Fantasy football tight end performance has been all over the map lately, making weekly lineup choices trickier than ever. Some players have seen unexpected volume spikes, while others hover in roles offering only modest floors at best.
Tight end depth charts can shift based on game plan or recent form, so staying alert to opportunity is more valuable than blindly chasing last week’s points. It’s a critical time for fantasy football managers to look beyond the box score and think carefully about who truly belongs in the starting lineup this week.
AJ Barner | SEA (at TEN)
Week 11 was great if you landed on AJ Barner out of some misfortune (10 catches for 70 yards against the Rams), but this is lining up very much to be a “don’t make one mistake two” situation.
You (likely) missed on the big week. That’s in the past now. His target share before the high-volume effort was 11.9%, a rate that is obviously not enough to get the job done, and with three receivers running over 30 routes last week, this profile is thin at best.
Barner has posted a sub-five-yard aDOT in four straight, making him, at best, a decent floor play over someone who hits 17 PPR points again. He’s sitting outside of my top 15 at the position this week, and I feel good about it.
Brenton Strange | JAX (at ARI)
Brenton Strange is within his 21-day window for return from the hip injury that landed him on IR, but it was a bit of a surprise to see him ruled out last week against the Chargers.
He’s a name to track, not roster.
Strange had a pair of six-catch efforts before getting hurt in Week 5, and while this offense looks considerably different now than it did then, we are still looking at a unit with limitations.
The addition of Meyers, combined with Parker Washington’s breakout, makes this a competitive situation for those chain-moving targets. I don’t have Strange ranked among the top 12 options at the position. Still, it’s another name on the heap of streamable tight ends, and successful fantasy managers always take that seriously if they are turning over the position consistently.
Jacksonville travels to Tennessee next week, and that means they will have a strong implied total. Strange is on the outside looking in at rosterable in standard-sized leagues … for now.
Brock Bowers | LV (vs CLE)
Brock Bowers has seen his snap rate increase each week since his return, and there’s not much space to improve upon the 96.6% he logged on Monday night against the Cowboys.
When great players are on the field for essentially every snap in a limited offense, they are going to be fed and fed often. The efficiency may come and go depending on the defense’s attention, but over 60 minutes, his value as a top-5 player at the position checks in as stable.
Last week, he earned a dozen targets, cleared 100 air yards for the first time this season, and saw his fourth end zone target in his three games since returning. The struggles of Geno Smith are going to make it hard for Bowers to produce at the Trey McBride level the rest of the way. Still, he’s firmly in the next tier at the position: that’s not going to return value on the price you paid this summer, but it’s also not going to sink your team during the postseason.
Brock Wright | DET (vs NYG)
Brock Wright’s two-catch eight-yard performance from last week probably doesn’t have him popping off the waiver wire at you, but he did earn seven targets and was on the field for 81.7% of Detroit’s offensive snaps in a very one-sided 16-9 loss.
If Wright were an elite athlete in space, we’d know by now, in his fifth season. That said, he essentially filled the full Sam LaPorta (IR) role, and while the opponent this week shares a division with last week’s, it’s not at all the same.
I don’t have Wright ranked as a top 15 tight end this week and need to see it before getting him to the streaming tier, but I’m not crossing him off of the list of potential options as we approach the stretch run.
Cade Otton | TB (at LAR)
Cade Otton is fall in the Northeast.
Temperature-wise, you know what you’re getting. We are going to be in this 35-50 degree range for a while with not a ton of variance. You might notice some nice foliage on a drive to work one day or be annoyed by snow flurries, but you know what you’re signed up.
Last week, we got flurries from Otton (two catches for 28 yards), one week after getting a beautiful view (nine for 82). You know this is part of the deal, but it doesn’t change your basic assumption for what the weather is going to be.
In this case, 8-12 PPR points is 35-50 degree weather. That assumption will change if this offense gets healthy faster than expected, but until then, Otton is a boring TE who hovers around 10th in the rankings every single week, with the understanding that his role is his value. That consistent routes are worth more at this position than they are at others.
