Week 10 Tight End Preview: Is The George Kittle Breakout Coming?

Top Fantasy TEs for Week 10

Let's break down the key usage notes and matchups that are driving our Week 10 TE Rankings.

1. Brock Bowers, Las Vegas Raiders

Played Thursday night.

2. Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals

Apparently, the only thing keeping McBride from scoring TDs has been Kyler Murray. The TE has found the end zone in each of Jacoby Brissett’s three starts vs. just 1 TD across this season’s first five games (and 2 all of last season). McBride has also averaged 11 targets and 7.7 receptions with Brissett behind center, vs. 8.4 targets and 5.8 catches before that stretch.

3. Oronde Gadsden II, Los Angeles Chargers

Gadsden went 5-68-0 last week, another solid fantasy performance for the rookie. He has become the lead TE for the Chargers, being on the field for 87% of dropbacks over the last two weeks. The Steelers held TE Tyler Warren in check last week, but are still giving up 8.4 yards per target to TEs. Gadsden is a must-start.

4. George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers

Kittle still doesn't look all the way back from his hamstring injury. He's not creating as much separation as he typically does and has drawn just 11 targets on a 13.4% share over the last three weeks. Kittle has caught four balls in back-to-back games, though, and the breakout could come at any time. The Rams rank 11th in adjusted fantasy points allowed to TEs but surrendered a 5-70-0 line to Tyler Warren earlier this season and gave up a score to Juwan Johnson last week.

5. Sam LaPorta, Detroit Lions

The Commanders have allowed 4 TDs to TEs in their last three games. Overall, Washington allows the sixth-most PPR points to the position, which makes it a great spot for LaPorta, who is coming off a season-best 97-yard, 1-TD performance versus the Vikings. LaPorta has caught 4+ balls in each of his 4 road games this season and should continue to see plenty of volume against a vulnerable opponent that has struggled to keep TEs out of the end zone.

6. Tyler Warren, Indianapolis Colts

Warren has cooled off, scoring fewer than 6 PPR points in back-to-back games. In those contests, Warren has fallen to fourth on the Colts with a 14% target share. He's still a big part of Indy's offense, catching 4+ balls in his last six games. We like Warren to rebound, but the Falcons allow the fewest fantasy points to TEs.

7. Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons

Pitts has finally become a solid weekly contributor. He ranks second on the Falcons in snap share (84%), route rate (92%), and target share (22%). In Atlanta's last three, Pitts has corralled 20 receptions, but still only has 1 TD all season. But covering TEs has been the Colts' weak spot. Indy has allowed the 4th-most fantasy points to opposing TEs, so view Pitts as a top-10 option this week.

8. Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills

Over his past four games, Kincaid's posted ping-ponging lines of 1-28-1, 6-108, 1-23, and 6-101-1. Volatility figures to remain present going forward, especially when you consider his underwhelming route rate (58%). Still, we'd lean into the upside case this week against a weak Miami defense. The Bills are implied for a slate-high 30 points.

9. Cade Otton, Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Mike Evans and Chris Godwin remain out, which will funnel more targets Otton’s way. In two weeks without Godwin and Evans, Otton tallied lines of 5-51 and 4-40 on target shares of 26% and 22%. Otton’s a bye-week streamer for a favorable matchup with the Pats.

10. Dallas Goedert, Philadelphia Eagles

Goedert’s TD-heavy, low-reception profile so far makes him volatile. But he plays a TD-reliant position in fantasy and has been a purposeful weapon near the end zone this season. Green Bay enters this week as a neutral matchup for TE scoring.

11. Harold Fannin Jr., Cleveland Browns

Fannin is now tied with Jerry Jeudy for a team-best 19% target share. The rookie TE has 11+ PPR points in three of his last four and has a solid matchup against a depleted Jets defense that allowed the 15th-most points to the position before trading off its two best defenders. Fannin is a borderline TE1 in Week 10 who offers flex value for fantasy teams hurt by the rough bye week.

12. Colston Loveland, Chicago Bears

Loveland's breakout game surfaced last week, when he turned 7 targets into 6 grabs, 118 yards, and 2 TDs. That it came against a putrid Bengals defense is certainly notable. Now this week, the Bears are set to get Cole Kmet back from a concussion. Loveland remains in the low-end TE1 mix, albeit with a shakier fantasy floor.

