Below you will find our Week 8 tight end rankings, to help determine your TE starts/sits for this week, brought to you by Edward Gorelik (@EdwardGorelik) and Zach Wilkens (@LopsidedTrades).
Featured fantasy football writer Zach Wilkens also highlights some TE rankings and matchups analysis for Week 8, and draws some matchup conclusions. He tells you who he likes, who he doesn't, and most importantly who he thinks you should be starting in Week 8.
You can also check out our 2015 fantasy football ranking dashboard, for more in depth rankings analysis on all positions including rookies and dynasty leagues.
Week 8 Fantasy Football Rankings - Tight Ends
RotoBaller Staff Rankings | Player Name (Team - Position) | Zach Wilkens Rankings | Edward Gorelik Rankings |
1 | Rob Gronkowski NE vs. MIA | 1 | 1 |
2 | Greg Olsen CAR vs. IND | 3 | 2 |
3 | Martellus Bennett CHI vs. MIN | 2 | 3 |
4 | Travis Kelce KC vs. DET | 4 | 5 |
5 | Tyler Eifert CIN at PIT | 5 | 4 |
6 | Gary Barnidge CLE vs. ARI | 7 | 7 |
7 | Ladarius Green SD at BAL | 10 | 6 |
8 | Jason Witten DAL vs. SEA | 6 | 12 |
9 | Eric Ebron DET at KC | 11 | 8 |
10 | Jimmy Graham SEA at DAL | 8 | 13 |
11 | Benjamin Watson NO vs. NYG | 12 | 10 |
12 | Delanie Walker TEN at HOU | 9 | 15 |
13 | Antonio Gates SD at BAL | 17 | 9 |
14 | Richard Rodgers GB at DEN | 14 | 14 |
15 | Kyle Rudolph MIN at CHI | 20 | 11 |
16 | Austin Seferian-Jenkins TB at ATL | 15 | 16 |
17 | Larry Donnell NYG at NO | 16 | 17 |
18 | Jordan Cameron MIA at NE | 13 | 22 |
19 | Crockett Gillmore BAL vs. SD | 18 | 18 |
20 | Heath Miller PIT vs. CIN | 19 | 19 |
21 | Jacob Tamme ATL vs. TB | 22 | 20 |
22 | Coby Fleener IND at CAR | 21 | 21 |
23 | Jared Cook STL vs. SF | 23 | 26 |
24 | Clive Walford OAK vs. NYJ | 24 | 23 |
25 | Vernon Davis SF at STL | 25 | 24 |
26 | Owen Daniels DEN vs. GB | 29 | 25 |
27 | Dwayne Allen IND at CAR | 26 | 27 |
28 | Jeff Cumberland NYJ at OAK | 27 | 31 |
29 | Jermaine Gresham ARI at CLE | 28 | 28 |
30 | Mychal Rivera OAK vs. NYJ | 29 | |
31 | Lance Kendricks STL vs. SF | 30 | |
32 | Dion Sims MIA at NE | 30 | |
33 | Scott Chandler NE vs. MIA | 31 | |
34 | Josh Hill NO vs. NYG | 32 |
Week 8 Tight End (TE) Rankings Analysis
By Zach Wilkens (@LopsidedTrades)
When Jay Cutler returned in Week 4 it led to a huge target increase for Martellus Bennett. Cutler’s first week back saw Bennett hit an 11-83-1 line. Over the last four weeks, Bennett has had a bye while some other teams haven’t and he is still tied with Charles Clay (who has played 4 games to Bennett’s 3) for the TE target lead. He’s been a little quiet the past two games but that changes here. He can’t keep getting 10+ targets without more production.
Another player due for a change in luck would be Travis Kelce. The fact that he hasn’t scored since Week 1 is pretty crazy to me. According to Pro Football Focus, Kelce is 5th in targets on the season. He has a 73.9% catch rate and the highest yards after catch per reception of any tight end in the league (minimum 10 catches). Even with a QB like Alex Smith, Kelce’s lack of touchdowns seems fluky. It’s going to change.
Despite missing two games this season, Eric Ebron is the TE10 in standard. He is quietly putting up solid weeks. He has touchdowns in three of five games. He is also averaging 54 yards a game. That doesn’t sound like anything special but over a full season that’s about 800 yards. Combined with Ebron’s touchdown rate and you have yourself a good player!
One player I am low on this week is Kyle Rudolph. He is averaging 20 yards per game. It’s not like that is much different over his career either - he averages 26 yards a game. He’s always been touchdown or bust. He does have 20 touchdowns in 54 games which isn’t bad. Against a Bears defense that for all it’s faults has only allowed two touchdowns to tight ends, I’ll pass.
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