We're creeping closer and closer to the playoffs for most fantasy football teams, making now as good as a time as ever to pick up a quality tight end to earn a key win late in the season.
With Travis Kelce on a bye week and George Kittle injured, a significant portion of fantasy football general managers will be digging through the waiver wire to find some quality replacements.
Whether you’re trying to guarantee yourself a first-round bye or looking for your first win of the season, having a quality tight end can help maximize your lineup’s potential, and can be a safety net if one of your workhouse running backs or wide receivers posts a disappointing performance.
2020 has been one of the deepest years for tight ends from a fantasy football perspective in recent memory, so even if you aren’t one of the lucky general managers who have drafted Kelce, there are still quality tight ends to be found, either buried on rosters or at the top of the waiver wire.
TEs to Start in Week 10
T.J. Hockenson, Detroit Lions
With all the talented young tight ends that have shined this season, Hockenson has flown a bit under the radar, but is putting up quality numbers in his second season in Detroit.
As long as the former Iowa Hawkeye posts eight receiving yards on Sunday, he will surpass his rookie yardage total (367 yards) in four fewer games than he appeared in last season. With the absence of Kenny Golladay, the Lions have looked to Hockenson as a red zone target, where he has capitalized on more than a few scoring opportunities (Hockenson ranks second among NFL tight ends with five scores this season).
With Golladay out with a hip injury and veteran wideouts in Marvin Jones and Danny Amendola showing signs of regression this season, it's not crazy to call Hockenson the No. 1 option in the Lions passing game. From a fantasy perspective, any time a tight end is the first option in a passing attack, he is worthy of a start.
While the Washington defense has been solid against the run this season, they have given up the fourth most fantasy points per game to tight ends this season (10.3 points given up on average, per Pro Football Reference). Expect Hockenson to catch a few key passes against them, and if he can find the end zone, he'll make many fantasy football general managers happy.
Darren Waller, Las Vegas Raiders
With Kelce and the Chiefs on a bye week, Waller is almost certain to take sole possession of first place in TE red zone targets this season.
Waller is a household name now in the fantasy football community, as after breaking onto the scene last season, he's right in the tier below guys like Kelce and Kittle and should be a top-ten tight end in the NFL for the better half of this decade.
While the Broncos have been pretty stout against tight ends this season (6.2 points per game given up on average), Waller will get a lot of opportunities to score on Sunday, as it wouldn't surprise anyone is he ended up being the No. 1 tight end in fantasy this week.
Eric Ebron, Pittsburgh Steelers
Fantasy football players know that Ebron has typically been a boom-or-bust tight end who needs to score for a quality week. After previously posting 13 touchdowns in 2018 with the Indianapolis Colts, it's looking like Ebron has finally settled into his new role with the Steelers.
After only finding the end zone once in the first 6 weeks, Ebron has scored in the past two weeks and looks to have solidified himself as a solid option in the passing game.
He has a favorable matchup this week against a Bengals team that has allowed six touchdowns to tight ends over the past three weeks. If he can find the end zone for the third week in a row, he should be one of the top Week 10 tight ends.
Other Fantasy football tight ends to Start: Mike Gesicki vs Los Angeles Chargers, Austin Hooper vs Houston Texans, Rob Gronkowski vs Carolina Panthers
TEs to Sit in Week 10
Hunter Henry, Los Angeles Chargers
I feel bad for Hunter Henry, as fantasy football pundits seem to predict that he will breakout as a top-five fantasy tight end every season, yet after 49 games over 4.5 seasons, he has yet to be a consistent option in the fantasy world.
While he started out this season hot, as of late, Henry hasn't been reliable from a fantasy perspective (11 catches for 89 yards and no scores in the last three weeks).
When you combine his relative slump with a tough matchup against the Dolphins this week, who have on average allowed 5.8 fantasy points to tight ends this season, it may be wise to leave Henry on the bench in Week 10.
Jordan Reed, San Francisco 49ers
With George Kittle being ruled before last Thursday night's game against the Packers, many fantasy players were quick to grab Jordan Reed off the waiver wire after he posted 50 yards and two touchdowns in Week 2.
Those fantasy players were disappointed with Reed last week after he only caught 1 ball for three yards in that game.
With his injury history, Reed needs to score in order to be a viable fantasy option, and with a matchup against a hot New Orleans Saints defense, Reed finding the end zone seems unlikely.
Irv Smith, Minnesota Vikings
UPDATE: Smith will miss Monday night's game, so no worries about making a decision on him.
Much like Reed, fantasy owners desperate for a tight end likely picked up Smith this week, after he scored twice against the Lions last week.
In 24 games over a season and a half, Smith has flashed tons of potential as a red zone target, but this may be the worst possible week to start him.
The second-year tight end is nursing a groin injury, and even he plays, facing the Monsters of the Midway at Soldier Field on Monday Night Football is always a tough task.
Other fantasy football Tight Ends to Sit: Kyle Rudolph @ Chicago Bears, Tyler Higbee and Gerald Everett, vs Seattle Seahawks
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