Bucs tight end Cade Otton received a bump from grading site Pro Football Focus on their most recent offseason rankings list. PFF ranks each position group every offseason ranking the best players. Tight ends were the latest group to get a look.
Cade Otton Ranks 20th On PFF’s List of Top Tight Ends
John Kosko, who authored the Pro Football Focus article said this of Bucs tight end Cade Otton.
“Otton’s Achilles’ heel is drops. He has the third most (11) at the position across the past two years. His 63.1 PFF receiving grade in 2024 was a career high and also marks the first time he generated more than 1 yard per route run (1.31). If he can hang on to the ball (also three fumbles the past two years), Otton has the skills to rise on this list.”
Bucs TE Cade Otton – Photo by: USA Today
Otton’s 2024 season was his best yet, setting career highs in receptions (59), receiving yards (600) and yards per route run. He ranked tied for ninth among tight ends in targets, tied for 12th in receptions, 14th in yards/route run, tied for 13th in touchdowns, but ranked 28th in yards per route run. That points to Otton being a top half of the league tight end.
Perhaps nothing points to that more than the Week 7-10 stretch where Otton became the focal point of the Bucs offense with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin both out with injuries, and Jalen McMillan not yet rounding into his late-season form. Over that four-game stretch Otton caught 25 of 31 targets for 258 yards and three touchdowns while averaging 2.10 yards per route run. He was targeted on 25% of his routes and accounted for 40% of the team’s receiving yards during that span.
And the article makes no note of Otton’s improvements as a blocker. Of the 27 tight ends with better yards/route run metrics last year, only four had better run blocking grades from PFF. That’s where Otton made his greatest strides last year.
NFL analyst Oliver Connolly has described Otton as the best split flow blocking tight end in the NFL last year. When combined with his positive strides as a receiver, the case can be made that Otton should place higher than 20th.
Cade Otton sealing the edge on split flow while Payne Durham mauls the nose on the trap. pic.twitter.com/iwjgLnXUvP
— Joshua Queipo (@josh_queipo) May 27, 2025
Otton Moved Up On List From 2024 Placement
This time last year Cade Otton was bringing up the rear on the PFF tight end list, ranking dead last. John Kosko, who produced that list as well, wrote:
“Otton might have recorded over 1,000 yards in his first two seasons, but he’s averaged only 0.91 yards per route run over that span. If he continues to produce at an efficient level, the Buccaneers should look to upgrade at the position for 2025.”
Bucs TE Cade Otton – Photo by: USA Today
With all of the improvements Otton made last year in every facet of his game, he has become a good starter.
One the Bucs are likely to invest in beyond 2025, the last year of his rookie deal.