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Tight ends can be the trickiest places to find value in all of daily fantasy football. It is a position that can be mostly touchdown-driven with limited ability to go off for big yardage. Rob Gronkowski isn’t walking through that door anytime soon, but we’ve got to find the edge week after week to turn a profit.
As we look toward Week 14 on the injury front, Austin Hooper resumed practice on Monday as he looks to get back on the field after missing three games. Greg Olsen went out with a concussion and might miss this weekend’s game.
Let’s dive in to Week 14’s best and least valued tight ends. Salaries via DraftKings.
BEST: Ian Thomas (CAR) - $2,500
This is completely dependent on whether Greg Olsen returns to the field for Carolina’s game against Atlanta on Sunday. If Olsen is out, there is tremendous value on his backup Ian Thomas. He held his own when Olsen went down with an injury last year in Thomas’ rookie season. Last wee, Thomas came right off the bench and caught all four targets for 24 yards and had three of those catches as the Panthers were in comeback mode. You could do worse than Thomas as the 42nd highest priced tight end.
WORST: Austin Hooper (ATL) - $6,000
Austin Hooper checks in as the second highest priced tight end in Week 14 going against Carolina. First of all, he still may not even play in this game. You’ll have to check out the injury reports throughout the week but even if he does, it’s his first game back in nearly a month. Keep in mind, Atlanta does not have anything to play for at this point, so what would be the reason to rush back its star tight end?
BEST: Jack Doyle (IND) - $4,600
The Indianapolis skill players are so injured they called and asked me to play wideout this weekend. Jack Doyle is one of the only pass catchers left, and he’s going to see a lot of targets in his Week 14 matchup against the 31st-ranked defense against tight ends in Tampa Bay. He had season highs in targets (11), receptions (6) and yards (73), and he scored a touchdown last weekend. Jacoby Brissett should be looking his way early and often.
WORST: Mark Andrews (BAL) - $5,600
Mark Andrews is the fifth highest priced tight end going into Week 14. He has been as consistent as it gets from the tight end position in 2019, but he is going up against a Buffalo defense that is ranked No. 1 in stopping the tight end. Andrews is not worth starting with that high of a price tag.