I can’t remember the last time I was excited about plugging in Otton, but I also can’t remember the last time he failed in consecutive weeks when the offense was missing pieces.
Chig Okonkwo | TEN (vs SEA)
We’ve seen Chig Okonkwo catch 32 of 42 targets this season (nine of 10 over the past month), something that would generally have me excited when coming from a developmental quarterback. Still, there just isn’t a shred of upside to chase, and that’s why he’s at the very low end of streamable options for me, even with the Calvin Ridley injury.
For the season, Okonkwo has a 5.5-yard aDOT and zero end zone targets. In fact. 71.4% of his looks this season have come on the wrong half of the field. It’s not that he’s running badly on variance in terms of scoring chances; it’s that he plays for a bad team, and that’s not going to change.
Seattle hasn’t allowed more than 22 points in a game since Week 5, so no, I don’t think this is the week that Cam Ward puts it all together.
Cole Kmet | CHI (vs PIT)
Cole Kmet is playing just enough to annoy managers with Colston Loveland managers without being of interest to those streaming the position.
Both Bear tight ends played over 75% of the snaps last week as Ben Johnson is leaning into these two-TE sets. Still, I really do think a lot of it is window dressing, and with Caleb Williams not exactly showcasing consistency as a thrower week-to-week, this isn’t a spot I’m at all interested in.
Kmet has yet to reach 50 receiving yards in a game this season and hasn’t found the end zone in six straight games. His aDOT is plummeting, and the problem is that the rookie will absorb most of the team’s positional targets. His slot usage in Week 11 was his second-lowest of the season (8.8% of his routes).
I’m not confident that this offense can support pass catchers every week, and I have Kmet ranked as the fourth option at best.
Colston Loveland | CHI (vs PIT)
We saw some of the YAC skills from Colston Loveland last week on a 24-yard catch-and-run in the fourth quarter, and little breadcrumbs like that are why I’m ranking him as a top 10 option at the position both this week and the rest of the way.
He got the red zone usage on Sunday over Cole Kmet and has now seen an end zone pass thrown his way in three of four games. The combination of TD equity (this offense can be all over the place, but if we are talking about putting his profile up against Theo Johnson, Juwan Johnson, and Harold Fannin types, I’m happy to embrace the upside.
Loveland has averaged over 1.4 yards per route in four of his past five games, and I only expect the route count to increase as a surprise playoff berth for Chicago transitions from pipe dream to attainable goal.
Dallas Goedert | PHI (at DAL)
I’m not saying that Dallas Goedert needs to be dumped, but the only reason I’m saying that is because the tight end position is an unmitigated disaster after the first half dozen options.
He has no more than four catches or 43 receiving yards during this four-game win streak, statistical evidence that tells what we kind of already knew: he’s not overly critical to the success of this team.
That’s not to say that he can’t have big games; he can, and that’s why he’s a high-end streamer for me that I have ranked as TE10 in this perfect spot against a Dallas defense on short rest. Still, the profile is trending in the wrong direction, and there’s no obvious reason for Philadelphia to prioritize reversing it.
Goedert has seen his aDOT increase in each game during this run, and considering that Jalen Hurts is having a hard enough time keeping A.J. Brown happy down the field, forgive me if I’m not overly optimistic on the future target share of his tight end.
David Njoku | CLE (at LV)
Both Harold Fannin and David Njoku were on the field for at least two-thirds of Cleveland’s offensive snaps on Sunday against Baltimore as this team tries to cover its lack of receiver depth with an increase in 12-personnel reps.
In points-per-route leagues, Njoku is fine to hold, but with him being held under 40 receiving yards in four straight, it’s hard to spin this profile as an encouraging one.
The Browns aren’t going anywhere, and Fannin is the tight end they stand to learn more about moving forward than Njoku.
I got to TE18 in my rankings this week before his name even entered the conversation.
