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Craig Rondinone's fantasy football tight end waiver wire pickups for Week 4 of the 2023 NFL season. His free agent TEs to add, stream, and stash off waivers.
Week 3 might have been great for Travis Kelce, but it was not great for most tight ends. While Kelce was scoring touchdowns and having Taylor Swift cheer for him in the press box, other tight ends were having problems getting out of the blocks.
The position is a little light on talent at the moment for fantasy purposes. If you can find a TE who can supply four catches for 50 yards on a weekly basis, you might take it right now. And if you are still searching for that tight end, you came to the right place.
Without further ado, here are the best tight end waiver wire pickups for Week 4, beginning with the Detroit Lions’ talented rookie!
Editor's Note: Identify fantasy football draft busts, overvalued ADPs, and key players to avoid so you can draft with confidence this season.
Top Tight Ends to Pickup - Week 4 Waiver Wire
Sam LaPorta, Detroit Lions
It is safe to say that LaPorta is the real deal. He has now accounted for 18 receptions for 186 yards and a touchdown over the first three games of his professional career. You could make the argument that LaPorta is already a top-10 fantasy tight end despite the small sample size. That is an indictment of the shallow talent pool at the position, but also a nod to how superb the youngster has been in the early going.
What I like about Jared Goff is he does not spread the ball around. While Patrick Mahomes might get the ball in the hands of 10-12 of his Chiefs teammates, Goff zones in on Amon-Ra St. Brown and LaPorta and not many others. LaPorta has been targeted 22 times in three weeks, and his target average will only go higher as long as he keeps catching what Goff is throwing. Look for LaPorta to have 70 receptions for 800 and six scores if not more this season. If he is still available in whatever type of league you play in, pick him up as soon as you finish reading this paragraph.
Other Tight Ends to Consider Adding
Juwan Johnson, New Orleans Saints
Normally when a starting signal-caller goes down, it does not bode well for the fantasy values of his pass catchers. That might not be true for Johnson, though, since he has had success with Jameis Winston in the past. After scoring 11 touchdowns over the past two seasons, Johnson has gone scoreless in the Saints’ opening trio of games. I think he is due to visit the end zone this weekend versus Tampa Bay.
Gerald Everett, Los Angeles Chargers
While tight end teammate Donald Parham Jr. catches the touchdowns, Everett does the dirty work within the other 99 yards on the field. He has converted 11 of 12 targets this year and should get a higher target share if No. 2 WR Mike Williams misses multiple games with his newest knee injury. Everett is a sneaky fantasy find who has turned his game up a notch since joining the Chargers last season.
Luke Musgrave, Green Bay Packers
No Aaron Rodgers, no problem. No Robert Tonyan, no problem. The Jordan Love Era has arrived, and so has the Musgrave Era. The rookie tight end has 11 receptions for 124 yards over his first three games in the NFL. His learning curve has not been as steep as it is for most young tight ends, that’s for sure. Musgrave is a definite get in dynasty leagues if he is available and seems to be a solid choice in standard and PPR leagues as a TE2 from here on out as well.
Zach Ertz, Arizona Cardinals
Ertz has proven throughout his amazing career that he can catch passes from anyone. It does not matter if it is a Pro Bowl player or Joshua Dobbs tossing him the rock. Ertz will make the catches when he is aimed at. The veteran standout has to face San Francisco’s staunch defense this week, however, which definitely dents his fantasy projection for Week 4.
Hayden Hurst, Carolina Panthers
Somehow Andy Dalton carved up the Seattle Seahawks for 361 passing yards this past Sunday, yet Hurst only managed one measly catch for 11 yards. This is what gives fantasy managers ulcers and migraines. The good news for Hurst is that he is slated to run routes against a Minnesota Vikings defense that just allowed Los Angeles’ Justin Herbert to throw for over 400 yards against them.
Do Not Forget About…
Donald Parham Jr., Los Angeles Chargers
Two catches, two touchdowns against Minnesota. Parham Jr. is the modern-day Cris Carter, right? Do not get too excited about the monstrous tight end. While there is no doubt he has a nose for the end zone and a big body that makes him hard to cover near the end zone, the guy gives you nothing between the 20s. He has 508 receiving yards in 35 career games. Parham Jr. is the definition of touchdown-dependent.
Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys
Ferguson is not making Cowboys fans and fantasy managers forget about the days of Jason Witten, but he somehow received as many targets as CeeDee Lamb against Arizona. You could blame that on bad play-calling or great defense. Whatever the case, Ferguson has 18 targets in three games, which is more than a lot of tight ends out there on waiver wires. He might end up as Dak Prescott’s favorite target inside the red zone before the season’s end.
Cade Otton, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Otton is stuck with the scraps after Mike Evans and Chris Godwin eat up the Tampa targets like Pac-Man eats power pellets. He is a capable fantasy player as a safety valve who can quietly rack up helpful catches in PPR leagues, however. Keep Otton on your radar after this week’s Monday night game as a good effort might cause him to skyrocket up the tight end waiver wire rankings.
Noah Fant, Seattle Seahawks
I am not ready to ride the Fant bandwagon just because he hauled in four passes for 41 yards against Carolina. There are just too many other receivers and tight ends in Seattle’s rotation for Fant to emerge as a fantasy force. If he has a couple more four-catch games, though, I might give you the green light to take a flyer on him as a backup tight end for your fantasy squad.
Kylen Granson, Indianapolis Colts
Granson disappeared from the stats sheet this week after two decent games, but do not give up on him after just one poor performance. Starting tight end Jelani Woods will miss another game this week while he recuperates from his injury, so Granson is an interesting low-price play in a home game against the L.A. Rams.
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