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Should you start Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, Harold Fannin Jr. in Week 2? Zach Thompson explores the outlooks for three rookie tight ends in Week 2 of the 2025 season.
Fantasy football season got off to a great start in the opening week, and after a great kickoff, fantasy managers are focused on hitting Week 2 and either continuing their strong start or bouncing back after a disappointment. Making the right lineup decisions is critical to fantasy football success, but it can also be tricky with only one week of data to consider.
With rookies, it can be even more difficult to know what to expect since they are just one game into their NFL careers. Over the last few seasons, rookie tight ends have started to make an immediate impact, and this year's class also looks ready to contribute right away.
Should fantasy managers start Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, or Harold Fannin Jr. in Week 2? Read below to find out.
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Tyler Warren Fantasy Football Outlook
The Colts galloped out to a big lead over the visiting Dolphins, and everything seemed to go right for them from start to finish of their 33-8 Week 1 triumph. Daniel Jones played extremely well and relied heavily on rookie tight end Tyler Warren, who looked like one of the top pass-catching tight ends in the league in his debut.
He caught seven of his team-leading nine targets and finished with 76 yards. Two of his targets came in the red zone, so even though he didn't find the end zone, he's clearly still a go-to option and should find his way to scores early and often this season.
just the beginning. pic.twitter.com/1t5EM8l9WN
— Indianapolis Colts (@Colts) September 9, 2025
Warren will most likely remain very involved in Week 2 as Jones and the Colts host the Broncos. Indianapolis's new-look offense with Jones at the helm will have a tougher matchup against Denver's defense this week, but the team could get off to a fast start with the Titans, Rams, Raiders, and Cardinals on the schedule in the coming weeks.
In RotoBaller's Week 2 rankings, Warren checks in as the No. 6 tight end, making him a start in almost all leagues and formats in Week 2.
Colston Loveland Fantasy Football Outlook
The only tight end drafted higher than Warren in last year's draft was Colston Loveland, who the Bears took No. 10 overall before Warren went at No. 14. As strong and involved as Warren looked on Sunday, Loveland was a letdown on Monday Night Football against the Vikings.
After working about evenly with Cole Kmet throughout the preseason, Kmet remained the clear starter in Week 1, with Loveland limited to two-tight-end formations. There were even some blocking scenarios where Durham Smythe took the field before Loveland. Kmet played 60 of the team's 67 snaps, while Loveland only played 38 snaps (57%).
He did snag both his targets for a total of 12 yards, including this difficult snag to get his first reception in the stat sheet.
Colston Loveland’s first-career NFL catch goes for 8 yards.
— Brock Heilig (@brockheilig) September 9, 2025
Loveland still has huge potential and the raw tools to make a big impact if he gets playing time. However, with Kmet as the starter and a short week before facing the Lions, this probably isn't the week he takes a huge leap in usage. I'm not ready to give up on the Bears' tight end and drop him to the waiver wire, although many are doing so, but I don't think he is a strong start this week.
In RotoBaller's rankings, he comes in at No. 22 at the position, meaning in most formats and league sizes, he is not a starter this week.
Harold Fannin Jr. Fantasy Football Outlook
The Browns grabbed their rookie tight end at the top of the third round, snagging Fannin Jr. after an impressive college career at Bowling Green. All training camp and preseason, the Browns hyped him up as a regular part of their starting offense, even though David Njoku is still there as the starter.
In Week 1, Fannin Jr. lived up to the hype with seven catches on a team-high nine targets for 63 yards. He also tacked on a three-yard rush.
the Ohio kid showed out in game one @fannin_jr | #DawgPound pic.twitter.com/30cDk0HTtJ
— Cleveland Browns (@Browns) September 8, 2025
Fannin Jr. was one of the hottest names on the waiver wire after his big Week 1 and should remain very involved as long as Joe Flacco is spreading the ball around effectively. The veteran quarterback obviously trusts the rookie, and coach Kevin Stefanski is set on finding ways to get Fannin in the flow of the offense. In Week 1, Fannin played 72% of snaps, and Njoku played 84% of snaps. Both tight ends will be very involved going forward, and Fannin has a very high ceiling.
In Week 2, the Browns face the Ravens, who allowed the Bills' two tight ends to total 97 yards and a touchdown on seven catches last Sunday night.
Fannin is still boom-or-bust since his role may shift, but he has a high enough ceiling to be a fringe starting TE option in most formats. In the RotoBaller rankings, he's No. 16 at the position, meaning he can be used in a pinch, but there are still a lot of options that are safer plays. He's a very strong backup tight end at this point with a high ceiling and great upside.
Who Should I Start Tool
Not sure who to start? Check out the Who Should I Start tool:
Compare up to four players and we'll tell you who to start...
Who Should I Start? Who Should I Sit? Some common Week 2 fantasy football lineup decisions are regarding players like Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, Harold Fannin Jr. But not to worry, we are here to help make these decisions and build winning lineups in Week 2. Set your optimal fantasy football lineups for Week 2 of the 2025 NFL season. Our free Who Should I Start? tool will help make your fantasy football lineup decisions. Compare up to four NFL players, and we tell you who to start... all free! Get your winning lineups set, and make the right decisions.
Week 2 Player Decisions. Today's focus is on specific players - Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, and Harold Fannin Jr. These are some of the most common searches for fantasy football lineups in Week 2.
Using The Tool. This is a simple tool but very powerful. The first step is to enter the player names that you want to compare. In the first box, search for the first player's name. In the second box, search for the second player's name. Compare up to four NFL players at once, and then click the Who To Start? button to see who the recommended starts are based on weekly fantasy football matchups.
Improvements For Who Should I Start? You may have noticed, our Who Should I Start? tool has gotten an overhaul. We've added lots of great features for you to give you as much information as possible to win your fantasy football matchups each week. You'll see NFL player tiles with headshots and bye weeks, enhanced search results with data to compare, and a slick new interface. We hope you enjoy!
How It Works. Each week, our RotoBaller staff puts together their weekly fantasy football rankings and projections based on their research. That information is the core data that is powering the decision-making in this tool. When you search for player names, you will only see those players who are ranked. If someone is out for the week, they will not appear in the search results.
Scoring Formats. Fantasy football managers play in various types of leagues, and this tool allows you to choose whether it's PPR scoring, Half-PPR scoring, or Standard (Non-PPR) scoring. The second thing you want to do is to select the scoring format. There are three small radio buttons (small circles), so click on the scoring format you prefer. The results may vary based on the scoring format you select.
Popular Week 2 Searches. Curious to see some tough lineup decisions for Week 2 (2025)? Below you will find a list of some popular Who Should I Start? searches that RotoBaller readers are looking at this week. Click any of the links to see the result and recommendation.
Popular Week 2 Searches - Start/Sit Player Comparisons
Below are some popular Week 2 searches and comparisons from our 'Who To Start' tool for Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, Harold Fannin Jr. compared to others:
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