Week 6 Fantasy Football Rankings WR and TE Rankings: Starts, Sits, Risers & Fallers (Ep. 2247)
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
55 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Oct 8, 2026
Published
Thu, October 8, 2026
18
Player insights
15
Players mentioned
Topics
Carnell TateKhalil ShakirMichael WilsonDenzel BostonDK MetcalfHarold FanninIsaiah LikelyJosh DownsJuwan JohnsonKeon ColemanMalik WashingtonMarvin Harrison Jr.Mike EvansMike Gesicki
Player analysis
Player insights
Carnell Tate
NegativeProjection29:00
Despite a breakout 145-yard performance on 12 targets, the source is cautious about Carnell Tate this week. The primary concern is the Titans' offensive line facing the Texans' pass rush (Will Anderson and Danielle Hunter), which may limit the time available for downfield passing. Consequently, the source ranks him lower than the consensus, viewing the matchup as difficult despite the Texans' defensive vulnerabilities.
Insight pageNegativeProjection34:17
Erickson is hesitant to chase last week's breakout performance (145+ yards) against the Texans, noting the Texans' defense has struggled primarily against top-tier offenses and should perform better in this divisional matchup. While Tate maintains a strong 27% target share (7th in NFL), he is viewed as a WR3 with a lower ceiling in a likely low-scoring game; Erickson warns against overreacting to one big week.
Insight pageDenzel Boston
PositiveBreakout57:04
Fitz and Erickson are significantly higher on Boston than consensus, viewing him as the most consistent rookie WR in the NFL. He averages 71 yards per game with a 21.8 yards-per-catch average and has established himself as Deshaun Watson's primary target. He is considered a safe flex option with both a floor and a ceiling.
Insight pageDK Metcalf
PositiveUsage21:40
DK Metcalf is a recommended start due to consistent volume, having seen at least nine targets in all but one game this season. While the source notes a difficult matchup against the Colts' secondary, they argue that Metcalf's ability to win one-on-one matchups and his usage in the slot make him a reliable fantasy asset. The source dismisses concerns about the Sauce Gardner matchup, noting Gardner's recent struggles.
Insight pageHarold Fannin
PositiveUsage48:37
Harold Fannin Jr. is a must-start tight end with elite usage, including a 94% route participation rate and 89% snap share, providing a high floor through yardage and recent touchdown production.
Insight pageIsaiah Likely
PositiveUsage44:03
Isaiah Likely is a strong play with elite usage, running routes on 88% of dropbacks last week and maintaining a 30.4% target share in a polarized target tree.
Insight pageJosh Downs
NegativeRole45:06
Downs is a middling WR3 who continues to see consistent route participation but is hampered by a 72% slot usage rate in an offense with a struggling quarterback. Erickson notes the Steelers' defense is particularly effective against slot receivers, making this a difficult matchup. His value could improve if Keenan Allen returns, potentially shifting Downs to the perimeter.
Insight pageJuwan Johnson
PositiveMatchup45:37
Juwan Johnson is a risky start against the Vikings, who allow the sixth-fewest fantasy points to tight ends and the eighth-lowest target share to the position.
Insight pageKeon Coleman
NegativeRole41:05
Keon Coleman is a high-variance player who wins downfield and on 50/50 balls, but his role is potentially limited if DJ Moore is active.
Insight pageKhalil Shakir
PositiveRole41:05
Khalil Shakir is considered a safer, lower-variance option than Keon Coleman because his role in the slot remains solidified regardless of whether DJ Moore is active.
Insight pagePositiveValue66:40
Shakir is a strong WR3 play for Monday night, offering a safer floor than Kean Coleman. His role is solidified by his slot usage, which remains consistent regardless of DJ Moore's injury status. He is also noted as a positive touchdown regression candidate in a high-scoring Bills offense.
Insight pageMalik Washington
NegativeUsage60:45
While Washington boasts a 27% target share, his fantasy output is capped by the Dolphins' low pass volume and his lack of touchdown upside (3 TDs in 35 games). He is a decent flex play due to his slot usage and occasional backfield carries, but analysts warn that his floor is essentially his ceiling.
Insight pageMarvin Harrison Jr.
PositiveProjection42:16
Pat Fitzmaurice has Marvin Harrison Jr. ranked inside his top 40 for the week against the Detroit Lions, with the expectation that the team will prioritize feeding him to boost his trade value.
Insight pageMichael Wilson
PositiveUsage12:01
Michael Wilson is a high-volume target earner, ranking fourth in the league in targets. Despite concerns regarding Jacoby Brissett's efficiency and the loss of left tackle Paris Johnson, the source remains ultra-confident in Wilson due to his 30 targets over the last two games and his role as the clear WR1 in the Cardinals' offense. The matchup against the Lions is considered a high-scoring environment that will force the Cardinals to throw.
Insight pageNegativeUsage42:32
Michael Wilson is expected to be 'ghosted' in the game against the Detroit Lions as the team focuses on feeding Marvin Harrison Jr.
Insight pageMike Evans
PositiveUsage39:14
Despite playing through broken ribs and limited to 59% of snaps, Evans remains a must-start WR2 due to his clear connection with Brock Purdy. Erickson notes that even with reduced snap counts, Evans commands high-value targets, including red-zone looks and third-down conversions, providing a reliable floor even if he exits early due to injury.
Insight pageMike Gesicki
PositiveValue48:06
Andrew Erickson suggests Mike Gesicki as a better start than Juwan Johnson this week, citing his ceiling potential when playing without Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins.
Insight pageZay Flowers
PositiveProjection2:32
Despite the likely absence of Lamar Jackson and the transition to Tyler Huntley, Zay Flowers remains a top-10 wide receiver option. The source notes Flowers has a 28.4% target share, 16.8 yards per target, and 6.64 yards per route run. The matchup against the Falcons is viewed as a positive pass-funnel scenario, and the source argues that Huntley's tendency to play in trailing game scripts may actually increase Flowers' volume.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human. Learn more at staples.com.
0:03It's an interesting week because we've got quarterback injuries and quarterbacks returning and it's always we trust the wide receivers but do we trust their quarterbacks?
0:12Pat, how are you feeling about the wide receivers in general this week?
0:16Yeah, it is going to be a little bit of a challenge this week and I felt like I didn't...
0:22The level of trust maybe in the wide receivers started to run out pretty early in the rankings like after about 17 or so.
0:30Yeah. Whereas normally there are about 25 wide receivers you feel pretty good about, not so much this week.
0:36Yeah, Eric said how about you? Just looking to do better than I did last week in terms of ranking the wide receivers and I got absolutely nuked.
0:44So that's why I'm coming on the show to listen to you guys so you can point me in the right direction.
