6) Dalton Kincaid vs. Panthers
Kincaid was off last week, but he’s still nursing a bit of an oblique injury that has had him limited in practice all week. Before the bye, Kincaid had his best game of the season as he caught all 6 of his targets for 108 yards against the Patriots. The Bills are hungry for a #1 receiver for Josh Allen, and Kincaid very well may fit the bill. This week, the Bills face a Carolina team that is ranked 25th in the league against the tight end position. They have allowed multiple tight ends to score this year, including Darren Waller and Hunter Henry. Kincaid should be in line for 6+ targets with very good touchdown upside this week.
7) George Kittle vs. Texans
Let’s just forget that he gave us a goose egg last week and focus on the fact that he not only played the whole game but also came to the postgame podium and told us all he was sorry and we should blame coach Shanahan. This guy is actually the reason why there is a National Tight End Day, and it’s his duty, neigh, I say, his divine right to score at least one touchdown on this holiest of holy days that he (along with teammates Brent Celek and Jimmy Garoppolo) completely made up back in 2018 during his breakout sophomore season. Kittle doesn’t just play tight end; he’s made being a tight end his whole personality, as he is also the cofounder of Tight End University, which is some other made-up nonsense that got him on Netflix along with Travis Kelce and Greg Olsen. Kittle is a lot of fun to watch, but he’s also still an elite talent. This week will be just his 3rd game this season, but he looks to be completely past the hamstring injury that knocked him out on opening day. In that game against the Seahawks, he was having a great day with 4 grabs and a score at halftime, and I expect him to make a bunch of noise this weekend as he will certainly be mic’d up for the game.
8) Harold Fannin vs. Pats
Last week, it looked like Fannin would be poised for a big week as David Njoku missed the Browns‘ Week 7 matchup against Miami. The game turned into a complete slog in the rain, and the Dolphins didn’t put up much of a fight at all as Cleveland cruised to an easy 31-6 victory. Dillon Gabriel spent most of the game handing the ball off to Quinshon Judkin,s and the Browns defense did the rest of the work. If we squint a bit, we can see some positives here as Fannin was targeted 5 times out of a total of 18 pass attempts by the rookie QB and managed to lead Cleveland’s pass catchers with 4 grabs for 36 yards. While those don’t exactly scream “every week starter”, the ratios are enough for us to feel safe playing him this week against a New England defense ranked 26th in the league in defending the tight end. Even if Njoku plays, we are confident in playing them both. In the event Njoku is traded, Fannin would elevate to an every-week starter so make sure he is rostered in your league.
