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USATSI

When you look at the tight end projections at the bottom of this article you'll find eight tight ends projected between 7.43 and 9.49 PPR Fantasy points. And to be honest, even as someone who does this for a living, it's really tough to distinguish between them.

Certainly there are names that stick out. Dalton Schultz, for one, would get a boost into the top 12 if he can log a full practice. For the most part this group can be described the same way. If they score, they'll be a good start, if they don't they won't. David Njoku could be the exception, one way or another.

It's nothing new to call Njoku a boom-or-bust tight end. He's been one of the most athletically-gifted and statistically-lacking tight ends in the league for the past five seasons. It looked like another bust of a season for him when he caught five passes for 39 yards in his first two games combined. But a 23.9-point outburst in Week 3 against the Steelers reignited everyone's hope, even if Kevin Stefanski said after the game that coverage would continue to dictate Njoku's targets.

It's worth noting that Njoku actually played more snaps (71) in Week 1 when he scored 1.7 points than he did in Week 3 when he scored 23.9. In fact, at 88%, Week 3 was his lowest snap share of the season. To be clear, 88% is an awesome snap share, but it's just not necessarily going to correlate to a steady target share.

All this is to say that Njoku may have a higher ceiling and a lower floor than any other tight end in this range. It's possible he could score a touchdown and not reach double-digit Fantasy points. It's also possible he could be a top-five tight end without a touchdown this week. As long as you're okay with the floor, it may be best to just ride out this roller coaster. I would expect his floor to rise once Deshaun Watson takes over.

Here's everything else you need to know about tight end in Week 4:

Week 4 TE Preview
TE Preview
Who's Out

The following players are not being projected to play Week 4 at this time. Here's what it means:

NO New Orleans • #7
Age: 34 • Experience: 8 yrs.
Alvin Kamara and Mark Ingram have higher touchdown odds without Hill.
TE Preview
Numbers to Know
  • 36.5 - Mark Andrews leads all players with a 36.5% target share.
  • 5 - George Kittle has made at least five catches in his past seven meetings with the Rams
  • 93 - Evan Engram has run the second most routes from a tight end, and hopefully those turn into Fantasy points at some point.
  • 24 - Total targets for Tyler Conklin on the season; we'll see how Zach Wilson impacts that, but Conklin may be a starter.
  • 75 -- 75% of David Njoku's Fantasy points came in Week 3. I want to add him, but I'd like to see one more week before I start him.
  • 0 -- Tyler Higbee is the only tight end in the top 12 who hasn't scored a touchdown yet.
TE Preview
Matchups that matter
HOU Houston • #82
Age: 26 • Experience: 6 yrs.
Weekly Breakdown
MATCHUP
@ NO MIN -2.5 O/U 43.5
OPP VS TE
3rd
PROJ PTS
7.9
TE RNK
15th
YTD Stats
REC
7
TAR
16
REYDS
68
TD
1
FPTS/G
6.6
MIN Minnesota • #85
Age: 30 • Experience: 7 yrs.
Weekly Breakdown
MATCHUP
vs NE GB -10.5 O/U 40.5
OPP VS TE
28th
PROJ PTS
8.7
TE RNK
17th
YTD Stats
REC
11
TAR
14
REYDS
84
TD
0
FPTS/G
6.5
TE Preview
Waiver Wire Targets
Week 4 Streamers (TE Preview)
NYJ N.Y. Jets • #83
Age: 29 • Experience: 7 yrs.
Weekly Breakdown
MATCHUP
@ PIT PIT -3.5 O/U 41.5
OPP VS TE
17th
TE RNK
9th
ROSTERED
50%
YTD Stats
REC
18
TAR
24
REYDS
140
TD
1
FPTS/G
12.7
Conklin has earned a 16% target share through two weeks, second only to Garrett Wilson on the Jets. Meanwhile, the Jets are throwing the ball 52 times a game. If either one of these numbers holds up with Zach Wilson returning, Conklin is going to be a top 10 tight end.
MIN Minnesota • #85
Age: 30 • Experience: 7 yrs.
Weekly Breakdown
MATCHUP
vs NE GB -9.5 O/U 40.5
OPP VS TE
28th
TE RNK
15th
ROSTERED
38%
YTD Stats
REC
11
TAR
14
REYDS
84
TD
0
FPTS/G
6.5
You can do worse than a touchdown-dependent tight end tied to Aaron Rodgers. But if Tonyan's seven targets from Week 3 are a sign of things to come, he'll be much more than that.
TE Preview
DFS Plays
Top DFS Play
Projections powered by Sportsline
PIT Pittsburgh • #88
Age: 26 • Experience: 4 yrs.
Weekly Breakdown
MATCHUP
vs NYJ PIT -3.5 O/U 41.5
OPP VS TE
13th
PROJ PTS
11.8
TE RNK
8th
YTD Stats
REC
11
TAR
21
REYDS
138
TD
1
FPTS/G
10.3
We'll see if Freiermuth's volume returns against a bad Jets defense. Even if it doesn't, Freiermuth has decent touchdown odds in a game that figures to be the Steelers' best offensive output to date.
Contrarian DFS Play
Projections powered by Sportsline
CHI Chicago • #14
Age: 30 • Experience: 8 yrs.
Weekly Breakdown
MATCHUP
@ HOU LAC -5 O/U 44
OPP VS TE
10th
PROJ PTS
10.1
TE RNK
14th
YTD Stats
REC
11
TAR
20
REYDS
150
TD
1
FPTS/G
10.7
With Keenan Allen back, I'd expect Everett to get overlooked in tournaments, but Jared Cook had a big role in this offense even when Allen was on the field.
TE Preview
Heath's Projections