0:51Yeah, I feel like wide receivers are a trust your guts situation.
0:55Like I knew that we were going to have the most epic Ted Roa-McMillan game that ever existed.
1:01Why not push him up aggressively in rankings? But as you guys see, as we go through these rankings, you'll see some
1:08guys in good matchups that are being pushed up.
1:10Detroit in particular. So yes, we are 100% going to talk about it.
1:14Don't worry. Let's go ahead and dive into the top 12 rankings.
1:18Of course at the top we've got Jackson Smith and Drigba followed by Pukunikua off the big return.
1:24Amun Ross St. Brown always steady. Then we've got Drake London, CeeDee Lamb off the crazy, crazy volume game.
1:30Nico Collins good in his return. Zay Flowers dealing with a quarterback injury.
1:34Chris Olave, Michael Wilson, Malik Nabors, Christian Watson, and Garrett Wilson closing it out at wide receiver 12.
1:40We're going to pull out two guys to talk about in this range.
1:44And I think these are the perfect ones as we talked about just a second ago with the quarterback injuries and the matchups that push guys up.
1:52Um, we've still got Zay Flowers that despite the fact that we may be going into, and probably going to be going into Snoop Huntley territory.
2:00We have Zay Flowers still holding strong at wide receiver seven after the incredible start that he has had this season.
2:07Um, you guys are obviously have him as a top 10 option fits.
2:11You've got him at wide receiver seven Erickson at wide receiver nine.
2:15Um, fits how confident should we still feel despite the fact that we may be without Lamar Jackson this week?
2:21Yeah, maybe it feels a little fanciful to have him still, uh, as a top 10 receiver with Tyler Huntley at quarterback.
2:28Um, you know, but Tyler Huntley can throw a spiral and Zay Flowers has been amazing this year.
2:3416.8 yards per target and 6.64 yards per route run.
2:37And he has a 28.4% target share. I've no doubt he's going to be heavily involved.
2:42And he's going up against a Falcons defense that has been a complete pass funnel this year.
2:47They're hard to run on. They're not so hard to throw on.
2:51Um, even though it's Tyler Huntley and not Lamar, I still feel pretty good about Zay Flowers.
2:56Yeah, it's interesting. Atlanta is dealing with all of these injuries across the board on the line and the secondary suspension, obviously.
3:03But yet they're staying very strong up front against the run.
3:07So you're right. I just, you know, we've got the injuries here.
3:10So despite the quarterback situation, this is still a positive matchup for Zay Flowers.
3:15Erickson, how are you feeling about Zay this week?
3:18I still feel pretty good about him. It feels disingenuous to not move him down because of the quarterback change where going
3:25from Lamar Jackson to Tyler Huntley, although he's a pro bowl quarterback.
3:28So you feel like I need to move Zay Flowers down.
3:32But when you actually look at the numbers last five games with Huntley, he actually has 0.5 points per game better than he does with Lamar Jackson.
3:40So now a lot of that has to do with like touchdown variance where if he scores and something, because again, Flowers
3:47has not been a touchdown guy basically up until this season.
3:51So his targets, though, have gone up per game.
3:54Receptions have also gone up per game with Tyler Huntley.
3:57And that goes back to, well, what kind of game scripts are the Ravens in when they don't have Lamar Jackson?
4:03More negative game scripts because the team doesn't play nearly as well.
4:07They're facing more trailing game scripts. So Huntley has to throw more and at least to more volume.
4:13So for the purposes of the game that we play, it may not be the worst thing in the world that Lamar Jackson is out.
4:21Again, it feels disingenuous to say that. But when you just look at the numbers and how things kind of pan out,
4:27it's like, well, should I be looking at the Zay Flowers ranking as we shouldn't be knocking him down really in any way.
4:35If they were Jackson was playing in this game, where would Zay Flowers be ranked?
4:39Yeah. Like three. So for me, I'm kind of like, should I just put him back up at three because the way
4:46that Declan Doyle uses him in this offense, he's moving all around the formation.
4:51He's going to be the first read for every single drop back for Tyler Huntley.
4:55Like that is so obviously going to be the can't the plan.
4:59Fitz already talked about how you attack the Falcons through the air.
5:03The Ravens offensive line is super compromised in the interior.
5:06They continue to lose guys left and right. And the Falcons have the number one run defense in the NFL.
5:12So as much as I'd like to suggest that this game is going to be Derek Henry, blowing up with 30 carries
5:19and that he's going to get a lot of volume.
5:22How effective is that going to be if Derek Henry doesn't rip off one of these big marquee runs and he gets continually stuffed where no, they're down.
5:31The Falcons offense is humming on the other side as I've done the last two weeks with Pennix and B.
5:38John and Drake London. If the Ravens have no answers for that.
5:41I mean, it might be a boon for Zay Flowers that do they're down 14 nothing and they got to drop back
5:48to throw 45 times like sign me up for that.
5:51So again, I like coming on these shows trying to be convinced otherwise of how I should move these players into me.
5:58It's like there's no AJ Terrell past funnel defense.
6:01Zay Flowers with a full complement of routes run.
6:04If you can run 40 routes in this game, he's moving all over the field and why he's so good and why
6:11he's so effective is because elite after the catch.
6:14So it's not even on Tyler Huntley. Hey, just get the ball to Zay Flowers and he'll do the rest.
6:20So to me, I'm like, I guess I'm going to move back up to like inside the top five because yeah, I
6:27love how deadpan Erickson was when he referred to Tyler Huntley as a pro bowl quarterback.
6:32He said a lot of words after that, but I was just stuck on that the whole time.
6:38So don't worry. I caught all the words. I was like day Erickson is cooking on this argument here.
6:44Yeah, I mean we get these, you know, superstar wide receivers and here we go.
6:48Anytime he has been on the field. I mean quite it's incredible.
6:52There have been two games where we have not even seen him play 50% of snaps because of the injury situation.
6:59So it's very interesting. How much can we punish somebody who again, we're talking about a positive matchup and a situation where
7:06they could theoretically be playing from behind because of the way that the operate the Falcons have been operating incredible.
7:12So it'll be really interesting all around to see how these two teams match up.
7:17Um, let's talk about another one that, um, is very interesting moving up in rankings.
7:21Ironically, I get a ton of start sick questions about Michael Wilson.
7:25I wonder how many I will get this week in our favorite, most positive matchup that ever existed against Detroit.
7:31We've got Michael Wilson all the way up. The rankers are not playing games on this one all the way up to
7:38wide receiver 19 after seeing what Tadaroa McMillan did last week.
7:42I mean, you just can't ignore it. I mean, so he's at wide receiver nine and Erickson.
7:47You've got him at wide receiver seven fits at wide receiver 10.
