NFL Fantasy 2025 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em: Tight ends for Week 3

Last season, Brock Bowers set a record for rookie tight ends with 156 receiving yards through two weeks -- and through two games this season, Warren has 155. The Colts' first-round pick has the third-highest target share among NFL tight ends and has topped 75 yards and 11 fantasy points each time out, averaging eight targets per contest. He's shown a safe floor in a small sample size. And we can assume the best is yet to come, in the form of some truly dominant performances à la Bowers, Trey McBride and George Kittle. Perhaps that will even begin this week against the Titans, who have allowed a completion rate of 83 percent on passes to tight ends so far in 2025.  

I doubted Kraft after Week 1, when he tallied just four targets. I will not make that mistake again. Against the Commanders on Thursday Night Football, Kraft exploded for 124 yards and a touchdown, though what I really loved was his target total (seven, for a share of 23 percent on the team). Honestly, Kraft reminded me of George Kittle at times. Hopefully, a performance like that will earn him more volume, especially with receiver Jayden Reed on the shelf with a broken collarbone. 

EDITOR'S UPDATE: Kraft suffered a left knee injury during Thursday's practice, but the belief is it will not be a long-term issue, per NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport, Mike Garafolo and Tom Pelissero.

After finishing second on the team in targets with six in Week 1, Ferguson led the Cowboys -- and all NFL tight ends, in fact -- with 12 targets in Week 2. He is clearly in the good graces of Dak Prescott. The combination of Ferguson's safe floor and high ceiling is enough to keep him in play most weeks. This week, though, he gets the Bears, who have allowed a 120.1 passer rating and 83 percent completion rate on targets to TEs thus far. I am playing him where I have him, no doubt about it. 

Last week, I suggested Spencer Rattler is forming a special connection with Johnson dating back to 2024, and Week 2 -- in which Johnson scored more than 15 fantasy points and ranked as a top-five TE for a second straight week -- did nothing to dissuade me of that notion. If you are still not sold, consider that Johnson leads all NFL tight ends in snaps and targets and ranks second in red-zone targets. Plus, Seattle has allowed 16 of 18 passes to tight ends to be completed (89 percent). 

Fannin has played 43 percent of his snaps as a tight end, 40 percent from the slot, 10 percent of snaps out the backfield and six percent from out wide. That's fantastic usage, proof that he is a true joker -- he even took a snap from QB in the wildcat. The Browns use 12 personnel on 50 percent of their plays, and no third receiver has played over 40 percent of the team's offensive snaps this season. Fannin is a No. 2 tight end, No. 3 WR and sometimes a fullback, all in one. He has also outscored fellow Cleveland TE David Njoku in fantasy points each week. Lastly, the Packers have allowed the fifth-most yards to the tight end position this year. 

I was a Hockenson supporter coming into the season, but through the Vikings' first two games, the veteran has seemed like an afterthought, totaling four catches for 27 yards and posting just 32 air yards and a passer rating of 65.8 when targeted. His catch rate is also lower than expected by 17 percentage points. Perhaps backup QB Carson Wentz, in line to step in for J.J. McCarthy, can get him going. Hockenson is not exactly a must-sit, but there are tight ends that were available off waivers who are now starts, and I would use them all over him. 

In order to score fantasy points, you need the ball to be thrown your way, and that simply hasn't happened for Engram, who's logged six targets, four catches and 33 yards in two appearances, falling behind Adam Trautman in the hunt for targets (3 to 2) in Week 2. I do think better days are ahead, but I need to see some tangible success before I trust Engram, especially after he was banged up in Week 1. Don't forget that the Chargers made life tough on Travis Kelce in Week 1 and held Brock Bowers under 40 yards in Week 2. 

Speaking of the ball not finding you ... Andrews has just four targets, two catches and 7 yards through two games. Notably, two of those are end-zone targets. Last season, 35 percent of his fantasy points came off TDs, the highest percentage of all tight ends. And now, it feels like Andrews is more touchdown-dependent than ever. The Lions have allowed just four TDs to tight ends since the start of 2024. They've also yielded just 51 yards to tight ends so far this season, the sixth-lowest total in the NFL. That's after allowing the fifth-fewest fantasy points per game to the position last season. 

Last year was fun for Smith. I'm not sure this season -- for which he's been reunited in Pittsburgh with Arthur Smith, a longtime foil of the fantasy community -- will be as enjoyable. In Week 2, Pat Freiermuth ran more routes for the Steelers than Smith did, finishing with the same number of targets and more yards. The combination might work for Pittsburgh in real life, but it is very difficult to trust either Freiermuth or Smith in fantasy football, with a true split being the worst-case scenario. There are better options out there. 

Over two weeks, Otton has totaled seven targets, three catches and 25 yards. The top two targets for Baker Mayfield are clearly Mike Evans and Emeka Egbuka, and the running backs are plenty involved in Tampa's passing game in their own right. That leaves Otton competing with others for what's left. You cannot rely on a player who is working with such little volume.