By the end of the offseason there was a fairly strong consensus among the Fantasy football community that both Austin Hooper and Rob Gronkowski were more likely to be busts than stars. What did we think about Jimmy Graham? We didn't think much about him at all.
But that was a time with much more optimism about a position that deserves none. It was a time when nearly everyone loved Hayden Hurst and many of us saw big upside in Mike Gesicki, Chris Herndon, and Blake Jarwin. It was a time when Evan Engram and Tylre Higbee were surefire starters — when Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert were healthy enough to play football. You get my point.
The time we find ourselves in now is not that time. This is a time when red zone targets alone make Graham a start — when Gronkowski's first game with 10 non-PPR points is a sign of a reemergence, not a flash in the pan — when Austin Hooper's increased role is more important than his 6.2 yards per target.
I don't feel confident in any of these veterans rest of season, but circumstances dictate we start all three in Week 7.
Week 7 Prep: Start 'Em & Sit 'Em | Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: QB | Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: RB | Start 'Em & Sit 'Em: WR | PPR Cheat Sheet | Non-PPR Cheat Sheet | Waiver Wire | Biggest Questions | Trade Values Chart | Cut List | QB Preview | RB Preview | WR Preview | TE Preview
Week 7 TE Preview
The following players are not being projected to play Week 7:
Richard Rodgers is a streamer without Ertz and Goedert.
|
Anthony Firkser would be a fine streamer, but the matchup is tough.
|
Numbers to Know
- 27 -- Jimmy Graham and Austin Hooper are tied for fourth among tight ends with 27 targets since Week 3.
- 8 -- Rob Gronkowski's eight targets in Week 6 were a season high.
- 14 -- The Falcons have allowed 14 Fantasy points per game to tight ends. Only the Saints have been worse.
- 7 -- Drew Sample is the only player in the league with at least seven red-zone targets and zero red-zone touchdowns.
- 31.8% -- Nearly a third of Ryan Tannehill's pass attempts have gone to tight ends. If Jonnu Smith is out, Anthony Firkser is a streaming option.
- 14.9% -- Darren Fells has scored on 14.9% of his targets since joining the Texans. That's not sustainable, but you could do worse as a touchdown-or-bust streamer.
We're previewing every game in Week 7 on the Fantasy Football Today podcast. Listen below as we make our start and sit calls, and subscribe via Apple or Spotify:
Matchups that matter
| ||||||||
| ||||||||
| ||||||||
| ||||||||
| ||||||||
Waiver Wire Targets
As if Gronkowski, Hooper, and Graham weren't inspiring enough. Ebron has a decent role in Pittsburgh and it's a good matchup against the Titans.
| ||||||||
Rodgers is available about everywhere and the Eagles have a long tradition of involving their tight ends in the passing game.
| ||||||||
DFS Plays
To be clear, George Kittle is the top tight end by projection and by projected value. I'm just terrified of paying up for a tight end against Bill Belichick. I did it just a couple of weeks ago with Darren Waller. I also don't want to pay the price tag on Kelce, so I'll drop down to Hunter Henry, who has double-digit PPR points in every game but one. I would fully understand if you want to punt tight end and go searching for a minimum-priced touchdown. Ryan Izzo is only $4,100 on FanDuel and saw his role increase last week.
| ||||||||||||
Heath's Projections
So who should you start and sit this week? And which surprising quarterback could lead you to victory? Visit SportsLine now to get Week 7 rankings for every position, plus see which QB is going to come out of nowhere to crack the top 10, all from the model that out-performed experts big-time last season.