7:51So yes, a bonafide top 10 receiver fits. Talk to us about Michael Wilson.
7:55You're playing him for sure. Uh, he's fourth in the league and targets right now behind only CD lamb and Chris Olave and Amon Ross St.
8:03Brown. And the fact that Marvin Harrison jr. Can't get going is just benefiting Michael Wilson.
8:08He's clearly the number one receiver in this offense.
8:11And the matchup with the lions is amazing. I guess the only thing I worry about is that Jacoby Brissett has not
8:18exactly been a paragon of efficiency to begin with as a passer.
8:22And now they just lost Paris Johnson, their left tackle to a torn biceps and he's done for the season.
8:28And I just this past game has not been functioning at a super efficient level to begin with.
8:34And now they lose their best pass blocker. And I worry a little bit about how that goes, but look, you're, you're
8:41playing Michael Wilson this week and feeling good about it.
8:44Yeah. Incoming. You've been very good point on the offensive line.
8:47Still incoming 40 easy attempts for Jacoby Brissett in this matchup.
8:51Um, Erickson, how are you feeling? Like what's, what's the level of positivity that you've got to put him at wide receiver seven this week?
8:59I acknowledge the efficiency is definitely been lackluster for Michael Wilson in this Cardinals passing game and losing Paris Johnson doesn't help.
9:06But I mean, how many offensive linemen were the Carolina Panthers down against the lions?
9:10Like more multiple. It didn't even matter because of just how bad the secondary is.
9:15And if you just slow down Aiden Hutchinson, that's all you got to do.
9:19And you can score at will against this lines defense that can't get out of their own way.
9:25So you have dome script scenario playing in Arizona.
9:28So that at least they're at home. So at least they're not going to be dealing with crowd noise or anything like along those lines.
9:36We have the lions offense. The other side, it's going to be pushing the pedal to the metal.
9:41And we know that the Cardinals are team that second half they're down 21.
9:46Doesn't matter. We're going to keep dropping back to throw and we're going to get our guys as many targets as humanly possible.
9:53So even though Wilson may not be super efficient, this guy has 30 targets in the last two games.
9:59Jacoby Brissett has had games where we've seen Michael Wilson go north of 15 targets.
10:04So even if it takes 18 targets to get him to 100 yards one way or another, he's going to get there.
10:11So even if his catch rate is under 50%, the sheer amount of volume that he is seeing is just absolutely absurd,
10:18especially because he's seeing a lot of downfield usage, seventh highest air yard share.
10:22He's third in the NFL and red zone targets.
10:25So he has some positive touchdown regression that may work in his favor.
10:29And just looking back at last year, three of his biggest games, 185 yards.
10:33This is Michael Wilson, 185 yards on 18 targets, 118 yards on 15 targets, 142 yards on 16 targets.
10:39So although it feels weird to put Michael Wilson at wide receiver seven, he's had performances like this before in the past
10:46with this quarterback in these type of game scripts.
10:49So yes, ultra confident in playing him, even if it's not the most efficient outing for Michael Wilson.
10:55I just think that he's just going to get there.
10:58Yeah. And key point that you made that I did want to highlight.
11:02They've been on the road for the past two games and last week was a little bit of a wet game as well.
11:09So back at home. Yeah. Yeah. Against Detroit, that is also a very positive environment for Jared Goff to push aggressive volume.
11:16Yeah, this is a very lighted up scenario for both of these teams.
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12:12All right, let's go on to the next group of wide receivers.
12:16And it's a fun one because there's a lot of guys in here who have high upside.
12:21And then there's some guys in here who unfortunately are super untrustworthy.
12:25Like Erickson, you were right. Once we get past those top 12 is where you have to start making those real decisions in rankings are shifting.
12:33We've got Parker Washington still holding on good after the down week wide receiver 13.
12:38Then we've got Devante Adams, Matthew Golden continuing to moving up in the rankings.
12:43George Pickens, Jalen Waddell, Jamison Williams at 18. DK Metcalf, Luther Burden, Carnell Tate at 21.
12:48Mike Evans at 22. Stefan Diggs and then Josh Downs holding strong at wide receiver 24.
12:53All right, let's let's pull out some of the ones that everybody's got the big question marks around in terms of trust level.
13:00Right. We've got DK Metcalf, the first one we're going to talk about coming off of a surprisingly strong performance.
13:06But do we trust it? ECR has him at wide receiver 19 fits here at wide receiver 20 Erickson wide receiver 22.
13:13So not too far back. So I'm certainly in the range of guys, a guy that we are putting into our starting lineups.
13:20Fitz, I'll start off with you. What's the what's the feel this week with DK Metcalf?
13:25Yeah, so Erickson hates DK Metcalf, but he is 10th in the league in targets.
13:30And we were reminded last week against the Browns that DK Metcalf is still pretty good.
13:35Like five catches 115 yards on nine targets. You regretted it if if you benched him.
13:40And I do worry a little bit about the matchup with the Colts who really give it up to slot receivers, but are pretty good against outside receivers.
13:49Colts have allowed the second most fantasy points to slot guys, third fewest fantasy points to outside receivers, according to fantasy points data.
13:56And, you know, Metcalf is probably going to get locked up with Sauce Gardner for some of this game.
14:02But we were worried about him getting locked up with Denzel Ward last week against the Browns and Metcalf still clicked.
14:09So I think in a week like this where there's a lot of ambiguity, a wide receiver, you should probably just start him.
14:16Yeah. Volume is carrying has had a minimum of nine targets in all but one game.
14:21That was against Cincinnati. Erickson, just a little bit lower on DK Metcalf.
14:25Are you are you feeling it? Are you are you going to shift over and beyond the DK Metcalf side?
14:31I have moved him up a little bit closer to the ECR up at now wide receiver 22.
14:37So I still hate DK Metcalf because he made me lose money on Thursday night because I bet is under in three quarters in.
14:44I'm feeling great. Denzel Ward is locking him down.
14:47He can't get open. He can't squeeze the football.
14:50All he's always getting penalties and then they move him inside.
14:54He gets masked up against and forgive me. I don't remember the Browns slot corner, but the Browns slot funnel defense just
15:00gave it up to DK Metcalf and he was ripping off big plays.
15:05He had 22 receiving yards before the fourth quarter comeback, which he had 93 in the fourth quarter comeback push by the Pittsburgh Steelers.
15:12So it felt good fading him. And then obviously I did not make that right call at the end of the day,
15:19but that's why you play four quarters. So no victory laps.
15:22No early victory laps to me from DK Metcalf.
15:25It's part of the reason why I was not great ranking receivers last week, but the sauce garden matchup, I think is
15:32actually kind of interesting because a couple of weeks ago you asked me about this.