George Kittle | SF (vs CAR)
Remember when he came back from injury and didn’t see a target for an entire Monday Night Football game?
That feels like forever ago now, as George Kittle has caught all 19 of his targets over the past three weeks and is a key cog in an offense back under the leadership of Brock Purdy, arguably the most efficient passer in our game.
I don’t love that his aDOT has dropped 29.2% and his YAC has somehow been more than chopped in half from last season, but this is an elite player in a system I trust at a position that is a pain.
Don’t overthink it: Kittle is a strong option the rest of the way and could swing your matchup in the final game of Week 12.
Harold Fannin Jr. | CLE (at LV)
I’d prefer that the Browns eliminate David Njoku’s routes, but these two-tight-end sets seem to be what the Browns want to run due to the youth under center, and that’s capping the ability of Harold Fannin to breakout.
His 7.2-aDOT last week was his second-highest of the season, and I think Cleveland is wise to experiment with what this athletic and nimble third-round pick can do. Fannin has proven capable of earning targets, and that’s enough to put him in the streamer conversation against a bad defense on short rest, but those looks lack consistency because of the arm they are coming from.
I prefer him to David Njoku moving forward, though the presence of one makes the other tough to rank inside of my top 15 at the position any given week, and this one is no different.
Hunter Henry | NE (at CIN)
Hunter Henry is running 27.5 routes per game this season and has cleared that number in three straight. In theory, the role is there as a part of a strong offense, but with just one end zone target over his past six and six games under 40 receiving yards, the range of outcomes is working in his favor in standard-sized leagues.
That said, we did see a nice 24-yard chunk play on Thursday night where Drake Maye sold the play fake hard and showed nice touch over the top on the pass. Any semblance of downfield upside with an extended work week ahead of a matchup against the porous Bengals is worthy of our attention.
I like Henry as a streamer this week, but I’ve got it labeled as more of a matchup play than a role I’m truly interested in for the remainder of the season.
Isaiah Likely | BAL (vs NYJ)
This is about as even a split as you can have, and considering that most offenses lacking a Tier 1 tight end struggle to get the position as a whole enough volume to matter, dividing that pie in half is less than ideal.
You know what this is? This is Kansas City’s backfield from earlier in the season.
Isaiah Likely is Isiah Pacheco, the player who projects better but is underused, and Mark Andrews is Kareem Hunt, the more experienced player whose savvy is trusted in scoring situations, even if the upside is capped for the first 80 yards of the drive.
We couldn’t trust Pacheco or Hunt when Andy Reid was working his dark magic with them, and I don’t think we can realistically trust Likely or Andrews right now, even if both are still valuable to the offense as a whole.
I prefer Andrews to Likely for now, but that’s just because we are splitting limited targets, and a touchdown swings the scales in a major way.
Neither is a top 12 play for me this week, even in a plus matchup against the undermanned Jets.
Ja’Tavion Sanders | CAR (at SF)
Young goes bonkers, and his tight end finishes with under 35 receiving yards for the sixth straight game.
Not ideal.
Ja’Tavion Sanders hasn’t seen an end zone target in a month, and it’s been two full months since he’s cleared 20 air yards in a contest. I don’t think the Xavier Legette production from last week is real, but I’m also not positive that any dialing back of his numbers puts more usage on the plate of Sanders.
Jake Ferguson | DAL (vs PHI)
Jake Ferguson snapped a two-game (three-week) scoring slump that felt like an eternity to his fantasy managers, who had come to expect a touchdown a week (six scores in the four weeks prior).
The yardage totals since CeeDee Lamb returned haven’t been there (no more than 50 yards in seven straight), but that’s more of a yards per catch issue. He caught four balls in Monday night’s easy win over the Raiders, the eighth time he’s reached that mark this season as he plays a PPR-friendly role in this potent offense that comes with plenty of scoring equity.
