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 weekly 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 12)

Austin Hooper (TEN) vs. Cincinnati Bengals

Austin Hooper logged season highs with five receptions and seven targets back in Week 10. He then followed that up by cracking the end zone for the first and second time this season last week in Green Bay. The veteran tight end is finally building some rapport with QB Ryan Tannehill.

Combined over those last two games, Hooper has hauled in nine of 11 targets. He has only managed to gain 77 yards on those grabs, but in PPR formats, the targets and red-zone usage make him a nice streaming option.

The Bengals have been pretty much in the middle of the pack against tight ends. This past Sunday, however, Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth turned in a terrific effort against the Bengals, catching eight passes for 79 yards. Hooper is not a sure thing in the Titans’ run-heavy offense, but the potential for a solid showing is there.

Logan Thomas (WAS) vs. Atlanta Falcons

Logan Thomas has struggled to stay on the field consistently for the second year in a row. Still, he seemed pretty healthy, securing five passes for a season-high 65 yards in Week 11 versus the Texans.

Thomas has been on the field for a minimum of 68 percent of the Commanders’ offensive snaps in each of the last three weeks. Last Sunday’s victory saw him tie a season-high with six targets. It was the first time since Week 4 that Thomas was that involved in the passing attack. That’s obviously encouraging.

The Falcons have improved at slowing down opposing tight ends in recent weeks, but they still feature a defense to target for our purposes here. Thomas should find plenty of openings against a unit that has allowed the second-most receptions and fourth-most receiving yards to the position this year.

Noah Fant (SEA) vs. Las Vegas Raiders

Noah Fant is coming off a bye week. The 25-year-old tight end combined for eight catches on 10 targets in the prior two weeks, gaining 130 yards. Week 9 at Arizona displayed his upside in the Seahawks’ offense, as Fant went for just shy of 100 yards on a season-high five grabs.

The Raiders have been fairly susceptible versus the tight-end position. This past Sunday, Broncos’ tight ends managed six receptions for 46 yards against the Raiders’ defense. That could be a reasonable expectation for Fant this week.

Fant has largely been in a TE tandem with teammate Will Dissly this year, but QB Geno Smith has recently leaned more toward the former. Fant is in a spot where he should have a decent floor and possible TE1 performance.

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.