15:37I would be like, man, this is going to be a tough spot for Metcalf, but dude sauce gardener has been getting
15:44cooked the last couple of games and has been against guys that are not particularly good.
15:49So maybe that's why Metcalf will have a good game because I don't think Metcalf is really that great.
15:55Sometimes he's I think he's a little bit of an overrated wide receiver, but the last two weeks, the Colts number the
16:02Colts number one quarterback has been giving up big production to guys like Xavier Hutchinson, Diane Brown and trail on Burks.
16:08Like if he's getting beat by those guys, like, yeah, Metcalf is going to have his fair chance to win some of these one on one matchups.
16:17And that's not even considering if they do decide to move around the formation a little bit, which I thought they did
16:24a little bit more against the Cleveland Browns to kind of open him up because it's just one of these simple things
16:31that I don't know why offices don't do this.
16:34It's like get this big bodied guy against this tiny nickel back slot cornerback and just watch him dominate as opposed to,
16:40oh, yeah, let's just have him try to beat Denzel Ward one on one on 40 routes.
16:46It's like, dude, he's not going to win these one on one matchups.
16:50That's not his game. So, yeah, I think that he is definitely a good start.
16:55And I think that the point that fits me at the end was really good where it's like, you know, he's going to get targets, right?
17:03Yeah, if he's going to still see nine, 10 targets, whatever ends up happening, you'll take.
17:08But the process suggests chasing the volume here in a relatively good matchup against the Colts defense that has been very underwhelming
17:15this season with an offense that is dropping back to throw a decent clip.
17:19I think it makes a lot of sense. Good thing the Colts didn't give up a lot to get Sauce Gardner.
17:26I was going to say, Carly Irsay, help us out.
17:29And now they're going to give up more to get Marvin Harrison Jr.
17:33Oh, the Colts. Geez. Yeah, we could we could wreck.
17:36You know what? We'll talk about the Colts more in a second, actually.
17:40But before we do that, we got to talk about Carnell Tate moving on up in the rankings aggressively up to wide
17:47receiver 21 off of the massive breakout game. One hundred and forty five yards.
17:51But now the matchup with Houston. But Houston defense been a little vulnerable dealing with injuries as well.
17:57But you guys have not moved Carnell Tate up that much, which I totally understand.
18:02And Erickson, you've got him at wide receiver 28.
18:05Fitz at wide receiver 27. So you guys are kind of on the same page.
18:09Not overreacting. We're feeling good, but we're not overreacting too much.
18:13Fitz, how are you looking at Carnell Tate this week?
18:16Oh, man, it's great that we got the breakout game from him last week.
18:20Nine for one hundred and forty five on twelve targets against the Ravens.
18:24More than doubled his receiving yardage from his first three games.
18:28Tate hadn't had more than 58 yards in any of those contests.
18:32I'm still finding it hard to trust the Titans passing game, which is why I'm behind consensus.
18:37And while the Texans have actually given up more fantasy points to wide receivers than any other defense so far.
18:43I just I'm still finding it hard to think of Houston as a good matchup for opposing passing games when they've got
18:50Will Anderson and Daniil Hunter steaming off the edges to pressure quarterbacks.
18:54And Carnell Tate is a guy who has to get downfield to do damage.
18:58And I just I don't know if Cam Ward is going to have enough time to find Carnell Tate on a bunch of downfield throws.
19:06So I do I'm not as confident in Carnell Tate as ECR seems to be.
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20:50going to have to be able to hold off the defensive line in order to get the ball downfield to Tate.
20:57Erickson, what, what, how are you feeling? Are there apprehensions regarding Tate this week?
21:01A little bit. I think that you definitely want to, and you feel like you want to chase the high from last
21:08week where man's guy had over 145 receiving yards, breakout game.
21:11We're so excited about it. He has arrived. He is him.
21:15Carnell Tate. But then you look at the matchup against the Texans, and yeah, they have been getting crushed by explosive plays this season.
21:2230th in deep ball passing expected points allowed. 8th in EPA per pass attempt faced this season.
21:28But look at who they have faced. Buffalo, top 10 offense.
21:31Bengals, top 10 offense. Cowboys, top 5 offense. Indianapolis.
21:34And that was the only game that the defense actually played well when they played a bad offense.
21:40Where are the Titans falling on that scale? Probably dead last.
21:43So this is probably a spot where the Texans defense from last year actually shows up.
21:48Because that defense has not been anywhere except in that Indianapolis Colts game.
21:52So again, providing context behind how these teams have performed, a lot of it's based on, well, who have they gone up against?
21:59So this is the easiest matchup for the Texans defense.
22:03And that's why I'm just a little bit hesitant on yes last week.
22:07I thought last week was a good matchup for the Titans.
22:10I thought that the Ravens secondary has been beaten at times this season.
22:14So again, Cardinal Tate can still catch a deep ball.
22:17And that's how he's going to pay off a wide receiver three type of price tag.
22:22But in terms of actual consistency, I think we're probably more likely to get some of his older games where he's still
22:29seeing a lot of volume, but maybe not really having this high type of ceiling.
22:34Especially in a game that if it's a little bit lower scoring, it's a divisional game.
22:39The Texans are road favorites playing in Tennessee. Maybe this is more of a game that goes through the slog and not
22:46really a fun shootout type of environment where, at least last week, the Titans were slinging the ball over the yard.
22:53Especially in the second half where Tate was able to collect even more yardage.
22:57So you feel confident that he's going to get some volume because he has been the target share leader.
23:03He's seventh in target share per game this season at 27%.
23:06That's seventh best in the NFL among wide receivers.
23:09But I just think that expecting him to do something like this again.
23:13Again, Kenyon Sadiq, right? One week over 100 yards.
23:16We're like, dude, he has arrived. He has him next week.
23:20Airball. And that happens with rookies. So yeah, that's the only reason.
23:23And again, if you didn't start him last week, you definitely feel gutted because like, oh my God, I missed it.
23:30And then you feel like I got to start him this week.
23:34But if you play fantasy long enough, you know how this goes, right?
23:38Like you start the guy after the high and then he just busts the next week because that's how fantasy football works.
23:45So wide receiver three. Don't go more aggressive than that, in my opinion.
23:49Yeah, I agree with that one. Let's talk about someone who is quite literally the exact opposite of current L.
23:55Tate in terms of age, situation and quarterback as well.
23:58Mike Evans. We know when he's on the field.
24:01He is fantastic. It's just a question of him continuing to play through these injuries.
24:06And we've also got an interesting matchup this week.
24:09So Mike Evans at ECR wide receiver 22. You guys are slightly further back with Fitz.
24:14You have him at wide receiver 24. Erickson at wide receiver 26.
24:17Although comparison, you guys clearly both have him ranked ahead of a guy like Carnell Tate.
