NFL Player News

Cager didn't catch his only target in Sunday's 24-9 loss to the Ravens.

Cager was the only tight end besides Tyler Conklin to have a pass thrown his way in the season opener, but he remains little more than a depth option at the position for a Jets team that signed both Conklin and C.J. Uzomah in the offseason.

Ertz caught two of four targets for 14 yards and a touchdown and added a two-point conversion in Sunday's 44-21 loss to Kansas City.

The Cardinals' passing game didn't get going until the second half, when the game was well out of hand, and Ertz made both his trips to the end zone in the fourth quarter. The tight end caught 56 passes for 574 yards and three TDs in 11 games after joining Arizona in a trade last season, and with DeAndre Hopkins (suspension) and Rondale Moore (hamstring) both sidelined to begin the 2022 campaign, Ertz figures to be one of Kyler Murray's top targets in the early going.

Uzomah wasn't targeted in Sunday's 24-9 loss to the Ravens.

Tyler Conklin was targeted seven times and scored New York's only touchdown, establishing himself as the team's clear-cut No. 1 tight end. In fact, the only Jets tight end besides Conklin to have a ball thrown his way in this one was Lawrence Cager rather than Uzomah.

Conklin caught four of seven targets for 14 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 24-9 loss to Baltimore.

Conklin and C.J. Uzomah were both expected to play prominent roles after being signed in free agency, but Conklin was targeted on seven of the eight passes Joe Flacco threw to tight ends, with the other going to Lawrence Cager rather than Uzomah. Conklin didn't make much of the volume until he hauled in a three-yard touchdown in the final minute, but he'll have some appeal at the thin tight-end position in Week 2 against the Browns and beyond if the Jets continue to give him the vast majority of targets at the position.

Everett registered three receptions (on four targets) for 54 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 24-19 win over the Raiders.

Everett's touchdown came on an extended play as quarterback Justin Herbert found the big target in a one-on-one situation and the 28-year-old responded, muscling his way into the end zone for an 18-yard score. Everett was a bit of an unheralded offseason addition, but the Chargers have grinded out fantasy productive tight ends such as Hunter Henry and Jared Cook in past seasons, so it shouldn't be a surprise to see the former Seahawk have a successful team debut.

Kelce caught eight of nine targets for 121 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 44-21 win over the Cardinals.

With Tyreek Hill now in Miami, Kelce is the clear top target for Patrick Mahomes, and he proved it in Week 1 by leading Kansas City in receptions, targets and receiving yards while hauling in Mahomes' first of five TD passes on the day. The tight end recorded his 30th career game with 100-plus yards, leaving Kelce just two games short of Rob Gronkowski's NFL record of 32, with Hall of Famer Tony Gonzalez (31) the only other TE in league history with 30 or more.

Kmet failed to catch his lone target in the Bears' 19-10 win over the 49ers on Sunday.

Not only did Kmet see quite a bit of 49ers' coverage ace Fred Warner, the wet field was a disaster while intermittent heavy rain fell during the game. He'll look to get on track next week when Chicago travels to Green Bay.

Waller caught four passes on six targets for 79 yards in a loss against the Chargers on Sunday.

Waller did his part and his box score is clean at a glance, but he didn't get involved until late in the game, notching three of his four receptions in the fourth quarter. The Raiders took a loss with this approach, so they might try to get Waller going earlier in future games after Davante Adams claimed 17 of Vegas' 35 targets in the season opener. The Raiders face Arizona in Week 2.

Hockenson caught four of seven targets for 38 yards during Sunday's 38-35 loss to the Eagles.

The good news is that Hockenson was one of three Lions receivers to earn more than three targets. However, he was generally the target of shorter throws and specifically the target of the pick-six that Jared Goff threw in the first half. Better days should be ahead for Hockenson on the production front as long as he keeps seeing respectable volume, but the sheer number of playmakers Detroit suddenly has on offense could limit his opportunities down the field and in the red zone. Next up for Hockenson is a Week 2 matchup with a Washington team that is uncertain to have standout safety Kamren Curl (thumb) available.

Freiermuth caught five passes on 10 targets for 75 yards in an overtime win against Cincinnati on Sunday.

It was a borderline excellent performance by Freiermuth given the mediocre quarterback play of Mitch Trubisky. Freiermuth knows how to read defensive leverage and find weak spots even a bad quarterback can hit, then he plays rugged through contact to make the most of the target. He may not become a top-shelf fantasy option as long as the quarterback play is subpar, but Freiermuth's own abilities are increasingly difficult to question.