One note: rather than count dead money toward the positional groups, we will have it ranked separately in a post of its own. For example, Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa‘s $55.4 million dead cap hit won’t count toward Miami’s quarterback spending, but it will be included in their league-leading $179 million dead cap figure. 

Here’s how the league’s tight end rooms shake out from most expensive to least expensive: 

Resources:

• Salary information via Over The Cap
• Depth charts via OurLads
• Pro Football Focus grades 

1 – Minnesota Vikings: $29,379,622

• Percentage of total cap: 9.75 percent
• 2025 rank: 3rd
• Top cap hit: T.J. Hockenson, $15,605,000 (5.18 percent)
• Other notable cap hits: Josh Oliver, $9,934,000 (3.3 percent)
• PFF grade: 64.2 (14th)
• Depth chart: Hockenson, Oliver, Benjamin Yurosek

2 – Atlanta Falcons: $25,788,333

• Percentage of total cap: 8.56 percent
• 2025 rank: 11th
• Top cap hit: Kyle Pitts, $15,045,000 (5 percent)
• PFF grade: 65.1 (11th)
• Depth chart: Pitts, Austin Hooper, Charlie Woerner

3 – Denver Broncos: $23,196,647

• Percentage of total cap: 7.7 percent
• 2025 rank: 18th
• Top cap hit: Evan Engram, $14,136,666 (4.69 percent)
• PFF grade: 54.6 (31st)
• Depth chart: Engram, Adam Trautman, Nate Adkins, Justin Joly

4 – San Francisco 49ers: $22,763,695

• Percentage of total cap: 7.56 percent
• 2025 rank: 9th
• Top cap hit: George Kittle, $14,147,529 (4.7 percent)
• PFF grade: 75.8 (1st)
• Depth chart: Kittle, Jake Tonges, Luke Farrell, Brayden Willis

5 – Los Angeles Rams: $21,688,775

• Percentage of total cap: 7.2 percent
• 2025 rank: 5th
• Top cap hit: Colby Parkinson, $9,083,334 (3.02 percent)
• PFF grade: 67.6 (6th)
• Depth chart: Parkinson, Terrance Ferguson, Davis Allen, Max Klare, Tyler Higbee

6 – New England Patriots: $20,402,871

• Percentage of total cap: 6.77 percent
• 2025 rank: 8th
• Top cap hit: Hunter Henry, $11,750,000 (3.9 percent)
• PFF grade: 63.2 (16th)
• Depth chart: Henry, Eli Raridon, CJ Dippre

7 – Philadelphia Eagles: $18,663,781

• Percentage of total cap: 6.2 percent
• 2025 rank: 14th
• Top cap hit: Dallas Goedert, $10,230,880 (3.4 percent)
• PFF grade: 59.2 (24th)
• Depth chart: Goedert, Eli Stowers, Johnny Mundt, Grant Calcaterra, Stone Smartt, Cameron Latu

8 – Chicago Bears: $17,751,138

• Percentage of total cap: 5.89 percent
• 2025 rank: 6th
• Top cap hit: Cole Kmet, $7,775,000 (2.58 percent)
• Other notable cap hit: Colston Loveland, $6,053,638 (2.01 percent)
• PFF grade: 73.5 (2nd)
• Depth chart: Loveland, Kmet, Sam Roush

9 – Houston Texans: $17,648,677

• Percentage of total cap: 5.86 percent
• 2025 rank: 12th
• Top cap hit: Dalton Schultz, $9,549,000 (3.17 percent)
• PFF grade: 59.9 (22nd)
• Depth chart: Schultz, Cade Stover, Marlin Klein, Foster Moreau, Brevin Jordan

10 – Kansas City Chiefs: $16,670,488

• Percentage of total cap: 5.53 percent
• 2025 rank: 2nd
• Top cap hit: Noah Gray, $6,970,000 (2.31 percent)
• Other notable cap hit: Travis Kelce, $4,896,667 (1.63 percent)
• PFF grade: 64.9 (12th)
• Depth chart: Kelce, Gray, Jared Wiley

