talented targets all across the field.

But if we focus only on the tight ends, there’s no doubt Loveland’s upside ranks among some of the best at the position in 2025. Sure, he’s a rookie, and it’s a blind leap of faith to assume he’ll produce like a fantasy starter this year. But from an athletic profile, there are few tight ends in the league right now who possess his combination of traits.

Brock Bowers proved with the Las Vegas Raiders that highly drafted rookie tight ends can be game-changers in fantasy football, which could cause fantasy managers to overcorrect and select Loveland and Tyler Warren, who the Indianapolis Colts selected in Round 1, earlier than they should.

Bowers ended the 2024 season with 112 catches for 1,194 yards and five touchdowns.

The latest ESPN projections have Colston Loveland going for 61 catches for 664 yards and five touchdowns, numbers that aren’t elite but certainly worth rostering on your fantasy team. He’s currently being drafted as the TE13 with an average draft position of No. 125.