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TE Breakdown – NFC South Edition


The league today is full of great TE talent. So much so that it can be hard to know who you want to roll with for your fantasy team. There are currently TE’s being drafted as early as pick 22 and as late as pick 173. It can be hard to tell who is worth their ADP, who you should avoid, and who could wind up being a late round steal. Throughout this series, we will break down the TE depth charts and fantasy potential of each team, 1 division at a time. (12 team, standard scoring)

Atlanta Falcons

Austin Hooper was a lot of people’s 2017 breakout candidate and he didn’t pan out as they had hoped. If you take away one 88-yard TD catch in week 1, Hooper never went above 50 yards in a game last season. Even with that catch, he caught 5+ passes only 3 times last year. He found the endzone only 3 times. There are a lot of mouths to feed in Atlanta, and Matt Ryan loves to spread the ball around. He broke the record in 2016 by completing TD passes to 13 different receivers. With Julio Jones, Mo Sanu, Devonta Freeman, and Tevin Coleman returning as well as the addition of first-rounder Calvin Ridley, Hooper will have a lot of competition for targets and has upside no higher than a TE2 in 2018.

1. Austin Hooper (ADP: 13.10, TE16) – TE2 upside, worth his ADP

Carolina Panthers

Olsen dealt with an injury-plagued 2017 campaign but don’t let that trick you into thinking he’s an injury prone player. Before last year, Olsen had started 13+ games every year since 2009. Olsen has caught 5+ TD’s in 5 out of his 7 seasons with Carolina where he has emerged as Cam Newton’s clear favorite target. From 2012-2016, Olsen started all 16 games and received at least 104 targets and from 2014-2016, he had at least 1,000 yards. Prior to 2017, Olsen had gone 5 consecutive years as a top-7 fantasy TE, ranking 1st in snaps, targets, and receiving yards, as well as 2nd in receptions and fantasy points during that span. Even if Olsen is in the final stretch of his career, his opportunity combined with his rapport with Cam Newton give him TE1 upside in 2018. Definitely worth his ADP.

1. Greg Olsen (ADP: 6.03, TE5) – High-end TE1 upside

New Orleans Saints

Ben Watson was incredibly efficient in Baltimore last year, catching 61 of his 79 targets (77.2% catch rate) for 522 yards (8.5 YPC), and 4 TD’s and a TE11 finish in fantasy PPR scoring. He returns to New Orleans this year where, in 2015, he finished as TE8 and had 74 catches for 825 yards and 6 TD’s – all career highs. Fresh off of an Achilles injury to start his 2017 campaign, Watson also ranked 4th among TE’s in average yards of separation last season. A transition from the #27 offense in the league to the #2 offense will provide Watson with increased redzone opportunities. He can still run, he’s sure handed, and he’s a big target. Drew Brees has historically loved targeting his TE’s, so Watson is worth a late-round flier, or worth keeping an eye on if he goes undrafted in your league, as he is in most. I predict he’ll be a popular waiver wire target early on in the season. Josh Hill will see light work from the TE spot. He has played 5 seasons with New Orleans, appearing in at least 9 games every year, but has never accumulated more than 30 targets and 16 catches in a season. He is not worth a roster spot nor should he see enough work to rob Watson of his high-end TE2 upside.

1. Benjamin Watson (ADP: Undrafted) – Worth a late round flier

2. Josh Hill (ADP: Undrafted) – Not worth a roster spot

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

This one is tricky. Tampa Bay finds themselves with 2 potential TE1’s in 2018, both of whom finished as top-20 TE’s in 2017. If either of these guys were the clear cut TE1 down in Tampa, I’m sure their ADP would be a top-10 TE, but that’s not the case. Cameron Brate’s season last year began with 6 consecutive top-10 finishes at the position, and only 1 the rest of the season. Brate’s production went down as O.J. Howard’s began to rise, as Howard was able to find the endzone 3 times in his final 5 games of the season. Both guys posted efficient catch rates last year, 62.3% for Brate and 66.7% for Howard. Brate’s contract extension through 2023 show the team’s dedication to keeping him involved in the offense, but so does drafting Howard in the 1st round in 2017. While both guys post low-end TE1/high-end TE2 potential this year, I’d recommend looking for a TE that has the TE1 role all to himself, as well as someone who has their starting QB eligible for the first few weeks. Howard is worth his 14th round ADP and Brate is worth a late-round flier, or an early season waiver target as players begin to fall to injury or perform far below their projections. If either Brate or Howard gets injured, the other becomes a must-start across all fantasy leagues.

1. O.J. Howard (ADP: 14.01, TE18) – Low-end TE1/High-end TE2 upside, worth his ADP

2. Cameron Brate (ADP: Undrafted) – Could be a late round steal


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