The tight-end position matters greatly in fantasy football. They are not as flashy as their blazing-fast, route-running counterparts at wide receiver. They do not get the same volume of touches as fantasy-relevant running backs. That can sometimes lead to them being overlooked or treated as an afterthought. Do not make that mistake.
Tight end is the shallowest position of them all. Finding production there every week can be incredibly challenging, especially for those that did not draft or since manage to land one of the top handful of options.
Success can be found at the position by carefully playing the waiver wire week-to-week. The goal here is to help fantasy managers do just that by finding low-rostered (under 75 percent) tight ends sitting in the best situations for the particular week.
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Tight End Waiver Wire Options (Week 9)
Evan Engram (JAC) vs. Las Vegas Raiders
Engram has caught at least four passes while seeing a minimum of six targets in each of the last four weeks. In a tough matchup this past Sunday against the Broncos, the veteran gained 55 yards on four grabs and found the end zone for the first time this season.
Engram has developed more rapport with QB Trevor Lawrence as the campaign progressed. That should give him a safe floor weekly, particularly in a favorable matchup like the one he is looking at this week.
The Raiders come into Week 9 having given up the third-most fantasy points per week to opposing tight ends. They have given up six touchdowns to the position through seven games, making them one of only three teams to allow more than five on the year. Engram should continue his streak of productive performances.
Robert Tonyan (GB) at Detroit Lions
Aside from his 10-catch effort in Week 6, Tonyan’s ceiling has been pretty low this season. Still, he has managed to grab at least two passes in every game so far and put up his third-highest total with five receptions in Buffalo on Sunday night.
Tonyan was on the field for a season-high 74 percent of the Packers’ offensive snaps against the Bills and managed to gain 35 yards while seeing six targets from Aaron Rodgers. Tonyan has only scored on one of his 35 receptions this year, but a trip to Detroit will provide a great opportunity to add to that total.
The Lions have given up five scores to opposing tight ends to this point, including one to Dolphins TE Mike Gesicki this past Sunday. The Lions also rank 27th in pass defense overall and dead last in the league in points allowed per game. The Packers’ offense should be in store for one of its best performances of the season, and Tonyan should be a big contributor to it.
Tyler Conklin (NYJ) vs. Buffalo Bills
Speaking of the Bills, they do still appear to be a tough task for opposing tight ends when simply looking at the season statistics. However, they have given up at least five catches to the position in their last three games. Conklin will look to make it four in a row coming off his biggest game of the season.
After four nice games to begin the season, Conklin saw his production take a dive while the Jets ran their way to victory in Weeks 5, 6, and 7 behind rookie RB Breece Hall. With Hall, unfortunately, suffering a season-ending knee injury during Week 7, Conklin reemerged in a huge way – 6/79/2 – as the Jets’ offense was forced back to the air a bit more in Week 8 versus the Patriots.
That trend seems likely to continue this Sunday as QB Zach Wilson and company try to keep pace with the Bills’ offense. The Bills do indeed feature a strong defense, especially against the run (95.0 yards per game allowed). Further increasing the chances of Conklin turning in a decent output for fantasy managers, the Jets could well find themselves playing catchup in this one.
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Nate Miller is a featured writer at FantasyPros and an 8-year veteran of the fantasy sports industry. For more from Nate, check out his archive and follow him on Twitter @Miller_RotoDad.
