RADIO
The retail shopping world just had “Black Friday” to contend with last week. The fantasy football world will have to contend with “Black Sunday” this week with six NFL teams on bye.
Yes, after a one-week reprieve for Thanksgiving, the bye weeks are back, baby! Back in full force with a half-dozen teams taking the week off. At the tight end position, fantasy footballers will be without stalwarts like Buffalo’s Dalton Kincaid, Minnesota’s T.J. Hockenson, Chicago’s Cole Kmet, and Baltimore’s Isaiah Likely. On top of that, Green Bay’s Luke Musgrave is out with a lacerated kidney, so millions of fantasy managers will be scrambling to scoop up tight ends this week.
Without further ado, here are the best tight end waiver wire pickups for Week 13, beginning with a familiar fantasy face who just bounced back in a big way:
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Top Tight Ends to Pickup - Week 13 Waiver Wire
Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers
What a difference a week makes! What a difference a new offensive coordinator makes! Freiermuth’s value was below zero thanks to a hamstring injury and an inept offense that was freezing him out of scoring any points for his fantasy managers. Then Pittsburgh fired Matt Canada and replaced him with Eddie Faulkner, and suddenly Freiermuth is back to being the dominant tight end he was during his rookie campaign.
Freiermuth returned from fantasy Siberia by running circles around Cincinnati’s secondary on Sunday to the tune of nine catches for 120 yards. This outstanding effort will not be a fluke. Freiermuth was a top-10 tight end entering the season, and now with a new offensive outlook and three of his next four games being at home against Arizona, New England, and Cincinnati again, he is the consensus numero uno tight end on fantasy waiver wires this week.
Other Tight Ends to Consider Adding
Tyler Higbee, Los Angeles Rams
Well, well, well. Look who finally showed up to have a monster fantasy day when he is not even rostered in most leagues! Higbee hauled in two Matthew Stafford touchdown passes against Arizona this past Sunday and caught all five balls his QB aimed at him. Granted, Higbee’s longest gain was seven yards, so he is not exactly the next Travis Kelce. His next matchup is not fantasy-friendly, either -- a tough battle against the defensive-minded Cleveland Browns.
Isaiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens
Likely might be off this week, but that does not mean he should be off your tight end wish list. He has proven he can admirably fill in for the injured Mark Andrews in Baltimore’s passing attack. Likely had four catches for 40 yards on a half-dozen targets Sunday night in his first game this year as the substitute starter for Andrews. He will not put up Andrews-like numbers from here on out, but he will perform better than 90 percent of the available tight ends on fantasy free-agent lists.
Logan Thomas, Washington Commanders
Thomas has been playing well enough to be consistently mentioned in this column every week, but not good enough that he has been picked up in more than half of the fantasy leagues out there. Washington quarterback Sam Howell continues to sling passes and throws for more yards than most signal-callers, though, so Thomas is always an option. Thomas has also been better at home than on the road (19-222-2 in four home games) and is home this Sunday, so that’s a plus.
Gerald Everett, Los Angeles Chargers
Everett was able to catch four passes for 43 yards and a TD during Justin Herbert's dink-and-dunk fest on Sunday evening. When he is healthy, he is definitely the better fantasy player between him and tight end teammate Donald Parham Jr. There are better tight ends you could pick up this week, but there are more tight ends available who are worse.
Cade Otton, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Otton might not be spectacular, but he has been solid. Well, he was spectacular a few weeks back when he had a two-TD game. Otherwise, Otton has been plodding along with semi-solid numbers most weeks. He has broken the 40-yard barrier in four of his past six games. Otton should be a great pick-and-play option this week when he faces the 1-10 Carolina Panthers.
Do Not Forget About…
Chigoziem Okonkwo, Tennessee Titans
I went a week without having to spell Okonkwo’s name. Tennessee’s tight end got himself back into the column by having his best game of the season against Carolina on Sunday. It’s sad to say that a game where he caught four passes for 45 yards (and no TD) was his best game of 2023, though. Okonkwo’s Week 13 game is against division rival Indianapolis, a wonky defense that has been exploited all season long.
Michael Mayer, Las Vegas Raiders
Mayer’s short-term fantasy value is not exciting, especially with Aidan O’Connell as his battery mate. But Mayer has shown that he has some freakish physical ability and superb ball-catching skills when tightly covered. You cannot count on Mayer to be a consistent performer for your fantasy squad in 2023, but you can pick him up now and bank on him being a cornerstone on your roster in 2024 and 2025 if you are in a dynasty league.
Tucker Kraft, Green Bay Packers
Luke Musgrave was the Packers rookie tight end getting all the pub and the passes thrown at him, but now that he is injured, it is third-round pick Kraft who will be the better fantasy option. The kid caught a TD toss on Thanksgiving and should be a sleeper now that his role has been expanded in the wake of Musgrave’s absence.
Tyler Conklin, New York Jets
I know journeyman backup QB Tim Boyle is no Ken O’Brien or Richard Todd, but he is better than Zach Wilson. Conklin caught four passes for 33 yards versus Miami on Turkey Day, so his minimal fantasy value might see a slight uptick in the coming weeks with Boyle under center. I am not saying you should elbow your way through the waiver wire to pick him up. Just keep an eye on him in the next week or two and he could be a bargain-basement option for you.
Tanner Hudson, Cincinnati Bengals
Take a back seat, Irv Smith Jr. and Drew Sample! Hudson seems to be the new top tight end in Cincinnati. With 18 receptions for 145 yards over his last four contests, he has emerged as the best pass catcher of the Bengals tight end trio. Hudson’s value would be higher if Joe Burrow was not out for the season, however.
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