Week 5 Tight Ends - Waiver Wire Pickups and Adds

Finding a tight end on waiver wire in your fantasy football league has gotten a little more important this week.

Chicago’s Trey Burton and Tampa Bay’s O.J. Howard are on bye, and Cincinnati’s Tyler Eifert is out for the season after catastrophically breaking his ankle. Those are three pretty big names at the tight end position that fantasy owners need to find replacements for. Well, you came shopping at the right store!

Without further adieu, here are the best tight ends to pick up heading into Week 5. Good luck RotoBallers!

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TE Waiver Wire Options for Week 5

Vance McDonald, Pittsburgh Steelers – 42% owned

The most valuable tight end fantasy-wise on the Steelers changes back and forth more often than my wife changes the décor in our living room. Right now it seems that McDonald has an edge on Jesse James after his second straight solid outing. After racking up 112 yards and a touchdown in Week 3, he followed that performance with five receptions for 62 yards against division rival Baltimore.

McDonald finds the end zone about as often as Leonardo DiCaprio finds the friend zone. He has nine touchdowns in five-plus seasons. What McDonald brings to the table is above-average speed for a tight end, and he plays in big-play offense where he can eat up large chunks of yards on his receptions. He is the best available tight end on waiver wires this week in many if not most leagues.

Cameron Brate, Tampa Bay Buccaneers – 44% owned

After starting the season with two reception-less games, Brate has now caught touchdown tosses in back-to-back weeks. O.J. Howard might be Tampa Bay’s top tight end, but Brate is showing he has value, too, and could have even more when Jameis Winston takes back his starting signal caller spot, which could happen as quickly as the Buccaneers’ next contest.

Tampa Bay is on bye this week, so if you pick up Brate now it is because you are looking towards the future with your fantasy squad and not just Week 5. Howard injured his knee against Chicago, and if he is out for an extended period, coupled with Winston taking over the offense, then Brate suddenly becomes a fantasy force again in record time.

Tyler Kroft, Cincinnati Bengals – 12% owned

You have to feel for Tyler Eifert. He has arguably been the unluckiest tight end in the NFL over the past four years due to the major injuries he has suffered, with his latest being the worst of them all. You should not feel sorry for Eifert’s fantasy owners, though. They should have known what they signed up for when they drafted him this season.

Just like I am more of a lover than a fighter, C.J. Uzomah is more of a blocker than a pass catcher. That means Kroft, who subbed for Eifert last season when Eifert had a season-ending back injury, will be Cincinnati’s No. 1 tight end from here on out. Kroft had 42 receptions for 404 yards and a surprising seven scores in 2017 and is a decent low-rent option, especially for Eifert owners.

Other Options

Rhett Ellison, New York Giants – 8% owned

With Evan Engram week-to-week with a knee injury, Ellison is now Eli Manning’s second-best safety valve behind rookie tailback Saquon Barkley. Ellison caught three passes for 29 yards this past week after having 39 yards and a touchdown the week before. For those five passes per game when Manning does not throw to Barkley, Odell Beckham or Sterling Shepard, Ellison will be the one targeted.

Jordan Leggett, New York Jets – 2% owned

Okay, forget what I said a couple columns ago about Chris Herndon being an option at tight end. Leggett now appears to be Sam Darnold’s favorite tight end after the rookie quarterback found Leggett in the back of the end zone against Jacksonville. Do not bank on Leggett being the next Mickey Shuler for the Jets, but he could be a deep, deep sleeper if he builds a chemistry with Darnold inside the red zone.      

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