"Cheap is small and not too steep
But best of all cheap is cheap
Circumstance has forced my hand
To be a cut price person in a low budget land"

- The Kinks, "low Budget"

So you find yourself in the late rounds of a draft and you're desperately searching for a tight end. The three impact tight ends (Shockey, Gonzo, and Heap) have all been long gone. You've made the decision to not even invest in a mid-tier tight end like Chad Lewis or Eric Johnson.
So there you are searching the aisles of the Fantasy Football K-Mart looking for your Blue-Light special. The following is a list of tight ends to consider and some to keep at arm's length.

Opportunity Knocking
These tight ends have found themselves in new offenses or opportunities and could be a potential bargain.

Kyle Brady, Jaguars - Yes, he's a proven middle-of -the-road tight end, so what? Well, he's in a new offense with former UVA head coach Bill Musgrave. Last year, UVA had a freshman tight end who was the team's third leading receiver. While J.J Stokes is wrapping up the #2 WR slot, Brunell clearly has a higher comfort level with Brady. If the Jags' defense can improve to give them some more red-zone opportunities, he could make some noise on those dumpoffs.

Desmond Clark, Bears - Clark is your basic pass-receiving tight end. He has already been named the starter by Jauron. The only knock on him is if he can stay healthy. The Bears are another team that has a WR corps in flux and an offense that prefers dumpoffs.

Ernie Conwell, Saints - The Saints signed Conwell to jump ship from the Rams. Conwell's main competition is David Sloan , but you wouldn't figure the Saints to leave Conwell's contract on the bench. The Saints figure to be an offense that can move the ball pretty well. He is still working his way back from offseason knee surgery but he hasn't missed a training camp practice yet.

Young Talent
The following are guys that are relatively new to the league but who possess good receiving skills.

Daniel Graham, Patriots - Patriots QB Tom Brady has already come out and said he expects Graham to have a monster second year in the league. Christian Fauria is his main competition but Graham is expected to see most of the receiving opportunities.

Dallas Clark, Colts - Marcus Pollard is still the starting TE on the Colts. But the Colts have said they want to use 2 TE formations and have said Clark has looked good in minicamp.

L.J. Smith, Eagles - Like Clark, Smith is a rookie expected to start the year as the second TE. However Chad Lewis had a somewhat disappointing year last year and Reid has said he wants to see Smith on the field. Reid has been known to use red-zone sets with 2 and sometimes 3 TE's. Smith's best value would still be in a keeper league though.

Risk/Reward
The following are players who have put up decent numbers in the past but have some serious question marks hanging over them coming into this season.

Jerramy Stevens, Seahawks - The ultimate risk/reward tight end this year. The Seahawks are expected to have an improved offense under Hasselbeck in 2003. However, Stevens had another brush with the law this past offseason. He was sentenced to 2 years probation and community service. As part of this sentencing, the court has also set up random drug tests. Stevens continues to insist that he has no alcohol problem. It is unknown if the league assess their own penalties and/or drug screening. Stevens' backup is Itula Mili.

Mikhael Ricks, Lions - He had offseason. knee surgery and Has been slowly worked into training camp practices. His amount of preseason gametime activity is still unknown. Keep an eye out for his situation with the improving Lions.

Stephen Alexander, Chargers - He suffered a groin injury that lingered for over a month. He returned to the practice field August 1st. It kept him out of the first week of training camp. He is apparently healed, but those kinds of injuries have been known to reoccur.

No Longer Name Brand
The following are once highly sought tight ends who have seen their value plummet.

Cam Cleeland, Rams - This tight end has had a history of injuries the last couple of years. So far he's healthy but his value has plummeted. As a matter of fact, he's been moved to FB so Brandon Manumaleuna can see more time at TE.

Wesley Walls, Packers - This once clutch tight end had problems finding a job. He was a late addition by the Pack and figures to be TE2 behind Bubba Franks.