11 – Dallas Cowboys: $16,269,777

• Percentage of total cap: 5.4 percent
• 2025 rank: 27th
• Total cap hit: Jake Ferguson, $10,400,000 (3.45 percent)
• PFF grade: 62.5 (17th)
• Depth chart: Ferguson, Luke Schoonmaker, Brevyn Spann-Ford

12 – Buffalo Bills: $15,988,627

• Percentage of total cap: 5.31 percent
• 2025 rank: 7th
• Top cap hit: Dawson Knox, $8,551,333 (2.84 percent)
• Other notable cap hit: Dalton Kincaid, $4,272,240 (1.42 percent)
• PFF grade: 70.4 (4th)
• Depth chart: Knox, Kincaid, Jackson Hawes

13 – Washington Commanders: $15,949,591

• Percentage of total cap: 5.3 percent
• 2025 rank: 17th
• Top cap hit: John Bates, $5,793,333 (1.92 percent)
• Other notable cap hit: Chigoziem Okonkwo, $5,333,333 (1.77 percent)
• PFF grade: 56.4 (29th)
• Depth chart: Okonkwo, Bates, Ben Sinnott, Colson Yankoff

14 – New Orleans Saints: $15,829,921

• Percentage of total cap: 5.26 percent
• 2025 rank: 1st
• Top cap hit: Juwan Johnson, $7,613,000 (2.53 percent)
• PFF grade: 55.4 (30th)
• Depth chart: Johnson, Noah Fant, Oscar Delp

15 – Cincinnati Bengals: $15,725,343

• Percentage of total cap: 5.22 percent
• 2025 rank: 16th
• Top cap hit: Mike Gesicki, $7,584,313 (2.52 percent)
• PFF grade: 65.9 (8th)
• Depth chart: Gesicki, Drew Sample, Erick All Jr., Tanner Hudson, Jack Endries

16 – Pittsburgh Steelers: $15,270,918

• Percentage of total cap: 5.07 percent
• 2025 rank: 13th
• Top cap hit: Pat Freiermuth, $6,943,333 (2.31 percent)
• Other notable cap hit: Darnell Washington, $3,473,438 (1.15 percent)
• PFF grade: 65.9 (7th)
• Depth chart: Freiermuth, Washington, Robert Tonyan

17 – Detroit Lions: $15,205,423

• Percentage of total cap: 5.05 percent
• 2025 rank: 24th
• Top cap hit: Sam LaPorta, $6,738,090 (2.24 percent)
• PFF grade: 59.3 (23rd)
• Depth chart: LaPorta, Brock Wright, Tyler Conklin

18 – Arizona Cardinals: $14,230,067

• Percentage of total cap: 4.72 percent
• 2025 rank: 19th
• Top cap hit: Trey McBride, $8,701,000 (2.89 percent)
• PFF grade: 71.6 (3rd)
• Depth chart: McBride, Tip Reiman, Elijah Higgins

19 – Las Vegas Raiders: $14,217,871

• Percentage of total cap: 4.72 percent
• 2025 rank: 22nd
• Top cap hit: Brock Bowers, $4,946,941 (1.64 percent)
• PFF grade: 69.1 (5th)
• Depth chart: Bowers, Michael Mayer, Ian Thomas

20 – New York Jets: $13,194,859

• Percentage of total cap: 4.38 percent
• 2025 rank: 32nd
• Top cap hit: Kenyon Sadiq, $4,062,601 (1.35 percent)
• PFF grade: 58.1 (27th)
• Depth chart: Mason Taylor, Sadiq, Jeremy Ruckert

21 – Baltimore Ravens: $12,929,252

• Percentage of total cap: 4.29 percent
• 2025 rank: 4th
• Top cap hit: Mark Andrews, $6,979,624 (2.32 percent)
• PFF grade: 54.6 (32nd)
• Depth chart: Andrews, Durham Smythe, Matthew Hibner, Josh Cuevas