24:22So is it still leaning on the veteran presence and the upside and proven knowing exactly what he can do when he's on the field?
24:30Fitz, we'll start off with you. Yeah, Evans had a season high eight targets last week against Denver.
24:36Finished with five catches, 76 yards. He's got two touchdowns this season.
24:40I know Seattle's a tough matchup. I just don't really want to fade Mike Evans, especially when he is playing with a
24:47quarterback, Brock Purdy, who has just been lights out this season.
24:50So tough matchup for sure. I'm still starting Mike Evans.
24:53Yeah. Erickson, how about you? Yeah, he's probably someone that I definitely feel like I need to move up a little bit.
25:00The fact that he was able to do what he did last week.
25:04Wow. Grimacing after every single reception because the dude's playing with frigging broken ribs and goes out and leads the team in
25:11targets despite playing just 59% of the snaps. Look, Kyle Shanahan has turned a new leaf this year where he's actually monitoring
25:18the health of his players to make sure that they're not going to be gone by the mid part of the season.
25:25Right. Right. He is much more aware and in tune of how these guys are feeling health wise and managing their workloads.
25:32But that hasn't been a bad thing for Mike Evans because when he's on the field, the dude's getting the rock.
25:39Like that's so apparent that he and Brock Purdy already have a built connection.
25:43And even though he didn't score last week, he got tackled at the one yard line.
25:48So I think that there is an opportunity still for Mike Evans where even if he only plays 50%, 60% of the
25:55snaps, where is he going to be on the field and third down conversions and in the red zone?
26:01And they're going to need him to try to upset the Seattle Seahawks.
26:05So Fitz alluded to it, but I don't want to bet against this guy, man.
26:10This dude is an absolute warrior. And if he gets knocked out of the game and so be it, we're all going
26:17to be wrong where we ranked him. He's going to be a bust.
26:21But if that doesn't happen, well, I think you're going to be happier that you started him, especially as a wide receiver too.
26:28You know, even if it does happen, quite frankly, you know, you look at the Miami game, just 50% of snaps still
26:35managed to get just over eight fantasy points. So it's a situation where at least we know if he is active and
26:42on the first drive, you're probably getting two, maybe three targets his way with the touchdown opportunity.
26:47So there is at least the reality of a certain floor, even if for some reason he gets knocked out in the
26:54second half and can't make it through the game.
26:57So yeah, really, really good point on both ends for you guys.
27:01Now, someone that unfortunately is not dealing with a fantastic quarterback situation in the shaky team environment.
27:06We talked about the Colts just a second ago.
27:09And let's look at Josh Downs at wide receiver 24 in ECR.
27:13He is still holding on strong, despite the fact that we were just wildly underwhelmed in what we were expecting to be
27:19a decent matchup for him against Washington. Erickson, you've got him at wide receiver 23.
27:24Fitz, you've got him at wide receiver 21. So you guys just slightly higher.
27:29Is it a volume thing? Erickson, we'll start off with you.
27:32What is what is what should keep us holding on strong with Josh Downs, despite the fact that we've got no Alec
27:39Pierce and we've still yet to see a ceiling game from him?
27:43Well, we're still seeing all the routes, which is good.
27:46So he's not being pigeonholed back into a part time role.
27:49The bad thing is that he's still being used mostly inside as a slot receiver.
27:54So in certain matchups, he can take advantage of that.
27:57I thought JJ Zacharyson did a really good job of pointing out that last week against the commanders, their defense had been
28:04really giving it up to a lot of perimeter wide receivers, which is why we saw guys like Laquan Treadwell and Ashton
28:11Doolin like pop off to have like productive games.
28:14And we're like, where's Josh Downs? Is he inactive too?
28:17Like I woke up and Josh Downs put up an air ball in London.
28:21What's going on here? And that was really the reason why it was because the commanders defense is more of a funnel outside the numbers type of defense.
28:30And unfortunately, in this matchup against the Steelers, it's the same thing.
28:34They have allowed the fewest points per game percentage wise to slot receivers and Downs right now has been 72% slot rate this season.
28:41So I think Downs is falling back into that middling wide receiver three territory where we like the talent.
28:47We know we can command targets, but I think we might get somewhere to what we got again last week just because
28:54of where he's deployed on the field. And the fact that, I mean, Daniel Jones, like there's not, he's not, he is not him.
29:02Like that is so clear that this guy has lost his step coming off of the Achilles injury, which I think most
29:09of us kind of expected that they were definitely not going to repeat what they did in the first half of 2025.
29:16So with Jamal Dean out also for the Steelers, unfortunately, unless they decide to move Josh Downs outside, which they can still do right.
29:23That's still a possibility, but not necessarily something I want to necessarily bank on in my rankings because he has been deployed more in the slot.
29:31Now, does that change a little bit? If Keenan Allen does come back because you could see the corollary where he comes
29:38back, gets nuked in the rankings, but then blows up because, oh, yes.
29:42After week five, he actually played more outside and took advantage of some of these worst perimeter cornerbacks for the Pittsburgh Steelers
29:49who obviously don't have Joey Porter Jr. anymore and won't have Jamal Dean.
29:53So I would keep status on Keenan Allen. I actually think I'll move Josh Downs up if Keenan Allen actually ends up playing.
30:01But for right now, if Allen misses another game, just can be more slot usage for Josh Downs, which unfortunately is not the best matchup against the Steelers.
30:09Yeah, that that's an excellent point on that one.
30:12It's very interesting to see how one receiver like Keenan Allen coming back in can adjust.
30:17It's kind of like Philadelphia last week. We thought, OK, Devante Adams exiting.
30:21We're going to see maybe we'll see Makai Lemon on the outside a little bit more.
30:26And no, no, we didn't. So hopefully we can get this going with Josh Downs.
30:31Before we move on to our next set of receivers, if you're not sure how to start, get fast, free start or
30:38sit advice with the Fantasy Pros Who Should I Start tool.
30:42Compare your players and get instant recommendations powered by more than 150 fantasy experts.
30:46Set your best lineup today at fantasypros.com slash start.
30:49All right. Moving on to wide receivers, 25 through 36 at 25.
30:53Kicking it off, we've got Romeo Dobbs coming off the big game where he actually stepped up as the man who did, in fact, get paid.
31:01Then we have Jordan Addison, Debo Samuel, Devon Vele, Roma Dunzey, Denzel Boston, Malik Washington moving up in the rankings.
31:07Don Tavian Wicks, Casey Concepcion, Trey Tucker, Emeka Abuka, and Jacoby Myers.
31:11I love the names that we are going to talk about here, not because I particularly love putting them into my starting
31:18lineup, but because these are, again, a lot of names that people have a lot of start sick questions around.
