Streaming Tight Ends: Week 12 Targets

Nov 24, 2020

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Tight end is pretty gross. It’s getting tougher to put lipstick on a pig week after week in this column, but I’ll try to find some players who are serviceable, and I think I have, so you all are hopefully one step closer to the fantasy playoffs. There are no teams with byes this week. Hopefully, that helps ease the pain of the position in Week 12.

Other Week 12 Streaming Articles: QB | K | DST

As a strategy, streaming aims to find players with above-average matchups, which can hopefully translate to fantasy TE1 production for your fantasy squad. For streaming purposes, 4for4’s Schedule-Adjusted Fantasy Points Allowed (aFPA) is a metric we rely heavily on to determine weekly matchup strength. As the season continues to progress and more data is available, aFPA becomes more and more reliable, using rolling 10-week data. Targets and efficiency metrics are also considered when choosing weekly streamers.

Week 11 saw the elite tight ends at the top (Kelce, Waller, & Andrews), with only one of my streamers among the starters, as Dalton Schultz posted 10.5 half-PPR points (TE10). So far, 4for4’s optimal streamer boasts 152.8 total points—good enough for the overall fantasy TE2 on the season.

In order to provide advice you can actually implement, candidates for streaming must be rostered in no more than 40% of Yahoo! fantasy leagues.

Top Streaming Picks

Jordan Reed (49ers) @ Rams

Before their bye in Week 10, Jordan Reed ran 22 pass routes, resulting in six targets—second behind only Brandon Aiyuk. With George Kittle out, Reed is becoming more involved in his offense as the veteran pass-catcher, which should continue into San Francisco's Week 12 tilt against the Rams.

The Rams rank 19th in TE aFPA this season. When these two teams met earlier in 2020, the Rams surrendered 20.4 half-PPR points to George Kittle. For those desperate in larger leagues, Ross Dwelley could also be in play (2%), but at a 15% rostership in Yahoo! leagues, Reed should be a reliable option this week.