O.J. Howard

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers exercised the fifth-year option on O.J. Howard's contract.

Fantasy Impact

This keeps Howard in Tampa until 2021. That is unless he is traded, of course. There were rumors that a deal could go down during the NFL draft but nothing ever materialized. The 25-year-old currently needs to compete for snaps with both Rob Gronkowski and Cameron Brate following a disappointing 2019 campaign. A trade will likely only help his fantasy value.

The Buccaneers are keeping O.J. Howard unless another team "blows them away" with an offer.

Fantasy Impact

"Unless someone blows them away on a deal for OJ Howard in these next two days, the Bucaneers are happy to have him line up with Rob Gronkowski in two TE formations," said Rick Stroud of Tampa Bay Times. It was reported Howard’s chances of being dealt appear higher than ever after Tampa Bay acquired Gronk on Tuesday. With the recent news, it appears the Buccaneers will only move Howard for a haul in return. The 25-year-old TE hauled in 34 receptions for 459 yards and one touchdown across 14 games in 2019. Howard is 18th among tight ends in the latest expert consensus rankings.

O.J. Howard’s chances of being dealt appear higher than ever after Tampa Bay just acquired TE Rob Gronkowski on Tuesday.

Fantasy Impact

Howard was reportedly being shopped by the Buccaneers, and with the recent acquisition of TE Rob Gronkowski, it’s a matter of when not if the 25-year-old is moved. He had a disappointing campaign under his first year with Bruce Arians. Howard hauled in 34 receptions for 459 yards and one touchdown across 14 games in 2019. The 25-year-old TE did take a pay cut to remain in Tampa Bay, but the team is reportedly ready to move him for a high draft choice. Howard would see significant increase in value if he is moved to a different franchise.

The Buccaneers are reportedly trying to trade tight end OJ Howard, per Michael Lombardi of the Athletic. “I think Howard’s got a great name, but I think there’s an instinctive going on. I think he’s going to be available,” said Lombardi. “Wouldn’t be surprised if he was traded next week.”

Fantasy Impact

Howard has been rumored to be on the block dating back to last season. He had a disappointing 2019 campaign under his first year with Bruce Arians. Howard logged 34 receptions for 459 yards and one touchdown across 14 games. The 25-year-old is currently 13th among all tight ends in the expert consensus rankings, but a move to a different franchise could increase his fantasy value.

Buccaneers general manager Jason Licht told reporters that the team is "more than excited" to see what tight end O.J. Howard can do in year-two of Bruce Arians' system. He added that the Bucs are "very high" on Howard.

Fantasy Impact

Howard was a notorious bust in 2019, entering the year as a projected top tight end only to fall out of fantasy relevance. He has the pedigree and phyiscal ability to be a star in the league, and he's shown flashes of brilliance, but it remains to be determined if he'll receive an opportunity in Tampa or if this was just lip service. He's currently the TE14 in our early expert consensus rankings.