Week 11 Rankings (2018): Top 20 Tight Ends

by Eric Stashin (aka The Rotoprofessor)

Every time we think we get some clarity at the position, things turn and confusion grows once again.  Outside of the two obvious top options, is there a player you are willing to trust on a weekly basis?  Given the ups and downs the six team bye week has that much of a greater impact at the position, further complicating things.  Who should we be using this week?  Let’s take a look:

1. Zack Ertz – Philadelphia Eagles – at New Orleans
2. Travis Kelce – Kansas City Chiefs – at Los Angeles Rams
3. Austin Hooper – Atlanta Falcons – vs. Dallas
4. Jordan Reed – Washington Redskins – vs. Houston
5. Greg Olsen – Carolina Panthers – at Detroit
6. O.J. Howard – Tampa Bay Buccaneers – at New York Giants
7. Jared Cook – Oakland Raiders – at Arizona
8. Evan Engram – New York Giants – vs. Tampa Bay
9. Trey Burton – Chicago Bears – vs. Minnesota
10. Ricky Seals-Jones – Arizona Cardinals – vs. Oakland
11. Jimmy Graham – Green Bay Packers – at Seattle
12. Eric Ebron – Indianapolis Colts – vs. Tennessee
13. Jack Doyle – Indianapolis Colts – vs. Tennessee
14. Vance McDonald – Pittsburgh Steelers – at Jacksonville
15. Kyle Rudolph – Minnesota Vikings – at Chicago
16. Jeff Heuerman – Denver Broncos – at Los Angeles Chargers
17. Jonnu Smith – Tennessee Titans – at Indianapolis
18. Benjamin Watson – New Orleans Saints – vs. Philadelphia
19. C.J. Uzomah – Cincinnati Bengals – at Baltimore
20. Nick Vannett – Seattle Seahawks – vs. Green Bay

Thoughts:

• Zack Ertz or Travis Kelce?  Travis Kelce or Zack Ertz?  Regardless of the matchup we all know that they are the elite at the position, and nothing is about to change that.  Consider them locked into the top two spots as long as they aren’t on bye (as Kelce will be in Week 12).
• There have been times when Austin Hooper has been a highly targeted option, including Week 10 when he turned 11 targets into 10 receptions, 56 yards and 1 TD.  He’s now topped 40 yards in five straight games and draws a Dallas defense that was torched by Zack Ertz in Week 10.  Considering the uncertainty across these rankings, outside of the Top 2, Hooper is as good as a play as anyone for the coming week.
• Ricky Seals-Jones a viable TE1?!  Really?!?!  That’s right, he is!  He is coming off a week where he was targeted 9 times (5 receptions for 51 yards) and draws an Oakland defense that is terrible in general, but has really struggled against tight ends.  While they didn’t allow a TD to a tight end in Week 10, they had allowed 3 TD to opposing tight ends in the previous two weeks.  With Seals-Jones emerging as a trusted safety valve for rookie quarterback Josh Rosen, he’s a good bet to take at a position full of questions.
• Will the targets go to Eric Ebron or Jack Doyle?  The presence of both complicates things, though Ebron is going to get the edge as he’s been more of the red zone threat (3 TD in his past two games).  At the same time the Titans represent a difficult matchup, and with the targets being split they are both better suited as TE2 (though usable as a TE1 depending on your alternatives).

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