NFL Fantasy 2022 Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Week 4: Tight ends

Njoku had a breakout performance on Thursday Night Football, catching nine of his 10 targets for 89 yards and a touchdown. He ran 26 routes (Amari Cooper led the Browns with 32) and was targeted on 38% of them. He has the talent to be a breakout tight end; all he needs is the volume and there is plenty up for grabs behind Cooper on the Browns. Njoku has a chance to build on his big Week 3 as he faces the Falcons, who have allowed the second-most fantasy PPG to tight ends (20.4), in Week 4. He is the TE7 in the Week 4 rankings.

Higbee has scored between 8.9 and 14.1 fantasy points in every game so far this season. That may not sound like much, but it's good enough to make him the seventh-highest scoring tight end on the season so far. His 24 targets on the season is tied for the third-most among tight ends, while his 95% of snaps played leads the position. That much playing time naturally leads to opportunities. That is much more than most tight ends can say. It makes Higbee a start, even in a tough matchup on paper.

Hockenson is coming off his best game of the season in which he caught three passes for 18 yards and a touchdown. In total, he finished with 10.8 fantasy points. But he sees pretty safe volume each week, which keeps him in play as a low-end TE1. He has a favorable matchup this week against the Seahawks, who have allowed 14.4 fantasy PPG to tight ends, the ninth-most in the NFL. That is after struggling against the position last year.

If you listen to the NFL Fantasy Football show (and why wouldn’t you?!) you heard me say on Monday that Knox is a player to be worried about. There is simply not enough volume to go around each week. Knox has shown that he will give you something like six to eight points on weeks he doesn’t score a touchdown. But, in a matchup against Baltimore, which has been passed on all over this season, in a game that could be back-and-forth with two MVP candidates leading each offense, it’s a week to play Knox.

After seeing Brate catch five of his six targets for 52 yards, you may be tempted to stream him. Especially in a game that could be very high-scoring or have the Bucs playing from behind again. But that would not be wise as Mike Evans will be back, and Julio Jones or Chris Godwin could be, as well. There are too many people ahead of Brate in the target pecking order to trust him.

There was some hope for Thomas after he scored a touchdown in Week 2. But he posted season lows across the board in Week 3, catching two passes for 5 yards on three targets. His targets and yards have now dwindled every game this season. He is firmly behind Curtis Samuel and Terry McLaurin in the target pecking order, and then there is Jahan Dotson and the running backs to compete with for targets. The lack of guaranteed volume, paired with a matchup against the Cowboys, who have been great against tight ends this season, and it’s a week to get away from Thomas.

Woods scored two touchdowns last week and finished as a top-five fantasy tight end. That made him an appealing name on the waiver wire. But Woods finished the game with just three targets. The hope is that the strong game leads to more opportunities for Woods, who is an athletic tight end and has potential. But until we see it translate to more usage, he remains a stash candidate who should be sat.

Tonyan posted season highs in Week 3, seeing seven targets and catching six of them for 37 yards. It is encouraging, but it's as many targets as he saw in the first two weeks combined. It is hard to trust until we see that usage is more consistent. It's especially tough considering the Patriots have kept Aaron Rodgers in check in his career.