Player
Dalton Schultz
TE · Texans
Career-high volume at age 29 is a signal the Texans have leaned on Schultz as a volume chain-mover — a rare durability arc for a TE entering his 30s.
Eight straight years on the field — and 2025 is the highest-volume season of his career.
TrendSchultz regular-season production by year
| Year | Team | G | Tgts | Rec | Yds | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | DAL | 9 | 17 | 12 | 116 | 0 |
| 2019 | DAL | 6 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 0 |
| 2020 | DAL | 16 | 89 | 63 | 615 | 4 |
| 2021 | DAL | 17 | 104 | 78 | 808 | 8 |
| 2022 | DAL | 15 | 89 | 57 | 577 | 5 |
| 2023 | HOU | 15 | 88 | 59 | 635 | 5 |
| 2024 | HOU | 17 | 85 | 53 | 532 | 2 |
| 2025 | HOU | 17 | 106 | 82 | 777 | 3 |
Receptions per season
| Season | Receptions |
|---|---|
| 2020 | 63 |
| 2021 | 78 |
| 2022 | 57 |
| 2023 | 59 |
| 2024 | 53 |
| 2025 | 82 |
After three seasons in the 53-59 catch range, Schultz exploded for 82 catches on 106 targets in 2025 — both career highs. He turned 29 during this season.
His 2021 Dallas peak (78/808/8) still holds on yards and TDs. 2025 set new career highs in catches and targets, at the cost of fewer touchdowns and a flatter route tree.
Why it matters. Career-high volume at age 29 is a signal the Texans have leaned on Schultz as a volume chain-mover — a rare durability arc for a TE entering his 30s.
Top-7 TE in receiving yards since 2021 — sandwiched between Hockenson and Goedert.
ComparisonTEs ranked by receiving yards (2021-2025 reg season, min 150 catches)
| Player | Rec | Yds | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Travis Kelce | 468 | 5,121 | 34 |
| George Kittle | 331 | 4,429 | 38 |
| Mark Andrews | 328 | 3,847 | 36 |
| Kyle Pitts | 284 | 3,579 | 15 |
| Trey McBride | 347 | 3,475 | 17 |
| T.J. Hockenson | 334 | 3,350 | 18 |
| Dalton Schultz | 329 | 3,329 | 23 |
| Dallas Goedert | 272 | 3,211 | 23 |
| Hunter Henry | 259 | 2,973 | 26 |
| Evan Engram | 330 | 2,963 | 13 |
From 2021 onward, Schultz sits 7th in TE receiving yards — by a hair behind Hockenson, just ahead of Goedert. The eye test rarely puts him in the same conversation as Andrews or Kittle, but the production has been remarkably durable.
23 receiving TDs over five years is a solid mid-pack TE number. His touchdown rate dipped after leaving Dallas — 18 TDs in 3 seasons there, only 10 in 3 seasons in Houston — mirroring his shrinking red-zone role.
Why it matters. Consistent multi-year yardage accumulation in the top-7 at the position is a durability story most fans don't associate with Schultz, who has never made a Pro Bowl.
His best red-zone year was 2021 — 6 RZ TDs on 16 targets. Houston has barely used him there since.
SplitSchultz red-zone targets by season
| Year | RZ Tgts | Catches | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 14 | 9 | 3 |
| 2021 | 16 | 9 | 6 |
| 2022 | 16 | 8 | 5 |
| 2023 | 15 | 7 | 5 |
| 2024 | 8 | 6 | 1 |
| 2025 | 12 | 5 | 3 |
His Dallas red-zone usage averaged 15 targets/year and 4.7 TDs. In Houston that fell to 8 in 2024 (1 TD) and recovered slightly to 12 in 2025 (3 TDs).
Nico Collins is the obvious explanation — he soaks up the contested-area looks Schultz used to monopolize for Dak Prescott. The role in Houston has shifted from end-zone target to underneath converter.
Why it matters. The red-zone collapse in Houston explains why Schultz's TD totals never recovered to his Dallas peak even as his catch volume hit new highs — he's a volume TE now, not a scoring threat.
Career-high 130 yards on 10 catches at Tampa Bay in 2023 — his only 100-yard game in 8 seasons.
MilestoneSchultz top single-game receiving performances
| Date | Opp | Tgts | Rec | Yds | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 W9 | vs TB | 11 | 10 | 130 | 1 |
| 2025 W7 | vs SEA | 10 | 9 | 98 | 0 |
| 2020 W2 | vs ATL | 10 | 9 | 88 | 1 |
| 2022 W14 | vs HOU | 10 | 6 | 87 | 0 |
| 2021 W16 | vs WAS | 9 | 8 | 82 | 1 |
One career 100-yard receiving game — that's it. The 2023 game vs Tampa Bay (10/130/1) is the high point of an otherwise hyper-consistent career.
The pattern: every one of his top 5 games came on 9 or 10 catches. He doesn't have a single big-play game built on 4-5 catches and a TD — his explosions are always volume-driven.
Why it matters. A single 100-yard game in 8 professional seasons highlights the ceiling of a volume TE — Schultz accumulates, he doesn't explode, which makes him reliable in box scores but invisible on highlight reels.
His 2025 catch rate is 77.4% — elite for any TE, anywhere.
AnomalySchultz catch rate by season (since 2020)
| Year | Tgts | Rec | Catch % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 89 | 63 | 70.8% |
| 2021 | 104 | 78 | 75.0% |
| 2022 | 89 | 57 | 64.0% |
| 2023 | 88 | 59 | 67.0% |
| 2024 | 85 | 53 | 62.4% |
| 2025 | 106 | 82 | 77.4% |
77.4% on 106 targets is the kind of number you usually see from RBs catching dump-offs, not TEs running the route tree.
For reference, Travis Kelce's single-season best in the DB is 76.9% (2023, 93/121). Schultz topped that on 15 more targets. The route concept has shifted to high-percentage underneath stuff — the trade-off is per-catch yards (9.5) that rank as the second-lowest of his career.
Why it matters. A 77.4% catch rate on 106 targets is statistically elite at the position — it signals Schultz has become a precision outlet who turns nearly every catchable ball into a first down.
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