Welcome back, readers! I am happy to return for a second year as The Sporting Tribune's fantasy football analyst. If you are new here, my mission is to help fantasy managers with any dilemmas or questions they may have through the course of the season to ultimately win their leagues. For the next 17 weeks, I will produce weekly fantasy content that will go over the waiver wire, rankings, and Start 'Em, Sit 'Em columns.
Being a fantasy manager often means having to make difficult roster decisions, but I aim to take some of the guesswork out of it with my Start 'Em and Sit 'Em column for every position. It goes without saying that I won't include obvious calls like "start Trey McBride" or "sit Tommy DeVito." Instead, I search for players that could be perceived as fringe that could propel your lineups for weekly wins.
As always, if you have any questions or don't see your players here, feel free to follow me on Twitter (X) – @JamesNewell96 and send me a message, where I typically respond in a timely manner.
Start ’Em
Isaiah Likely vs. NO (Projected FPTS – 14.5): Likely led all tight ends in Week Five with 32.4 fantasy points, and it’s now the second time in five games that he’s scored 27-plus points. He’s currently averaging 17.1 fantasy points per game and trails only Trey McBride in targets at the position. Likely needs to be started in all fantasy formats regardless of the matchup. This week he gets the Saints, who’ve given up the seventh-most fantasy points to TEs.
Tucker Kraft vs. DAL (Projected FPTS – 11.1): Kraft’s production has started to heat up over the last couple of games, as he’s caught five or more receptions in consecutive weeks and gone over 60 yards in each. His ceiling might be capped by the heavy usage of Christian Watson and Matthew Golden. However, the Week Six matchup against the Cowboys could be enough to benefit all parties. Dallas’ defense has allowed the fourth-most points and the third-most yards per attempt (8.3). I’m confidently starting any of Green Bay’s top pass catchers in this one.
Dallas Goedert vs. CAR (Projected FPTS – 11.0): Before his injury, Goedert was putting up respectable finishes, recording 33.5 fantasy points over his first two games. In his return last week, he saw nine targets, and it’s very likely he’ll see another high total this week if Saquon Barkley and DeVonta Smith both sit out. In Week Six, Goedert takes on the Panthers, who’ve allowed a trio of tight ends to score 11 or more fantasy points, including two finishes with 22-plus points.
Honorable Mentions: Brenton Strange vs. HOU; Dalton Kincaid @ LV; Travis Kelce vs. LAC; Juwan Johnson @ NYG; Colston Loveland @ ATL; Pat Freiermuth @ TB.
Sit ’Em
Dalton Schultz vs. JAX (Projected FPTS – 8.5): Schultz put up 26 fantasy points in Week Two, and since then? He’s scored just 14.9 points and has seen only nine targets combined over the last three games. Schultz has failed to be serviceable since Nico Collins’ return, and that isn’t likely to change this week against the Jaguars in London. The Texans also added another pass catcher to their rotation in Marvin Harrison Jr., so I don’t imagine there will be enough targets to go around. Jacksonville has also allowed the seventh-fewest fantasy points to the position this season.
Kyle Pitts Sr. vs. CHI (Projected FPTS – 7.7): Pitts was finally able to find the end zone last week against the Ravens and posted a double-digit outing (15.2), which was more points than he’d scored through the first four weeks combined. He has a tougher matchup this week against the Bears, who haven’t allowed a tight end to finish with more than 11.6 fantasy points. The lone tight end to score more than 5.9 fantasy points against them was Tucker Kraft last week.
Jake Ferguson @ GB (Projected FPTS – 8.1): What’s happened to Ferguson? Known as a reliable security blanket for Dak Prescott, he has had no real involvement in the offense, and when he does, he’s been dropping passes, including one last week that ended up being the game-sealing interception against the Buccaneers. This week Ferguson takes on the Packers, who’ve been lights out against tight ends and have allowed just one to score more than 9.1 fantasy points. Despite the high point total, I would avoid Ferguson this week.
Lowlights: Evan Engram vs. SEA; Cade Otton vs. PIT; Hunter Henry @ NYJ; Darren Waller @ PHI; Michael Mayer vs. BUF; Oronde Gadsden II @ KC.