RADIO
This is the time of the NFL regular season fantasy footballers love -- three games on Saturday and no teams on bye!
With all 32 NFL teams playing this week, that means all tight ends will be playing (as long as they are healthy). That does not mean the fantasy football world is not in need of some tight ends, though. With most leagues entering the final week of their season, a tight end upgrade at this late date could be the difference between millions of teams making the playoffs or turning their attention to their fantasy hockey and hoops squads.
Without further ado, here are the best tight end waiver wire pickups for Week 15, beginning with Mark Andrews’ understudy in Baltimore, a youngster showing he can pick up where Andrews left off before the latter’s season-ending injury.
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Top Tight Ends to Pickup - Week 15 Waiver Wire
Isaiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens
Likely had more energy than a three-year-old kid at the playground on Sunday versus the L.A. Rams. All the Ravens should have after a beneficial schedule that had them play just one game in a 24-day span leading up to the Rams tilt. Likely posted his best game of the year with a 5-83-1 line that included a scintillating 54-yard touchdown. His wide-receiver wheels were on full display with this play:
Likely has more going for him heading into Week 15 than any tight end on the fantasy waiver wire. Baltimore’s passing attack is rolling and he has been targeted 13 times over his last two games, cementing his status as a top target in the wake of Andrews’ injury.
He now gets to face Jacksonville’s 31st-ranked pass defense, who just allowed Jake Browning and Joe Flacco to throw for 300 yards against them in back-to-back weeks. Yes, Browning and Flacco! Pick up Likely and you will likely be handsomely rewarded with a great game this week and during your fantasy playoff weeks as well.
Other Tight Ends to Consider Adding
Darren Waller, New York Giants (IR stash)
Waller (hamstring) is currently on injured reserve and is working his way back from a hamstring injury. The 31-year-old has been running routes and hoping to play in the Week 15 matchup against the New Orleans Saints. The former Las Vegas Raider has been sidelined since Week 8. Guys with back-to-back 1,000-yard years to their credit are not often available on waiver wires this late in the season. Waller could be a game-changer for your fantasy squad as a significant addition, but he needs to be 100 percent.
Hunter Henry, New England Patriots
Henry is a hard one to figure in 2023. One week he will catch two touchdowns. The next week he might not catch two passes. So it is anybody’s guess what Henry will do this week. He will face a Kansas City team who has had plenty of problems with officials in recent weeks, but has had no trouble holding down passing offenses with its sixth-ranked pass defense.
Chigoziem Okonkwo, Tennessee Titans
After averaging 20 yards per game over his first 10 contests, Okonkwo has averaged 53.5 yards over his last two games (not counting Monday’s game vs. Miami). This type of production was what fantasy managers and pundits were assuming would happen all along. That is why he was thought of as one of the sleepers at the position entering the season. Okonkwo now faces a Houston pass defense that is ranked 26th in the league and just made Jets scattershot signal-caller Zach Wilson look like he was better than Aaron Rodgers in his prime.
Gerald Everett, Los Angeles Chargers
Everett has posted 39 yards or more in three straight games, his best stretch in what has been a disappointing campaign. The veteran is one of the top tight ends in available in most leagues, but with his QB Justin Herbert out with a fractured finger on his throwing hand, that makes Everett a risky bet and a risky get at this juncture.
Do Not Forget About…
Brevin Jordan, Houston Texans
There were not many Texans to cheer about coming off the heels of their drubbing against the New York Jets, but Jordan had another solid showing while subbing as the team’s top tight end. Without Dalton Schultz and Tank Dell on the field taking most of the targets, Jordan has been able to rack up 99 yards in his last two games. Considering he had only managed 60 yards in all of the previous weeks before this recent two-game span, his fantasy worth has gone up 10,000 percent.
Davis Allen, Los Angeles Rams
The fifth-round rookie had a breakout performance this weekend while filling in for the injured Tyler Higbee (four catches for 50 yards and a TD). The Rams offense is rolling with Matthew Stafford, Kyren Williams, and Cooper Kupp all healthy at the same time, so Allen will be afforded more scoring opportunities in the coming weeks if Higbee is unable to suit up.
Tucker Kraft, Green Bay Packers
Kraft and his Packers have not played yet as of the writing of this column since they have a Monday matchup against the New York Giants, but the rookie tight end has been on fantasy radars since fellow rookie tight end teammate Luke Musgrave suffered a lacerated kidney. Kraft had 84 receiving yards and a TD in his three outings before the Giants contest, so another decent showing makes him a worthy pickup candidate.
Tanner Hudson, Cincinnati Bengals
It only took him 39 games, but Hudson finally scored the first touchdown of his NFL career on Sunday against Indianapolis. He has gone from backup to the backbone of Cincinnati’s tight end trio. Hudson has averaged 4.5 targets over his last half-dozen appearances and should continue to be featured in the passing attack as long as he keeps making plays.
Adam Trautman, Denver Broncos
Trautman is a touchdown-dependent tight end, a dreaded label that means he is not worth much salt in the shaker unless he finds the end zone on a regular basis. The good news is he has hit pay dirt twice in the past three weeks. Trautman plays Detroit’s below-average pass defense unit this weekend, so he could make it three scores in four weeks if given the opportunity.
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