31:24It's in that flex range where you're thinking, you know, do I do this or do I, you know, trust a guy
31:31that's a little bit lower and a better matchup?
31:34So let's pull out and talk about Devon Vele in this one, who is operating as the Saints wide receiver, too.
31:40He continues to see interesting volume as Tyler Shuck just continues to push aggressive volume.
31:45We talked about that a little bit earlier in the running backs ranking show when we were talking about Alvin Kamara.
31:52The offensive line, unfortunately, is just struggling, but we continue to see this aggressive volume from Tyler Shuck.
31:57So Fitz, why don't you start us off here with Devon Vele?
32:01We have him at wide receiver 28 in ECR.
32:04You guys are significantly lower. You are not. Again, this is a big game guy, not adjusting too much and overreacting.
32:10You've got him at wide receiver 35 and Erickson at wide receiver 42.
32:15Is Fitz's matchup playing a big role in this one?
32:18It is. Vikings are a difficult matchup, and they're going to put pressure on Tyler Shuck.
32:23As you mentioned, Tara, that Saints offensive line has some issues.
32:26And I feel like Vele is maybe benefiting from the garbage time touchdown he got in ECR.
32:32Last week, total cosmetic touchdown. Really impressive catch. I'll give Devon Vele that.
32:36Very acrobatic. But it was the end of the game and a blowout.
32:40And because Vele got that touchdown, I think that sort of put him, elevated his status in the minds of some rankers.
32:47He hasn't hit 70 yards in any of his first four games.
32:50And this is a difficult matchup. So I just, I can't quite get him into, you know, mid-range, high-end wide receiver three status this week.
32:58More of a low-end wide receiver three for me.
33:01Yeah, I think that makes a ton of sense.
33:04Erickson also matchup and maybe a little bit more that's pushing him back for you?
33:09First half, he had one catch or two yards on two targets.
33:12Yeah. So I think that the garbage time look on Devon Vele, the Saints are just in for a rude awakening.
33:19The trash man's not coming to pick up the trash this week.
33:23So just be very careful with the Saints because they've been boosted by just raw volume.
33:28Tyler Shuck has 180 pass attempts this season that leads the NFL.
33:32And the Vikings are not a team where they will build such a grand lead, in my opinion, where the Saints will have opportunities to face.
33:40There's no such thing as soft coverage against Brian Flores.
33:43Like, he doesn't play off coverage. It's, oh no, every single yard you have to earn.
33:48They don't give up garbage time points. So I think that's just a really tough spot for the Saints offense.
33:54And Devon Vele, I just think he's going to feel probably the brute of this type of matchup.
34:00Yeah, I was actually going to ask you that exact explanation there.
34:04We might be in a weird situation where, unfortunately, bad defense, but also the bad situation of the offense with Kyler Murray.
34:11Just not being that effective that you don't get into a chasing point situation.
34:15So it could be just a very weird game script.
34:18We'll talk about somebody else who has not been super game script because he is the wide receiver one.
34:24It has been Denzel Boston holding it down in Cleveland.
34:27ECR wide receiver 30. So he's falling slightly behind Devon Vele.
34:31But you guys are not on board with that.
34:33You guys both have Denzel Boston above Vele in your rankings.
34:37Fitz at wide receiver 26. Erickson at wide receiver 29.
34:40Fitz, since you're a little higher, let's start off with you on Denzel Boston.
34:44I love this guy. I think this kid is a star in the making.
34:49I want to be above consensus on Denzel Boston every week.
34:52Four catches, 89 yards last week. He's averaging 71 yards a game.
34:56He scored two touchdowns. He's averaging 21.8 yards per catch, 12.9 yards per target, 2.39 yards per route run.
35:02Jets are not a matchup to be feared. I want Denzel Boston in my lineups.
35:07Yeah. Erickson, how about you? I would rather start him than Cardinal Tate this week because I think that Denzel Boston has
35:14been through four weeks, the most consistent rookie wide receiver in the NFL.
35:18So I'm not going to let one Cardinal Tate week breakout game, although I'm excited about him, deter me from the entire
35:25sample size, which has been Denzel Boston dominating, not even seeing the most targets on the Browns offense, but operating clearly as that number one wide receiver.
35:33And they talked about it on the entire broadcast on Thursday night.
35:37Like who does Deshaun Watson trust the most of all these receivers?
35:41Denzel Boston. So the consistency has been there. The ceiling has been there because of how he's used downfield and the matchup
35:48is great against the New York Jets. So to me, it's just kind of boggling where we're just ready to like crown Cardinal Tate.
35:55He's locked and loaded. And it's like, well, Denzel Boston.
35:58I mean, who's been better at quarterback, Deshaun Watson or Cam Ward this year?
36:03It's probably been Deshaun Watson. Like, and I don't want to admit that.
36:07Like, trust me, I don't want Deshaun Watson to be good, but like, the proof is in the pudding guys.
36:13Yeah. He's been way more consistent than Cardinal Tate has been this year.
36:17And I think that this ranking in ECR is, you know, a little disrespectful.
36:22I think. It is. It's like, he's got the stench of the Browns on him, but the Browns technically don't have a
36:29stench right now in terms of how they've been operating.
36:32And you mentioned he's got the ceiling and he's got a floor.
36:35So no matter how this offense is operating, he is consistently getting those looks that makes him a very safe flex option.
36:42So I'm 100% with you guys on this one.
36:45Malik Washington, though, is a very interesting one. I've, you know, we've been skeptical to get on board with Malik Washington and understandable.
36:52It is Miami and Malik Willis has been going through it, unfortunately, as he is trying to push through bad offensive line,
36:59just bad team situation in general, but he is up to wide receiver 31.
37:04Remember, this is half PPR. He does have an edge in full PPR.
37:08Fitz, you've got him at wide receiver 35 and Erickson wide receiver 35 too.
37:12So you guys equally below on Washington and consensus.
37:15Erickson, we'll start off with you. What are the, what are the apprehensions with Malik Washington aside from the obvious, right?
37:22Yeah. I mean, he plays in the Dolphins offense.
37:24So that's going to cap his ceiling because he's got really great usage through four games.
37:29Washington is, has a 27% target share. That is sixth highest in the NFL.
37:34The result, he has not been higher than wide receiver 39 in any game this season.
37:39So that's where you can't get too excited about a guy like Malik Washington because the offense is just going to always cap it.
37:46And part of it's also on him too, right?
37:49Like he has to be better at converting. Now he is coming off his best game of the season.
37:55So maybe that's ECR kind of buying into the fact that, okay, maybe he's a young player who started to really kind
38:02of turn the corner here, come into his own, getting caught all five of his targets last week for 67 yards, nearly a 29% target share.