He may not be a Tier 1 tight end like he was early in the season, but that’s more of a “Trey McBride is on another planet” thing. Once you get past Arizona’s star, Ferguson remains as valuable as any TE on the board, and I don’t think that changes, even in a tough spot against the Eagles (5-23-0 line in Week 1 in Philadelphia).
Jonnu Smith | PIT (at CHI)
Shame on you if you’re scanning the waiver wire and Jonnu Smith’s name still catches your eye.
Week 11: Steeler TE Participation
- Darnell Washington: 44 snaps, 20 routes, 5 targets
- Smith: 33 snaps, 18 routes, 2 targets
- Pat Freiermuth: 27 snaps, 14 routes, 1 target
If that’s the case, and the same goes for Freiermuth, it’s simply because you’re familiar with the name.
Shake that off and trim these two off your list of streamable options, regardless of who is under center in Pittsburgh. Smith hasn’t reached 30 receiving yards in a contest this season, and with him averaging just 6.3 yards per grab, the athletic profile that seemed to connect all the dots last season in Miami clearly isn’t at work this year.
Juwan Johnson | NO (vs ATL)
In Weeks 9-10, Juwan Johnson showed off a nice connection with Tyler Shough, and with a passing script forecasted and a limited number of mouths to feed, what’s to stop us from considering him a viable low-end TE1 for the rest of the way?
He turned 40 routes into seven catches, 123 yards, and a pair of scores over those two games (road contests against the Rams and Panthers). If he continues to get one target for every five routes, he’s going to be a PPR asset by way of efficiency, but the touchdown equity was good to see.
Without scores, I think he can still flirt with enough production to justify starting him, and if the scoring streak can sustain, we are looking at a nice DFS piece in a spot where few are looking.
Kyle Pitts Sr. | ATL (at NO)
Kyle Pitts didn’t see a target in the first half last week and, for the second time this season and second time in as many weeks, finished with just two catches.
The role remains the same, but four catches on 56 routes over the past weeks is a disaster, and there’s no sugarcoating it.
In Week 11, Drake London, Darnell Mooney, and Bijan Robinson accounted for 72.4% of Falcon targets. If we see that again this week, Pitts moves to the streamer conversation, but I’m willing to leave the light on for one more week.
Not only is this a good matchup that should allow Atlanta to score, but Kirk Cousins will be under center after Michael Penix’s knee injury, and the veteran QB funnelled 28.6% of his end-zone looks to Pitts a season ago.
Can Cousins still play when given time to prep?
I’m not sold, but at a position where touchdowns drive weekly value and in a weatherproof game, I’ll take my chances. Pitts is currently my TE11 for Week 12.
Luke Musgrave | GB (vs MIN)
Luke Musgrave’s snap share fell off a cliff in his second week of fill-in duty for Tucker Kraft (35.3% from 77.3% in Week 10), and he didn’t exactly show well for himself when the Packers ran him out there.
Against the Giants, he earned two targets: one went for a one-yard loss, and the other was a drop that looked a lot like a lost fumble when watching it live.
He gets the benefit from a lack of other options, and the Josh Jacobs injury figures to put more pressure on this passing game.
Nothing Musgrave has done up to this point deserves our faith, and that’s why he’s not a top-15 option for me, but the situation alone is keeping him on my radar. Green Bay still has both games against the Bears left on the schedule, not to mention potential shootouts with the Lions (Thanksgiving) and the Ravens (Week 17).
Mark Andrews | BAL (vs NYJ)
It was great to see Mark Andrews get his flowers after he became Baltimore’s franchise leader in receiving yards, and his winning the game with Tush Push spinning sweep was pure art.
If you haven’t seen the play, go check it out: I’ll be here when you get back.
The fact that Todd Monken schemed that play up is encouraging: he very much values what Andrews brings to the table, even if it’s more limited than it was in years past.
Isaiah Likely has greater upside, but the Ravens are content to hit singles at the position, and that resulted in Andrews owning a usage edge last week (36=32 in snaps and 21-19 in routes).