22 – Carolina Panthers: $12,816,301

• Percentage of total cap: 4.26 percent
• 2025 rank: 26th
• Top cap hit: Tommy Tremble, $8,000,000 (2.66 percent)
• PFF grade: 60.1 (21st)
• Depth chart: Tremble, Ja’Tavion Sanders, Mitchell Evans

23 – Jacksonville Jaguars: $12,407,296

• Percentage of total cap: 4.12 percent
• 2025 rank: 23rd
• Top cap hit: Brenton Strange, $3,329,639 (1.11 percent)
• PFF grade: 62 (18th)
• Depth chart: Strange, Nate Boerkircher, Tanner Koziol, Quintin Morris, Hunter Long

24 – Green Bay Packers: $12,157,283

• Percentage of total cap: 4.04 percent
• 2025 rank: 30th
• Top cap hit: Tucker Kraft, $3,930,897 (1.31 percent)
• PFF grade: 62 (19th)
• Depth chart: Kraft, Josh Whyle, Luke Musgrave

25 – Seattle Seahawks: $11,766,869

• Percentage of total cap: 3.91 percent
• 2025 rank: 10th
• Top cap hit: Eric Saubert, $2,130,000 (0.71 percent)
• Other notable cap hits: A.J. Barner, $1,263,777 (0.42 percent), Elijah Arroyo, $2,003,039 (0.67 percent)
• PFF grade: 63.5 (15th)
• Depth chart: Barner, Arroyo, Saubert

26 – Indianapolis Colts: $11,682,265

• Percentage of total cap: 3.88 percent
• 2025 rank: 21st
• Top cap hit: Tyler Warren, $4,763,784 (1.58 percent)
• PFF grade: 64.4 (64.4)
• Depth chart: Warren, Mo Alie-Cox, Andrew Ogletree, Will Mallory

27 – Los Angeles Chargers: $11,045,175

• Percentage of total cap: 3.67 percent
• 2025 rank: 20th
• Top cap hit: Charlie Kolar, $4,333,333 (1.44 percent)
• PFF grade: 65.8 (10th)
• Depth chart: Kolar, David Njoku, Oronde Gadsden

28 – Tennessee Titans: $10,535,746

• Percentage of total cap: 3.5 percent
• 2025 rank: 29th
• Top cap hit: Daniel Bellinger, $5,136,666 (1.71 percent)
• PFF grade: 61.3 (20th)
• Depth chart: Gunnar Helm, Bellinger, Kylen Granson

29 – Tampa Bay Buccaneers: $9,698,769

• Percentage of total cap: 3.22 percent
• 2025 rank: 31st
• Top cap hit: Cade Otton, $4,143,333 (1.38 percent)
• PFF grade: 58.4 (25th)
• Depth chart: Otton, Payne Durham, Ko Kieft

30 – New York Giants: $9,674,992

• Percentage of total cap: 3.21 percent
• 2025 rank: 25th
• Top cap hit: Isaiah Likely, $6,087,254 (2.02 percent)
• PFF grade: 58.3 (26th)
• Depth chart: Likely, Theo Johnson, Chris Manhertz

31 – Cleveland Browns: $6,823,980

• Percentage of total cap: 2.27 percent
• 2025 rank: 15th
• Top cap hit: Harold Fannin Jr., $1,532,474 (0.51 percent)
• PFF grade: 56.8 (28th)
• Depth chart: Fannin, Blake Whiteheart, Joe Royer, Carsen Ryan

32 – Miami Dolphins: $6,330,726

• Percentage of total cap: 2.1 percent
• 2025 rank: 28th
• Top cap hit: Greg Dulcich, $1,698,000 (0.56 percent)
• PFF grade: 65.9 (9th)
• Depth chart: Dulcich, Will Kacmarek, Ben Sims, Seydou Traore