38:10It is also nice too, that he's also getting some carries out of the backfield, given the injuries to Devon Achan and
38:17the fact that we have Ali Gordon and Jalen Wright.
38:20They are giving carries to Malik Washington as well.
38:23So matchup is good. Bengals fourth worst for slot receivers.
38:26Malik Washington north of 60% slot snaps over the last two games.
38:30I think that he is a good flex play, but not someone that I'm like, man, I got to jam in Malik
38:37Washington just because we've seen it, right? Like, yeah, he has not, he has not shown that he can even be a wide receiver.
38:45It hasn't happened yet. So that's the only like pushback that I would do against like the ECR, but he is trending
38:52in the right direction, I would say. Yeah. Fitz, how about you?
38:55Yeah. That 27.2% target share is good, but it means a little less on a team that has the second fewest pass attempts in the league.
39:03But what's good about Washington, I think this year compared to the role he was playing last year is it seemed like
39:10every target he got in 2025 was within five yards of the line of scrimmage.
39:15And now I think his average depth of target is closer to like 10 yards.
39:20This year, he's got a 31.1% air yard share for the Dolphins.
39:24So that's the good news, but the low pass volume is restrictive and like Malik Washington has scored three touchdowns at 35 career NFL games.
39:31So not a lot of touchdown upside here. So it's, it's kind of empty volume.
39:36Yeah. I'm not super excited about him, but there's a floor here, I guess.
39:41Yeah. There's a floor and the floor is the ceiling, unfortunately.
39:44So you guys are right on that. If it came with some more yardage, we could get behind it, but it's just not coming.
39:52Unfortunately, let's talk about some deeper plays as well.
39:54Now, these are very interesting ones that people will be keyed in on because they're injury related.
40:00Erickson, talk to us about Khalil Shakir and the possibility with DJ Moore playing through an injury.
40:05Yeah. Yeah. DJ Moore's banged up. We don't know how effective or how much he is going to play.
40:11If he's even going to play on Monday, because the bills are facing the Rams on Monday night.
40:17So we're not going to get his injury status until Thursday at the earliest, but Shakir stepped up last week alongside Kean
40:24Coleman caught seven of eight targets for 82 yards.
40:26So Shakir has always been a floor play for the most part, his entire career, similar to what we just talked about with Malik Washington.
40:34But he does also play on the bills offense.
40:37So there is always a slight chance that he can erupt in a ceiling type of performance because this bills offense can score 30 points on literally anybody.
40:46He has been used more in the red zone so far this season.
40:50So he is also a positive touchdown regression candidate.
40:53And the fact that they're playing the Rams in a dome as underdogs.
40:57Oh, bills, bills, bills, bills, bills, bills. Give me the bills.
41:00So give me the receivers. I like Shakir as a strong wide receiver three play.
41:05Do you like Shakir or Kean Coleman more? I think that Shakir is way safer and way less of a high variance
41:12type of player where Kean Coleman wins a lot downfield, wins 50, 50 balls.
41:16Obviously he's shown a lot of growth, but if DJ more is active, I do think that that also limits Kean Coleman's
41:23role, whereas Shakir's role will stay the same regardless because of how he operates from the slot.
41:29That is an excellent point because if you're waiting and we don't get this until a game time decision, um, the safer
41:36option for sure is going to be Kean Coleman having, or see, or Khalil Shakir having a solidified role regardless of what happens with DJ more.
41:44But Pat, yours is also an injury guy that is moving on up in rankings.
41:48Uh, talk to us about Dante Myers. Yeah. Yeah.
41:51The, uh, former Canadian football league standout all of a sudden is playing a fantasy relevant role for the Bengals.
41:58Um, I've got him right now at wide receiver 30.
42:01That is assuming Jamar Chase and T Higgins are both out.
42:04Obviously I'll have to drop him a little bit.
42:07Um, but like, it looks like he's going to be Joe Burrow's number one wide receiver this week.
42:13So I think Dante Myers is a sneaky start.
42:16And, uh, just as a bonus Tara, I've got Marvin Harrison Jr.
42:19ranked inside my top 40 this week because he's playing the Detroit Lions.
42:23There we go. If Marvin can't come to life against the Lions, abandon all hope.
42:28Dude, they got to boost his trade value as much as he did.
42:32That's what's going to happen, right? Michael Wilson is going to get absolutely ghosted in this game.
42:38It's all going to go to Marv because they're like, dude, we can get at least a second round pick.
42:44Now, if he has a monster game against the Detroit Lions, do you see what T-Mac did to this Lions defense?
42:50We got to just feed Marvin Harrison Jr. Dude, I could totally see that happening.
42:55Oh man. God. Okay. This is like a worst nightmare coming true.
42:59Cause I, I need Michael Wilson big boom this week.
43:02I'm relying on it. Okay. So cross our fingers.
43:05That is not going to happen, but it could.
43:08All right. Let's talk about tight ends. But before we do that, just as a reminder, take the guesswork out of your
43:15start, sit decisions with the fantasy pros start, sit assistant instantly.
43:18See your optimal lineup based on your roster scoring settings and advice for more than a hundred fantasy experts.
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43:30All right, let's go into the tight ends. We're going to talk the top 12 tight ends.
43:35Uh, we've got Trey McBride, of course, at number one, Brock Bowers at two, Sam Laporta holding on at three, George Kittle
43:42at four, Tyler Warren, Dalton Kincaid, Tucker Kraft coming off the big game.
43:46Isaiah likely at eight Colston Loveland, Harold Fannin Jr.
43:49Juwan Johnson and Mike is sick. Closing things out at 12 coming in there, um, with the Bengals wide receivers all banged up.
43:56Makes sense. So let's start things out. We're going to pull out a few of these names to go in depth.
44:03We're going to talk about Isaiah. Likely he's an interesting one because we know he's the second look in this offense.
44:10We saw the Malik neighbors bounce back. It's just a matter of how much, how much are we trusting Jameis Winston?
44:16Can what we saw last week carry through easier has him at tight end eight fits and Erickson.
44:22You're both higher, uh, fits a little bit more tight end five Erickson at tight end seven fits.
44:28Talk to us about, uh, buying into Isaiah likely.
44:30He has a 30.4% target share right now. It is Malik neighbors and Isaiah likely it's a very polarized target tree for the giants.
44:38Um, Isaiah likely his target counts so far in his first four games, eight, 10, five, and 12.
44:44And he is up against the Washington defense. That's given up the third most fantasy points to tight ends.
44:50Commanders have allowed five TD catches to tight ends.
44:52I think it's a pretty good spot for likely.
44:55Yeah. And that the low game was unfortunately a weather game.
44:59So outside of that, he has absolutely been cooking in terms of those targets.
