The story of the tight end position is a tale similar to every sports offseason. There's annual optimism in advance of the season. Yet, optimism turns into reality without fail, and every team isn't playing for a championship. Or, in the case of tight ends, the many mid- and late-round breakout candidates fail to materialize into weekly contributors.
Some gamers understand this reality and pounce on an early-round stud. Others recognize it and intend on streaming out of the chute. Still, others arrive in the streaming group unwittingly after their middle-tier or late-round dart throw flops.
Regardless of how you got here, this is your weekly home for streaming options. Below you'll find three widely available options for Week 11.
Tyler Conklin, Minnesota Vikings
Yahoo! Roster Percentage: 33%
Tyler Conklin is a mainstay in this space. Unfortunately, he had a floor game in Week 12, catching two of three targets for 25 scoreless yards. Nevertheless, he's caught multiple passes in every game this year. The last two weeks just demonstrate the dangers of using Conklin in the Minnesota Vikings' top-heavy offense, with only five receptions for 60 scoreless yards.
Further, Conklin checks some integral boxes compared to other tight ends. According to Pro Football Focus, he's 10th at the position in routes (298) and inside the top-12 since Week 9. As a result, per Pro Football Reference, averaging 3.6 receptions and 37.5 receiving yards per game, scoring three touchdowns. Are those marks exciting? No, they're not. However, they're fringe-starter-worthy at tight end. Finally, according to NFL odds, Conklin's attached to a fantasy-friendly implied total of 26.75 points in Week 13.
Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears
Yahoo! Roster Percentage: 24%
I was leery of using Cole Kmet last week. As a result, I was wrong.
Andy Dalton started for an injured Justin Fields, and Kmet led in targets (11), receptions (eight), and was second in receiving yards (65). He thrived, suffice to say. Dalton has thrown 113 passes this year, and Kmet has ranked second in targets (19) and receptions (14), third in receiving yards (117), and fourth in air yards (104) on Dalton's passes. Meanwhile, Fields has attempted 198 passes, and the second-year tight end has been third in targets (23), receptions (38), receiving yards (242), and air yards (387). As a result, I'm not concerned about who starts for the Chicago Bears this week.
Further, the sophomore tight end came out of the blocks slowly, but he's been at his best since Week 6. In six games since Week 6, Kmet has per-game averages of 6.33 targets, 4.5 receptions, and 46.67 receiving yards. Yes, Kmet hasn't scored a touchdown this year, so that's a fly in the ointment. Still, he's second on the Bears in routes (180), targets (38), receptions (27), and receiving yards (280) since Week 6.
Unfortunately, he has a challenging matchup against the Arizona Cardinals this week. Arizona is allowing the fewest FanDuel points per game to tight ends. Regardless, volume rules the roost, so I'm banking on Kmet's integral role in Chicago's offense, pushing him into fringe starter territory. He's my favorite streamer at the position this week.
Foster Moreau, Las Vegas Raiders
Yahoo! Roster Percentage: 1%
The Las Vegas Raiders won a Thanksgiving shootout against the Dallas Cowboys. However, everything didn't come up roses. Unfortunately, Darren Waller exited with an injury. He appears to be week to week.
#Raiders interim coach Rich Bisaccia says TE Darren Waller and DE Carl Nassib are both week-to-week with knee injuries. LB Nick Kwiatkoski (ankle) could be back this week. CB Keisean Nixon (ankle) is less certain. CB Trayvon Mullen (foot) should be designated for return from IR.
— Tashan Reed (@tashanreed) November 29, 2021
Foster Moreau is the next man up in Waller's absence. The third-year tight end filled in admirably for Waller in Week 7, hauling in all six of his targets for 60 yards and a touchdown. He's reeled in a touchdown in two other games this year, too.
Interestingly, Moreau isn't a plodding tradition tight end. Instead, he's a top-shelf athlete. According to Player Profiler, Moreau's workout metrics amount to an 82nd-percentile 40-yard dash score, 83rd-percentile speed score, 83rd-percentile burst score, 84th-percentile agility score, 90th-percentile catch radius, and 93rd-percentile SPARQ-X score. Thus, he's built for an 80-percent-Waller role.
Moreau's chances have been few and far between in his young career. Still, he's flashed and has the athletic profile that makes me moderately comfortable projecting him as a fringe starter at tight end in leagues as shallow as 12-team formats.
Joshua Shepardson is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Joshua Shepardson also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username bchad50. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his/her personal views, he/she may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his/her personal account. The views expressed in his/her articles are the author’s alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.