Streaming Tight Ends
Back when I was in college, I loved playing intramural football. I played every season and had a blast with it, and on defense, I loved playing safety. I’m not particularly fast, but I’m pretty tall, so when those inevitable deep passes are thrown, the quarterbacks would vastly underestimate my height, and it was easy pickings. I got in the rhythm of lateralling the ball when I could because my buddy, who was also playing safety, was much faster than me. One play after I picked it off, I felt saucy and returned it myself. I began to build up speed as the opposing players inched closer and closer. All that playing Madden kicked in because the next thing I knew, I was tapping triangle to hurdle. I fell in the air, hit, and flipped to the ground in what felt like an out-of-body experience. As I floated in the air, I felt queasy, had the time to reflect on the poor choices I made, and could see my future as nothing but pain.
This flag football play is the 2024 Tight End season. Let’s try and find some points.
Week 5 sure was interesting. Kyle Pitts showed up late in a Thursday night battle, finishing with 7 catches for 88 yards…Finally!! Mark Andrews had his best game of the season and still finished third on his team in tight end scoring. Isaiah Likely found the end zone twice in this game, and Charlie Kolar found paydirt and added 64 yards in the air. Tucker Kraft crushed again for us, bringing in two scores. If he is still available in your league, he needs to be added and can be started confidently until further notice. When George Kittle is out on the field, he has paid off this season. Rough days can arise for Kittle, but he’s been one of the best early TE grabs. Travis Kelce may be back with the loss of Rashee Rice. He saw 10 targets and caught 9 of them. This should be close to the new norm for the Chiefs.
Sam LaPorta has not been used down by the goal line as much as last season. In a matchup with the beat-up Dallas defense, I like Sam to slip in for a TD this week. Dalton Schultz finds himself in a good position this week, with Nico Collins looking to miss a game with a hamstring issue. With Collins gone, that’ll leave quite the target share to be divided up between Schultz, Diggs, and Dell.
And now, here are a handful of streaming options for you all to consider this week:
Tyler Conkin
Jets without a leader
The good news is that at this point in the season, we have much more solid data to put together to tell a predictive story about these teams. The bad news is that tight ends are played by their own rules. Robert Saleh is out in New York, and as of this article, Davante Adams hasn’t been traded. I like the idea of the Jets playing tough in this first game without a coach (as we often see) and stealing this from the Bills. The Bills are on a two-game skid, and things are not looking amazing for that offense, and the defense cannot stay healthy. Conklin has seen 8 targets in his last two games, and this matchup should give him just as many opportunities.
Cade Otton
Bounceback with Baker
I told myself Cade Otton would never be allowed back on this article, but here we are. Usually, this guy has the goal of just getting his steps on the field, but with the injuries to Jalen McMillan and Trey Palmer, it has opened up so much wiggle room that even Sterling Shepard can’t steal. Over the last three games, Otton has seen a 17%, 19%, and 25% target share in this offense and a few end zone targets that just missed coming in. The Buccaneers have a divisional battle with the Saints, and Mike Evans tends to be busy with Marshon Lattimore. Let’s get Otton’s score this week.
Chig Okonkwo
Break Glass in case of Emergency
We are scraping the bottom of the barrel here, folks. This is the deep league play, the desperation, the “I need some Magic” this week play. Chig Okonkwo has not done a whole lot this season, but he might just get it done this week. The Titans are coming off a bye, and we hope Will Levis is calming down a bit, but if there is any team to give a QB a confidence boost, it’s the Colts. They’re coming off a game where Trevor Lawrence looked like he deserved that huge contract extension he received. Through five weeks, the Colts allow the third-most points to the tight end position. I expect a decent amount of scoring in this one, and Chig has a good shot at a few balls and possibly falling in the end zone.
Let me know what you think about these players! Any questions? Please find me on Twitter/X @TooMuch_Brian.
Feature image by Michael Packard (@CollectingPack on Twitter) / Photography by Brian Rothmuller / Icon Sportswire