45:03Erickson, how are you feeling about him this week?
45:06Elite usage for Isaiah likely ran around on 88% of the dropbacks last week.
45:10So yeah, Jamis Winston is obviously the big variable here, but in two of the last three games likely has been getting fed, getting targeted.
45:18And I think that's, that's the bar right to pass when you're tight end.
45:23It's not always going to be perfect, but likely checks off enough of the boxes just based on the volume, the matchup
45:29that he is a strong play this week. Let's talk about another tight end in that range coming in a little bit lower.
45:37Juwan Johnson at tight end 11. Erickson, despite not being team Tyler Shuck, you are team Juwan Johnson at tight end 11.
45:44And then Fitch, you've got him at tight end 14.
45:47He's had a very solid floor, but that was a weird game.
45:51I don't know about you guys, but I felt like as I was watching it, I'm like, man, Juwan Johnson is just racking up.
45:58And then when you look at the end and the final score from a fantasy perspective, you're looking at what 12 fantasy points just under like, huh?
46:07It felt like it was a little more when I was watching it.
46:11So Fitz, let's start off with you. A little bit of skepticism around Juwan Johnson.
46:15Is this matchup? Yeah, it is matchup Tara. And I've, it took me a long time to come around on Juwan Johnson.
46:22I was kind of like a perennial fader of him.
46:25And Andrew Cooper, my buddy finally convinced me that Juwan Johnson was actually good.
46:30And I started ranking him accordingly, but the Vikings are really tough on tight ends.
46:35And we talked about how tough they are in quarterbacks.
46:38Maybe not quite as tough on tight ends, but they're giving up the, let's see, sixth fewest fantasy points to tight ends this year.
46:45Last year was the eighth fewest fantasy points to tight ends.
46:49They're giving up the eighth lowest target share to tight ends this year.
46:53Um, basically teams tend to throw to their wide receivers against the Vikings, not to their tight ends.
46:58And I just, we've talked about how we don't like the spot for Tyler Shuck.
47:03I don't really like it for Juwan Johnson either.
47:06Yeah. Erickson, how about you? You're staying, you're staying strong team Juwan Johnson on this one, but there are, there are some problems with this matchup.
47:14Yeah. I haven't met tight end 11, but as we have gone through all of the rankings today, talking about the saints,
47:21talking about Tyler Shuck, I think that he might actually be a sit than a start this week.
47:27I know that you always just want to buy into the volume with a player like Juwan Johnson.
47:32He has really good usage. And sometimes that's all it takes.
47:36Again, it's tight end, right? Like sometimes you'll just take four for 40 and be like, it's good enough.
47:42Cause sometimes like that's just what tight ends do.
47:45And I think that that is basically what you probably don't get from Juwan Johnson for a 40 type of stat line, maybe he catches a touchdown.
47:53But as I think more about this matchup and coming away with what is going to be the stat line for the
48:00saints passing game, I'm just so down on it overall.
48:03And teams have to play the Vikings so different than any other team because of how much they blitz.
48:09Is this a situation where Juwan Johnson is not playing as much or running as many routes because they got to have
48:16extra guys in to pass protect, to pick up all these blitzes and I know that we talked about that.
48:22I think on one of the Packers matchups with Tucker craft against the blitz, something like along those lines.
48:28So that's something that's all in the back of my mind.
48:32So I think if you can pivot off Juwan Johnson, I would try to, if you do like one of these other
48:39streamers, but I think like Gusecki, for example, I think would probably be a better start just based on the ceiling play of him.
48:46We've seen him play without Jamar Jason Deegan's just go absolutely nuclear.
48:50Whereas Juwan Johnson, it's, you're just hoping that he hits the floor.
48:54So if you're okay with that, then I think that you can keep in your lineups.
48:59I mean, I'm in spots where I have to play him, like in my flex, because I just have no one, no
49:06one left that I can use, but definitely someone to be lower on Vikings.
49:10Fewest catches allowed per game to tight ends this season.
49:13Let's talk about the guy that ECR has ranked right ahead of him.
49:17And you guys also both have ahead of Juwan Johnson.
49:20It's Harold Fannin Jr. ECR is tight end 10 and you both have him at tight end eight.
49:26Weird, I mean, the touchdowns have been coming through lately.
49:29Thank you to Sean Watson on that one, but the yardage not quite getting there.
49:34So he is a wee bit touchdown dependent, but if they're coming through, we got a matchup against the Jets.
49:40Yeah. Why not? So you guys have both moved him up a little bit in rankings.
49:45Fitz, talk to us about Harold Fannin Jr. We've not got the yardage from Fannin yet, but I am not going to
49:52doubt the yardage potential of a guy who in his final college season at Bowling Green led all of FBS football in
49:59receptions and receiving yardage as a tight end. And then came to the Browns, this dysfunctional team, and immediately had over 700
50:06receiving yards for them as a rookie. So I think the yardage is going to be there and it's pretty nice that
50:13we've gotten the three touchdowns the last two weeks.
50:16Plus, I think he might've had a two point conversion catch in there as well.
50:20I am pretty much never sitting Harold Fannin. Yeah.
50:23Now, Erickson, how about you? He's too involved in the offense.
50:27When you have a tight end that has juice, unlike Kate Otten, who also plays all the snaps, the big difference is
50:34Fannin can actually create yards after the catch and squeeze the football when it's thrown his way.
50:3989% snap share last week, 94% route participation. When you are running a route on basically every single drop back and you
50:46play tight end, it's such a cheat code at the position.
50:49Like, I don't know where that's, I imagine that's top three in the NFL.
50:54So when you're on the field that much, it just puts you in a totally different tier than other tight ends.
51:00So you have to continue to start Harold Fannin.
51:03I think the fact that the yardage has been there, but the touchdowns have been, that's just showing how many outs he
51:10has because, oh, well, he doesn't score this week, but maybe this is the week he gets the yard.
51:16So even though the targets have kind of fluctuated, it has been a positive trend for him since week one with Deshaun
51:23Watson as his quarterback, obviously played with Shadur most of last season.
51:27That's when he was his most productive. So usage is still elite, still a mid range fantasy tight end one.
51:33And good to see, despite the fact, you know, we talked about the continued evolution of Denzel Boston and we're starting to see more from Casey Concepcion.
51:42So we've still got this excellent young group of pass catchers and Harold Fannin is still holding strong and you're right.
51:48Just different avenues to get there. He'll get it some way.
51:52There's different avenues. But that wraps things up for this show, guys.
51:55Before we head out, make sure that you are liking the video if you're watching on YouTube and make sure that you
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52:12For Pat Fitzmaurice and Andrew Erickson, I'm Tara Roberts.
52:15Thank you for tuning in. We'll see you next time.
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