He needs a touchdown to justify you playing him, but with Baltimore projecting for 29 points, this is as good a spot as any to chase the score.
Mason Taylor | NYJ (at BAL)
If the Jets can figure out their passing game, the athletic profile of Mason Taylor is interesting, but until then, you can find more projectable upside elsewhere.
Even with Garrett Wilson (IR) out on Thursday night against the Patriots, Taylor wasn’t able to earn targets in a meaningful way. In the loss, five different Jets saw 3+ passes thrown their way, and with the quality of opportunity limited in this Justin Fields-led offense, that’s not nearly enough.
I was encouraged to see Taylor see the first target of the game, and maybe there’s a single performance that hits the top 12 moving forward, but I’m never going to get there from a projection standpoint, given the state of this offense as a whole.
Michael Mayer | LV (vs CLE)
Michael Mayer’s role as the unique TE handcuff is interesting during the middle portion of the season, but as we prepare for the stretch run, it becomes far less appealing.
The Raiders have kept him involved since the return of Brock Bowers (15 targets across those three games), but he’s not getting anything valuable in terms of downfield or red zone work, and that makes him unrosterable.
He teamed with Bowers to power the Tre Tucker touchdown on Monday night: he holds value to his NFL team, just not in our stat-based world.
Noah Fant | CIN (vs NE)
Noah Fant has hauled in 30 of his 34 targets this season, adding a role that is more valuable to the Bengals than to fantasy managers.
Of those looks, only three have come in the end zone and two deep down the field. I’m not sold that the quality outweighs the lack of quantity in this specific instance, especially with Chase Brown beginning to ascend.
All of the scoring upside resides with three players in Cincinnati, and I don’t expect that to change when Joe Burrow returns (eyeing next week). Fant is on the streaming radar thanks to this offense having upside and a matchup against a defense that figures to make them even more one-dimensional than usual, but he’s far from a must-play.
If I’m rostering TreVeyon Henderson in DFS and looking for a cheap bring-back to counteract the Ja’Marr Chase/Tee Higgins chalk, I could be sold on Fant as a way of filling the annoying TE slot. Outside of that, I’m not too tempted to challenge the Patriots.
Pat Freiermuth | PIT (at CHI)
Pat Freiermuth’s efficiency looks good on paper (16 catches on 19 targets since the beginning of October). Still, the fact that his success when targeted hasn’t resulted in any role change should tell you all you need to know about the former Nittany Lion.
This TE room is a three-way split of a piece of pie that I’m not sure is large enough to feed one. I wasn’t the least bit interested in any member of this unit with a healthy Aaron Rodgers, and with that no longer the case, I really can’t see the point in throwing darts at this position group.
Sam LaPorta | DET (vs NYG)
We got word on Saturday that the Lions were placing Sam LaPorta (back) on injured reserve, a designation that means he won’t be eligible to play again until Week 15 in Los Angeles against the Rams.
Roster spots are valuable this time of year, but I’m trying to hold tight if at all possible. J.K. Dobbins was the other impactful player to land on IR ahead of Week 11, and if I only had one IR slot to burn, I’d prefer to use it on Detroit’s TE.
Not only does he have five top-10 finishes at the position, but there’s not a real threat to assume his role, thus putting him in a spot to be a lineup lock barring news that this injury is more prohibitive than first let on.
He caught all five of his targets (53 yards) in the Week 10 win in Washington, Dan Campbell’s first as the playcaller, and I’m comfortable in penciling him in for 10+ PPR points consistently as a key cog of this offense when next active.
T.J. Hockenson | MIN (at GB)
Are we done here?
I know you’re tied to the draft capital you spent on T.J. Hockenson back in August, but we’ve seen no signs of life outside of one game against the Bengals in September.
Hock hasn’t reached 50 yards (air or realized) in a game this season, and while seeing him make his biggest play of the season last week was at least a step in the right direction (21 yards), the volume just isn’t close to high enough.
