Fantasy Football Week 13 Tight End Preview: Projections, numbers to know, DFS plays, and more
Everything you need to know about tight end for Fantasy Football in Week 13
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2 min read
I have 17 tight ends projected for at least nine PPR Fantasy points this week. That is fantastic. Five of them are must-starts: Trey McBride, Travis Kelce, Brock Bowers, George Kittle, and Tyler Warren. In our consensus tight end rankings, all three of our rankers have all five of those tight ends ranked in the top five. After that, well, you could almost flip a coin.
Well, there is some agreement between Jamey and Dave. They both have Juwan Johnson at TE6 and Brenton Strange at TE7. As of Tuesday afternoon, I have Johnson at 11 and Strange at TE13. Let's talk about why.
Johnson is TE13 per game for the season with an average of 10.79 PPR FPPG. That bumps up to 13 points per game in four games with Tyler Shough. A big part of the reason that Johnson is producing better with Shough is that he has scored two of his three touchdowns in those four games. This week, the Saints have an implied total of 18.5, so it is hard to give any one player a large touchdown projection. The one thing Johnson has going in his favor is that the Dolphins have given up the sixth-most Fantasy points per game. As the week goes on, I could see Johnson rising into the top 10 for me, probably not up to six.
Strange had a very encouraging return from injury last week with five catches for 93 yards. This week, he faces a Titans defense that has given up the eighth fewest Fantasy points to opposing tight ends. One thing that does concern me is that Strange has been at five or fewer targets in three of his five healthy games. And I am not sure that will change with Jacksonville leaning into the run like they have since the bye. That is particularly worrisome if the Titans offense doesn't keep this game competitive.
To be clear, I am not anti-starting Johnson or Strange. I would start them over Dallas Goedert, Mark Andrews, Zach Ertz, and many others. But there are really only five must-start tight ends this week, and they are not a part of that group.
Here's everything else you need to know about tight end in Week 13:
Week 13 TE Preview
TE Preview
Numbers to Know
- 33.3% -- Harold Fannin had a season-high 33.3% target share in Shedeur Sanders' first start. The team's pass volume will be higher this week, and I am still starting Fannin.
- 22 -- The Bengals are giving up 22 Fantasy points per game to tight ends, by far the most. It could be another Mark Andrews week...or a sneaky Isaiah Likely week.
- 28% -- In the two games Kirk Cousins has started, Kyle Pitts has a 28% target share. I am starting him again as long as Drake London is out.
- 10.4 -- Oronde Gadsden has scored 10.4 PPR Fantasy points in his last two games combined. This will be a big week to see if he can turn back into a must-start tight end.
- 40 -- Cade Otton has 40 or fewer yards in three of his last four games. If Teddy Bridgewater is the QB, you should probably sit Otton.
- 26.6 -- Dallas Goedert is averaging 26.6 yards per game in his last five games. Woof.
Week 12 Streamers (TE Preview)
Last week, Schultz had the worst matchup in the league for tight ends, the Buffalo Bills. This week he faces the Colts, one of the best matchups in the league. He should be added to your roster and probably your starting lineup. He has scored at least 11 PPR Fantasy points in three of his last four and five of his last seven games.
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Even if I am not starting him this week, I would like to have Strange on a roster. He faces the Colts twice in the last month of the Fantasy season, including the Fantasy Championships in Week 17.
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Loveland is probably more of a stash than a start, but he has been so good with the ball in his hands, we have to keep hoping the team will make him more of a full-time player. His 64.6% snap share was slightly disappointing last week, but he is awesome whenever they use him.
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TE Preview
DFS Plays
Top DFS Play
Projections powered by
Sportsline
Since Jacoby Brissett took over as the starter, Trey McBride is averaging 23.2 PPR FPPG. That's almost nine points more than any other tight end. You can save money somewhere else this week in cash games.
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Contrarian DFS Play
Projections powered by
Sportsline
Anyone who pays up for tight end is going to play Trey McBride. That gives you the opportunity to play Brock Bowers at a lower roster rate. I am hoping that Bowers sees more usage with Chip Kelly gone, and at the very least Geno Smith won't be quite as uncomfortable as he was last week against the Browns. As disappointing as he has been, Bowers is still averaging 17.6 FPPG in his five healthy games.
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TE Preview
Heath's Projections
My full set of Week 13 Fantasy football projections for every position is now available on SportsLine. You can find them here. Find out which of my favorite plays are projected to score higher than consensus rankings and which don't live up to their draft hype, at least in Week 13. Projected stats for all starting tight ends are available, so be sure to check out the full set of projections at SportsLine.
