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Matt's tight end (TE) fantasy football start 'em, sit 'em picks for Week 13 of 2025. His TE lineups advice for Week 13 fantasy football start/sit decisions.
Last week, right here, we recommended Gunnar Helm as a start at the tight end position for Week 12. The former Longhorn made us look smart, posting 11.1 fantasy points, tying Jake Ferguson's mark as the TE7 for the week.
Helm wasn't the only anomaly residing in the top 12, as were Brenton Strange, in his return, and Colby Parkinson. As odd as it was to see Parkinson as a top-12 option at the tight end position, Drew Ogletree and his 8.8 fantasy points just missed the cut.
Here are your starts and sits at the tight end position for Week 13 of the fantasy football season.
Week 13 - Fantasy Football Booms
Mark Andrews - TE, Baltimore Ravens vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Despite just 2.1 fantasy points last week (dropped a potential touchdown pass), Mark Andrews is the TE11 since the start of Week 9, averaging 11.2 fantasy points per game. He's making the most of his opportunities, producing three receiving touchdowns and, yes, one rushing touchdown over that period. Over the Ravens' last four contests, Andrews has been targeted an average of four times per game.
The Ravens' recent offensive struggles are well-documented. Still, nothing fixes that better than some homemade pumpkin pie and facing the Cincinnati Bengals on Thanksgiving, particularly for Lamar Jackson and Andrews.
This season, the Bengals have allowed 963 receiving yards, 76 receptions, and 13 receiving touchdowns to the tight end position, all league-highs. So, it comes as no surprise that the 22.8 fantasy points per game they are surrendering to the position are also the most in the NFL.
The struggles defensively have continued in recent weeks as the Bengals have allowed 18 receptions for 272 yards and three touchdowns over their previous three contests, which has equated to 21.17 fantasy points per game against.
Patriots tight end Hunter Henry went off against the Bengals defense last week, recording 115 receiving yards on seven receptions, scoring a touchdown, and producing a weekly high of 24.5 fantasy points.
Juwan Johnson - TE, New Orleans Saints at Miami Dolphins
Don't look now, but Juwan Johnson has been a fringe TE1 this season on a points-per-game basis, averaging 10.8 per game. Since Week 7, the Saints pass-catcher is averaging 13 fantasy points per game, finishing with 10-plus points in each of his last five contests.
Tyler Shough's first career TD goes to Juwan Johnson!
NOvsLAR on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/OPKVOfVuZM
— NFL (@NFL) November 2, 2025
In Johnson's last five games, he has been targeted 30 times, coming away with 23 receptions for 301 receiving yards and a pair of touchdowns. Last week against the Falcons, Johnson caught five of the seven intended targets for 46 yards, propelling him to another TE1 fantasy week. That production, while not sexy, may be Johnson's floor this week against Miami.
This season, Miami has allowed seven touchdowns, 760 receiving yards, and 16.8 fantasy points per game on 68 receptions. Over the last four weeks, the Dolphins have allowed 20.6 fantasy points per game to opposing tight ends and have surrendered four touchdowns and 310 yards over the previous three contests.
Math has never been my strong suit, but if a tight end has produced 10 or more fantasy points in each of their previous five contests and the defense they face is allowing more than 20 fantasy points per game, that adds up to a must-start.
AJ Barner - TE, Seattle Seahawks vs. Minnesota Vikings
We all need to find someone who looks at us the way the Seattle Seahawks look at AJ Barner. Before last week, Barner had accounted for a 72% route share along with a nearly 18% target share in a Seahawks passing game that is in desperate need of a second option behind Jaxon Smith-Njigba. In the last two weeks, Barner has been targeted by Sam Darnold 15 times, hauling in 12 passes for 88 yards.
Barner enters this week's contest as a viable streaming option, as the Vikings have surrendered 64 receptions (13th most), 613 receiving yards, and six touchdowns this season to the tight end position. From a fantasy perspective, that adds up to 14.5 fantasy points per game, and for a tight end who projects to be the second option in the Seahawks' passing attack this week, that production is his and his alone.
Show 'em how it's done @_ajbarner_ 🤝
First multi-touchdown game of his career.📺: @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/GGXpbgEgtz
— Seattle Seahawks (@Seahawks) October 5, 2025
What makes this week more intriguing for those willing to take a chance on Barner is the recent struggles that the Vikings have had in defending the tight end position over the last four weeks. Over the previous four weeks, the Vikings have allowed 19.55 fantasy points per game while surrendering 332 receiving yards and three touchdown receptions to the position.
Week 13 - Fantasy Football Busts
Pat Freiermuth - TE, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Buffalo Bills
While Pat Freiermuth sits second on the Steelers in receiving yards (298), fourth in receptions (26), and fifth in targets (32), his 7.3 fantasy points per game rank 27th among tight ends this season. Recently, Freiermuth has developed a pattern of following up a productive afternoon with a poor performance the following week.
In Week 7, Freiermuth popped off for 28.1 fantasy points only to follow up with 4.3 fantasy points the following week. In Week 9, the Steelers tight end was responsible for 11.7 fantasy points, which preceded performances of 6.3 and 2.9 fantasy points. If the pattern holds, then it is reasonable to believe that Freiermuth's 10.9-point fantasy outing last week will be followed by disappointment once again this week.
With a matchup against the Bills this week, the odds of Freiermuth underperforming increase as the Bills have allowed just 6.73 fantasy points per game over the last four weeks and a league-low 5.64 fantasy points per game to the position on the season.
Oronde Gadsden II - TE, Los Angeles Chargers vs. Las Vegas Raiders
The next tight end up on the chopping block for Week 13 is Los Angeles Chargers rookie Oronde Gadsden II. After averaging 17.9 fantasy points per game between Week 6 and Week 9, Gadsden has cooled off, having averaged 5.2 fantasy points per game in the two contests before the Chargers' Week 12 bye.
The NFL is a what-have-you-done-for-me-lately business, and Gadsden's five receptions for 54 yards in those two previous contests are exactly what fantasy managers need to build trust as they continue to jostle for postseason positioning.
This week will do very little in building confidence in fantasy managers considering inserting Gadsden back into their fantasy lineups. First, we have a full complement of tight ends to choose from, with many having more favorable matchups on this week's slate than Gadsden's date with the Raiders.
For the Raiders, despite all their deficiencies, they have been among the better teams this season in defending the tight end position in fantasy. This season, Las Vegas has allowed just 435 receiving yards, 42 receptions, three touchdowns, and 9.45 fantasy points per game, the fourth-fewest.
Colston Loveland - TE, Chicago Bears at Philadelphia Eagles
Bears tight end Colston Loveland has averaged 15.3 fantasy points per game since Week 9 and has produced seven or more fantasy points in four straight contests and 14 or more fantasy points in two of his previous four outings.
Last week, Loveland caught four of the five targets thrown in his direction, resulting in a touchdown and 49 yards. It was the fourth consecutive game in which Loveland has recorded four or more targets along with 40-plus receiving yards, building off his Week 9 118-yard breakout performance.
Fantasy managers should be excited about Loveland's fantasy outlook for the future, just not so much this week, as the Bears head to Philadelphia to take on the stingiest defensive unit when it comes to the tight end position in fantasy. Loveland may get a boost if Reed Blankenship is sidelined this week (thigh).
However, it's still going to be a difficult assignment facing a defense that is allowing 8.25 fantasy points per game this season and has been even more stout in recent weeks, holding opposing tight ends to 72 receiving yards on nine receptions over the previous four weeks. That results in a league-best 5.4 fantasy points per game allowed.
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