He’s struggled to open up, throwing windows all season, but the 28-year-old has just 11 catches on 133 routes in JJ McCarthy’s starts this season. That’s not going to work.
The worst part? He’s not even the top priority when it comes to pass catchers on this offense that need to be fixed. Maybe he will develop rapidly with McCarthy over the next month, and I can change my tune by the fantasy playoffs, but I’m not going to be burned in assuming that’s destined to be the case.
Hock is my TE19 this week.
Theo Johnson | NYG (at DET)
The play-calling in New York is what has me skirting the QB inconsistencies and ranking Theo Johnson as a low-end TE1 in a game that sportsbooks are projecting to go over 50 points.
Last week against the Packers, Johnson forced a DPI flag in the end zone, and with an aDOT north of 7.5 yards in four straight games, the G-Men are clearly aware that they have a unique athlete who is a walking mismatch.
To be honest, I’m intrigued by the optionality Johnson provides this offense when the roster is at full strength next season, but in the short term, I think he can thrive, even if defenses make him a priority.
There’s obvious risk in backing a second-year TE attached to an iffy offense as a monster underdog, but the reward potential is rare at this point in the rankings, and that has me interested.
Travis Kelce | KC (vs IND)
Part of my Travis Kelce fade this offseason was looking back at his production and realizing that the Chiefs go his way only when they need to.
When seeding is on the line, as we are in the playoffs, GOAT Kelce comes to play, but he’s otherwise been managed in an effort to make sure that he’s physically capable of being there during the winter months.
Well, it’s getting late early for 5-5 Kansas City, and that’s forced their hand. The future Hall of Famer recorded season highs last week in catches (nine), targets (13), and yards (91) against the Broncos, a production path that I think sticks moving forward.
READ MORE: Soppe’s Week 12 Fantasy Football Start ‘Em Sit ‘Em: Analysis for Every Player in Every Game
Kelce has a 20+ yard catch in four straight games, and he’s marrying the big play ability with the safety blanket role. In Week 11, 11 of his targets and all of his catches came shy of the chains, another trend I suspect will continue as the Chiefs try to grind out a winning streak to qualify for the postseason.
I can’t imagine Chiefs fans are happy with how this season has gone so far, but fantasy managers have to be happy with the future projection. Kelce is a solid Tier 2 tight end moving forward and is one of two top-5 players at the position that will take the field in this matchup on Sunday.
Trey McBride | ARI (vs JAX)
It isn’t easy to overstate how impressive what Trey McBride is doing right now. There was no Harrison on Sunday, and that made his path to 8+ catches for the fourth time in five games a bit clearer, but I’m not sure anything can slow him down at this point.
Reception Leaders Since 2024
- Ja’Marr Chase: 206
- McBride: 182
- Amon-Ra St. Brown: 181
- Jaxson Smith-Njigba: 172
- Drake London: 160
- Justin Jefferson: 159
Jacoby Brissett has unlocked the touchdown scoring that Kyler Murray could never get to (TD in five straight), and that’s just a bonus. McBride’s scoring equity OR his raw volume would be enough to land him as a Tier 1 player at the position: the fact that he’s juggling both makes him THE Tier 1, not just a part of it.
Tyler Warren | IND (at KC)
Tyler Warren posted the highest target share of his season in Week 10 against the Falcons before the bye (38.5%), and he continues to prove himself to be an elite asset in all formats.
MORE: Free Fantasy Football Start/Sit Optimizer
The dominance of Jonathan Taylor has zapped some of the upside from the rookie’s profile (held without an end zone target in eight of 10 games). Still, much like Trey McBride in previous seasons, his target-earning talent transcends a position that requires touchdowns from most.
It’s reasonable to fear some natural regression on the part of Daniel Jones. Still, with a 5.9 aDOT (3.6 over his past two games), Warren is positioned to sustain his status as a Tier 1 player at the position even if that concern comes to light.