13. Zach Ertz, Washington Commanders

Ertz has scored 3.8, 2.1, and 1.6 PPR points in Marcus Mariota's three starts. Yikes. Mariota is back under center for the foreseeable future, which hurts Ertz. Additionally, this week's matchup against the Lions, who allow the 13th-fewest fantasy points to TEs, looks lousy. Washington should be trailing, which could lead to some volume, but Ertz's struggles with Mariota should be noted. He's a TE2 but carries a lower floor than he usually does.

14. Dalton Schultz, Houston Texans

Schultz popped off for a 6-77-0 line last week, giving him 60+ yards in three of his last four games and 5+ catches in five of his last six. Next up is the Jaguars, who rank 31st in adjusted fantasy points allowed to TEs. The concern for Schultz is QB Davis Mills, who's a clear downgrade from QB C.J. Stroud. Mills targeted Schultz on six of his 30 passes last week (20%), connecting four times for 28 yards.

15. Juwan Johnson, New Orleans Saints

Johnson continued producing last week, despite the QB change to Tyler Shough. He went 3-31-1, his third straight top-13 PPR TE finish. He is tied for second on the team in targets with Shough at QB. With Rashid Shaheed traded away, Johnson could take on some of his targets. The Panthers are allowing 2.09 PPR points per target to TEs, 28th in the NFL. Johnson is a solid streaming option this week.

16. Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens

Andrews carries some downside risk by virtue of Isaiah Likely pulling even with him in pass routes in recent weeks. But Andrews has remained ahead in targets, and Pro Football Focus credits him with tying for fourth among TEs in end-zone targets on the season.

17. Theo Johnson, New York Giants

Johnson has reached the end zone in four of six games with Jaxson Dart. He sticks as a TE1 streamer against a Bears defense that’s bottom-eight in passing yards per game and yards per attempt allowed.

18. Hunter Henry, New England Patriots

Since totaling 22 targets over the first three weeks, Henry's targets have gone 2, 4, 3, 5, 1, 6. A potential shootout with the Bucs adds some appeal, but the veteran’s low target count makes him more of a TE2.

19. Luke Musgrave, Green Bay Packers

We’ll have to see just how much work goes to Musgrave in the wake of Tucker Kraft’s ACL tear. But the former second-round pick caught all three of his targets for 34 yards last week, with all of those receptions coming on Green Bay’s game-tying scoring drive in the fourth quarter. Musgrave opened his career starting ahead of classmate Kraft and sports both run-after-catch ability and downfield potential. He’s not as big as Kraft, though, and thus might cede some playing time vs. Kraft’s role.

20. A.J. Barner, Seattle Seahawks

Barner remains a TD-or-bust candidate who has exceeded 3 catches in a game just once this year. His playing time has held steady, with seven of eight games finding snap shares of 78% or higher.

21. Mason Taylor, New York Jets

After a slow start, Taylor has started to build some modest momentum. From Weeks 5-8, Taylor ranks second on the Jets in snap share (86%) and target share (21%). Taylor has absorbed 5+ targets in six of his last seven outings. That's solid volume for a passing attack that ranks dead last in the league. This week, Taylor is on the TE2 radar against a Cleveland defense that ranks 18th, allowing 12.9 PPR points per game to opposing TEs.

22. Evan Engram, Denver Broncos

Played Thursday night.

23. Isaiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens

Likely finally out-targeted Mark Andrews for the first time last week (4-3), notably in Lamar Jackson’s return from injury. But that also came in a game that saw Andrews score a pair of TDs. Likely has increased his offensive presence, but he’ll need to string together more positive target counts to climb the weekly rankings.

24. David Njoku, Cleveland Browns

The Jets benched one starter and traded their two best defenders, so this week's matchup looks slightly better for Cleveland's pass catchers. The Browns lead the league in utilizing two TE sets, so Njoku will see plenty of snaps. New York allowed the 15th-most PPR points to TEs before the bloodletting, so view Njoku as a modest TE2 with a decent shot at approaching double-digit fantasy points.

25. T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings

Hockenson’s short-range game makes the lower pass volume of J.J. McCarthy weeks even more injurious than it is for Minnesota’s WRs. The TE has managed just 6 catches across McCarthy’s three starts and tallied 15 yards or less in each of those contests.

Next Up

Fantasy Football Start Sit Week 10: Smash Spots for Stafford and Shakir

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Jared Smola, Lead Analyst

Jared has been with Draft Sharks since 2007. He’s now Lead Analyst, heading up the preseason and weekly projections that fuel your Draft War Room and in-season tools. He currently ranks ninth among 173 analysts in draft rankings accuracy.