The tight end position matters greatly in fantasy football. Tight ends are not as flashy as their route-running counterparts at wide receiver. Most of them do not normally 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.
The tight end pool is the shallowest of them all in terms of fantasy. Finding production there weekly can be incredibly challenging, especially for those who did not invest in one of the top options during draft season.
One way to find success at the position is by carefully playing the waiver wire week-to-week. The goal of this weekly article is to help fantasy managers do just that by finding low-rostered tight ends in the best situations for that particular week.
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Week 12 Fantasy Football Tight End Streamers & Waiver Wire Pickups
The following tight ends are rostered in fewer than 75% of Yahoo! Leagues.
Cade Otton (TE – TB) @ | 64% Rostered
After setting season highs with nine grabs and 82 yards in Week 10, Cade Otton had a drastic drop off at Buffalo this past Sunday. The fourth-year tight end only managed to haul in two of his five targets for 28 yards in a game that saw the Buccaneers take to the ground against the Bills’ defense. The story should be different in a matchup with the Rams.
Opposing tight ends have had their way with the Rams’ pass defense of late. Two weeks ago, George Kittle and Luke Farrell of the 49ers both found the end zone against the Rams, coming up just shy of a combined 100 yards. Last week, the next streaming pick below found plenty of openings in the Rams’ secondary as well. Otton should be set up for a bounce-back performance.
AJ Barner (TE – SEA) @ TEN | 9% Rostered
AJ Barner enjoyed a big day against the Rams in Week 11. The fourth-round pick from last year set a new career high with 10 grabs (on 11 targets) for 70 yards. He came up just a single yard short of his personal best in that category. In other words, Barner hits the path to Tennessee with a full head of steam.
Notably, Barner has been a red-zone weapon for quarterback Sam Darnold this season. With his 6-foot-6 stature, Barner has secured six of his seven targets inside the 20-yard line, hitting paydirt on four of them. He has not scored since Week 5, though, when he found the end zone twice. However, Barner should have a chance to change that against a Titans defense allowing 27.3 points per game (tied for 29th).
Ja’Tavion Sanders (TE – CAR) @ SF | 1% Rostered
Time to dig into the deeper leagues out there, and look ahead to Monday night. Ja’Tavion Sanders has reemerged in the Panthers’ passing game over the past couple of weeks, bringing down five passes in Week 10 and four more in Week 11 at a 100% success rate. He has only totaled a combined 54 yards on those receptions, but in PPR formats, the catches alone play.
A definite place to attack the San Francisco defense is with the tight end position. The 49ers have allowed an opposing tight end to cross the goal line in each of the last three weeks, with four total touchdowns allowed to the position in that span. Sanders has yet to score over eight games this season, but he has caught seven out of nine red-zone targets. This could be the week he scores.
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