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Fantasy football’s top tight ends remain unscathed through three weeks of the NFL regular season. Travis Kelce, Rob Gronkowski, T.J. Hockenson and Darren Waller have all been producing for the fantasy GMs that drafted them.
Fantasy managers have not had to worry yet about injuries, COVID cancellations or byes decimating their rosters at the tight end position. However, fantasy footballers know one, two or all three of those things are bound to happen over the course of the NFL campaign.
That is why if there is an upgrade available on your league’s waiver wire, you should always be open to the option. Here are the best available options on fantasy waiver wires at tight end heading into Week 4!
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Tight End Waiver Wire Options
Dawson Knox, Buffalo Bills – 9% rostered
I have been beating the drum like Travis Barker for Knox since the start of the season, and he again is one of the top tight ends available on fantasy waiver wires. He has scored touchdowns in back-to-back games and has cemented himself as one of Josh Allen’s top-two targets inside the red zone. Even better, Knox is shifting from being a touchdown-dependent tight end to one who can help fantasy managers in other categories as well. He now has two games of at least four receptions and 41 yards on the young season, which is better than he did in all of 2020.
Knox has a home game against the reeling Houston Texans coming up next, so he has another great chance to find the end zone and find some room inside the 20s. The 24-year-old should be a prime candidate to be picked up by fantasy managers in need of a tight end for this week and the weeks to come. Knox is a TE2 for now but could emerge as a TE1 sooner rather than later and is especially attractive in dynasty leagues.
Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers – 8% rostered
Eric Ebron has disappeared off the face of the earth, so the Freiermuth Era is starting to commence sooner than expected in Pittsburgh. The Steelers’ second-round selection in this year’s NFL draft has been targeted three more times than the veteran Ebron has after three games, and Freiermuth scored his first NFL TD this past Sunday against Cincinnati.
Freiermuth has three things going in his fantasy favor right now. Ben Roethlisberger is officially a short-pass quarterback, so dinks and dunks to his top tight end are more likely than long heaves to his talented receivers. Two of those receivers – Diontae Johnson and JuJu Smith-Schuster – are dealing with injuries, which should translate into extra targets for Freiermuth. Best of all, Freiermuth is facing a Green Bay defense this week that has allowed opposing tight ends to be open whenever they run routes. San Francisco’s George Kittle had seven catches for 92 yards in Week 3, Detroit’s T.J. Hockenson posted an 8-66-1 line in Week 2, and New Orleans’ Juwan Johnson scored two touchdowns in Week 1 against Green Bay. Look for Freiermuth to do damage against the Packers defensive backfield in Week 4.
Others to Consider
Dalton Schultz, Dallas Cowboys – 4% rostered
Schultz has outplayed tight end teammate Blake Jarwin this year and was the best pass catcher on the field during Dallas' Monday night destruction of division rival Philadelphia. He hauled in a half-dozen Dak Prescott passes for 80 yards and a pair of touchdowns. His numbers will waver from week-to-week since the Cowboys have so many weapons in their receiving corps, but slotting him in as your fantasy TE2 and using him in spots will work for you this season.
Tyler Conklin, Minnesota Vikings – 4% rostered
Christopher Herndon, where are you? Minnesota traded for him before the season started when Irv Smith Jr. went down, yet Conklin is the Vikings tight end with the fantasy worth at the moment. Conklin’s 7-70-1 line versus Seattle on Sunday confirms he is Kirk Cousins’ No. 1 TE and that Herndon has no fantasy value.
Mike Gesicki, Miami Dolphins – 56% rostered
After two consecutive duds to start the season, Gesicki is back in the good graces of my fantasy footballers after his 10-catch, 86-yard effort against Las Vegas this weekend. Gesicki would have been mentioned earlier in the column if not for the fact that he is unavailable in more than half of the leagues as of now.
Evan Engram, New York Giants – 40% rostered
Many fantasy managers dropped Engram early on after another of his countless injuries cost him the first couple contests of the season, but he has returned at the perfect time. The Giants just lost receivers Darius Slayton and Sterling Shepard to hamstring injuries, so Engram is bound to be targeted six-to-eight times per game in the near future while the Giants receiving corps heals up.
Austin Hooper, Cleveland Browns – 49% rostered
Hooper still has more going against him – run-first offense, Odell Beckham Jr. hogging targets, two other tight ends breathing down his neck – than most starters at his position do, yet he has 10 catches for 86 yards and a TD through three weeks. As long as Jarvis Landry misses time with his knee injury, Hooper will have additional opportunities when Cleveland calls pass plays.
Tommy Tremble, Carolina Panthers – 0% rostered
Don’t look now, but it appears Carolina is phasing Ian Thomas out and working Tremble into more of its offensive packages. Tremble caught a 30-yard pass and rushed for a touchdown last week and deserves more touches after what he did with his small sample size.
Maxx Williams, Arizona Cardinals – 2% rostered
Williams has never been a fantasy force and the jury is still out if he will become one this season, but he has converted all 10 of his targets the past two games into 113 yards. It is amazing he has been able to see the ball at all considering Arizona has four good wide receivers who should all be ahead of him on the target pecking order.
Do Not Forget About…
Jordan Akins, Houston Texans – 0% rostered
I guess thinking Pharaoh Brown was going to become Houston’s No. 1 TE after one decent game was premature. Akins reclaimed his role and seems to still be the best of an underwhelming lot of Texans tight ends. He had four receptions for 32 yards in Week 3 and could be Houston’s No. 2 to No. 4 option in its passing attack depending on the coverages and game plans.
Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears – 34% rostered
Many have likely given up on Kmet for this season since he has posted a 7-53-0 line over his opening three games of the season, but Justin Fields will eventually come around at quarterback and be able to put the ball in Kmet’s hands. Longtime fantasy stalwart and touchdown machine Jimmy Graham is no longer a factor (one reception this year), so Kmet should not have him taking his targets or touchdowns as the year wears on, either.
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