Which tight ends have the most favorable fantasy matchups this week? Which ones should you fade?
Here's a breakdown of five notable tight ends featured in Sean Koerner, Chris Raybon and Matthew Freedman's Week 2 fantasy football rankings.
The No. 1 TE
Rob Gronkowski, New England Patriots
Gronkowski was one of five tight ends to average more than 7.0 targets per game last season, and Sunday should be no different against Jacksonville as Tom Brady may look to Gronk early and often to avoid A.J. Bouye and Jalen Ramsey on the outside.
Gronk leads all tight ends by a significant margin in FantasyLabs floor, median, and ceiling projections.
The Most Favorable Matchups
Jordan Reed, Washington Redskins
When healthy, Reed is one of the best tight ends in the league. And, for now, he's healthy. Last year the Colts allowed 6.6 targets and 52.3 yards per game to opposing tight ends while allowing the fifth-most fantasy points per game.
Reed is the unanimous No. 4 TE among our rankers.
George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers
Marquise Goodwin (quad) played just 26% of the snaps against the Vikings last week and in return, Kittle turned himself into Jimmy Garoppolo's go-to guy. At the time of writing, it sounds like Goodwin may sit out in Week 2.
Kittle led the team in targets (nine), receptions (five), and receiving yards (90). Now he gets an easier matchup against a Lions team that allowed 6.6 targets and 55.9 receiving yards per game to opposing tight ends in 2017.
Kittle becomes a high-floor play with Goodwin's potential absence and he boasts the fifth-highest median projection in the FantasyLabs models.
The Fade
Jimmy Graham, Green Bay Packers
Per Pro Football Focus, Graham's 1.11 yards per route run ranked 31st among tight ends that saw at least 30 targets last year and he hasn't had more than three receptions in a game since Week 11 of the 2017 season.
Graham will need a touchdown to provide value and that could be a stretch if Aaron Rodgers (knee) can't suit up against the Vikings.
The Stream
Ben Watson, New Orleans Saints
The Browns got throttled by tight ends last year, ranking 32nd in Football Outsiders' Defense-adjusted Value Over Average (DVOA) metric. He doesn't have the biggest ceiling, but he's a serviceable floor play on a team that's implied for a slate-high 30 points.
Watson has an average rank of 14.3 among our experts.
Want another edge? Be sure to keep up with the week's news on FantasyLabs.
