Cade Otton Fantasy Overview

2025 Role & Results

Production & Fantasy Finishes

Otton tallied 59 catches for 572 yards and 1 TD in 16 games last year. He ranked 12th among TEs in catches and 15th in yards, but his one score tied for 50th.

That left Otton TE26 in PPR points per game and TE27 in half-PPR. He cracked the top-12 at the position in just three of his 16 outings.

Usage & Role

Otton was a full-time player last year, running a route on 75.0% of pass plays across his 16 games. That ranked seventh among TEs.

He drew a target on just 18% of his routes, though, 30th among 40 TEs with 200+ routes. Otton’s 15.3% target share ranked 18th. His 5.0 targets per game ranked 14th.

Otton was rarely used downfield or near the end zone. His 5.1-yard average target depth ranked 32nd among those 40 qualifying TEs. And he ranked:

• 38th in red-zone targets (6)
• 45th in targets inside the 10-yard line (2)
• 48th in end-zone targets (1)

Otton finished TE27 in expected PPR points per game.

Efficiency & Regression

Otton caught 72.8% of his targets but averaged just 9.7 yards per catch. Among 40 TEs with 200+ routes last year, he ranked:

• 25th in yards per target
• 30th in yards per route

He was similarly mediocre in film-based metrics:

• 37th in Pro Football Focus receiving grade
• 32nd in Fantasy Points separation score
• 16th in ESPN receiver score

Offensive Context

The 2025 Buccaneers finished:

• 13th in plays
• 21st in total yards
• 25th in yards per play
• 18th in points

It was a balanced offense in terms of play calling, ranking 17th in pass rate and 18th in pass rate over expected.

Otton benefited from injuries to WRs Mike Evans (nine games missed) and Chris Godwin (eight games missed). Those guys, along with WR Emeka Egbuka, were only on the field together for the final four games of last season. Otton missed one of those. His receiving lines in the other three:

• 2-15-0
• 4-33-0
• 7-94-1

Historical Production & Trends

Otton has been a low-ceiling player throughout his four NFL seasons. He sports a career 9.7 yards per catch and 5.3% TD rate, both well below league-wide averages for TEs.

Otton’s best season came in 2024, when he posted a 59-600-4 line across 14 games and finished TE11 in PPR points per game. Even that production came with a major boost from three games without both Evans and Godwin. Otton averaged 19.8 PPR points per game in those contests vs. 7.6 in his other 11. That latter mark would have ranked 24th among TEs on the season.

Otton’s finishes among TEs in PPR points per game in his other three seasons:

• 29th
• 27th
• 26th

Injury History & Durability

Otton has missed five games through four NFL seasons:

• One with a hamstring injury in 2022
• Three with a knee injury in 2024
• One last year with a knee injury

Otton also suffered a serious right ankle injury in his final college season that required surgery and cost him the final four games.

2026 Opportunity & Projection

Projected Role & Competition

Otton briefly hit the free-agent market in March before re-signing with the Buccaneers on a three-year, $30 million deal with $20 million guaranteed. That $10 million average annual salary lands Otton 15th among TEs.

It also makes him a safe bet to remain a full-time player for Tampa Bay. That was confirmed by the team only adding sixth-round rookie Bauer Sharp to the TE room.

The biggest change in the Bucs’ pass-catching corps is the departure of Evans. Injuries limited him to a 30-368-3 receiving line across eight games last year. But he averaged 76.0 catches, 1,153 yards, and 9.5 TDs across his first 11 seasons in Tampa Bay.

It’s a big hole, but we expect it to primarily be filled by returning Egbuka, Godwin, and Jalen McMillan.

Tampa Bay also added RB Kenneth Gainwell in free agency. He’s coming off a 73-catch season for the Steelers and could steal some short-range targets from Otton.

Supporting Cast

QB Baker Mayfield returns for his fourth season as Bucs starter. He has sandwiched a huge 4,500-yard, 41-TD 2024 season between two mediocre seasons.

Among 42 QBs with 150+ pass attempts last year, Mayfield ranked:

• 27th in completion rate
• 32nd in adjusted completion rate
• 26th in completion rate over expected
• 25th in yards per pass attempt
• 33rd in Pro Football Focus pass grade

A bounce-back season from Mayfield would certainly help Otton’s 2026 production.

Coaching & Offensive Scheme

The Buccaneers canned OC Josh Grizzard after the season, replacing him with Zac Robinson.

Robinson spent five seasons working under Sean McVay in Los Angeles before serving as Falcons OC for the last two. Atlanta ranked sixth in yards and 13th in points in a Kirk Cousins-led offense in Robinson's debut. The Falcons fell to 14th in yards and 24th in points this past year, with worse QB play from Michael Penix Jr. and then Cousins.

Both of Robinson’s Atlanta offenses leaned run:

There’s no Bijan Robinson in Tampa Bay, though, so we expect Robinson to shift at least a bit toward the pass. We project this as a balanced offense in 2026.

Robinson helped Kyle Pitts to a bounce-back season and a TE5 finish last year, but Pitts and Otton are very different players. And Pitts ranked just 22nd in PPR points per game in Robinson’s first season in Atlanta, so the scheme alone doesn't make Otton especially appealing.

Paths To Ceiling

Otton will be on the field plenty this season, and Evans’ departure leaves behind opportunity. That at least gives Otton a chance to earn decent volume.

If he finds the end zone a few times as he did in 2023 and 2024 (4 TDs in each season), he could at least emerge as a spot-start option, especially in full-PPR leagues.

Risk Factors

A healthy season from the Buccaneers’ WR corps could leave Otton fourth or even fifth on the team in targets. And he needs volume as a low yards-per-catch and TD-rate player.