Tight end non-PPR rankings for Week 12 fantasy football

Final injury report

Irv Smith Jr. continues to manage a groin injury that held him out of Week 10. With the snaps to himself in that outing, he reeled in four catches for 63 yards. He would be another great volume play for Week 12, particularly given Adam Thielen’s status is in doubt.

Tyler Higbee is questionable with an elbow injury, and though he’s not a weekly start, Gerald Everett gets an instant upgrade into TE1 territory if he sits.

Jordan Reed is dealing with a non-COVID-19 illness and remains questionable into Sunday. If he’s out, Ross Dwelley is the play — a particularly intriguing GPP pick.

Hayden Hurst’s status raises more questions for my belief in QB Matt Ryan. Ryan has struggled in his games without Julio Iones this season; given that Todd Gurley is out for this game, we could see similar struggles.

Out: MyCole Pruitt (knee)
Doubtful: Irv Smith (groin, back)
Questionable: Hayden Hurst (ankle), Jordan Reed (illness), Tyler Higbee (elbow)

Thursday’s Ravens vs. Steelers Update

Four more players have tested positive for COVID-19 on the Ravens roster Thursday, including starting QB Lamar Jackson. The outbreak at the Ravens facility has undoubtedly been the worst that the NFL has seen this season. Considering that the Ravens have continued to see the positive tests trickle in among players and staff, it’s difficult to imagine this game will be played — at least on Sunday. TEs Mark Andrews and Eric Ebron are currently listed as starting in 85.6% and 49.1% of ESPN fantasy football leagues, respectively. A popular solution among league commissioners has been to have managers rostering involved tight ends to designated a back up player in case the game is canceled.

Wednesday injury report

Jonnu Smith’s full practice is encouraging following the ankle injury he suffered in Week 11. He’ll be good to go

The Jaguars could be short at tight end with Tyler Eifert and James O’Shaughnessy both limited heading into Week 12. Eifert is in the concussion protocol, and even though a limited practice is a step in the right direction, he won’t played until formally cleared. Regardless, these tight ends wouldn’t be viable options, particularly while the Jaguars are juggling between Mike Glennon and Jake Luton at QB.

Hayden Hurst joins the list of Falcons offensive weapons who were either out or limited Wednesday. Hurst was held without a catch in Week 11, though he did play his full allotment of offensive snaps.

Noah Fant’s full practice isn’t a surprise. He’s been battling a rib injury through the last two weeks but was active for Week 12’s outing.

DNP: Darrell Daniels (ankle), Maxx Williams (illness), Hayden Hurst (ankle), Tyler Higbee (elbow)
Limited: Ryan Izzo (hamstring, hand), Irv Smith (groin, back), Marcedes Lewis (knee), Robert Tonyan (ankle), Tyler Eifert (concussion), James O’Shaughnessy (knee), Chris Herndon (back)
Full: Travis Kelce (pectoral), Luke Stocker (foot), Dawson Knox (hamstring), Josh Hill (concussion), Noah Fant (ribs), MyCole Pruitt (knee), Jonnu Smith (ankle)

Death, taxes and Travis Kelce finishing as the TE1 while active — the only certainties in life.

Fantasy managers who invested in the tight end position with early picks like Travis Kelce and Mark Andrews walked away happy in Week 11, finishing as the TE1 and TE2 respectively. We’ve seen Mark Andrews accumulate 16 targets over the last two games in the absence of Nick Boyle — a good sign that Andrews is back in business after a dry spell to kick off the season.

Trey Burton and Jack Doyle continue to score touchdowns despite the lack of yards, while Dallas Goedert and Richard Rodgers combined for a mega-line of 7/125/2 as the only viable pass catchers in Philly.

Without any teams on bye this week, fantasy managers will have all of their elite options available at tight end, and we could see another week of top-tier players with top-tier finishes.

Injury news

Jonnu Smith limped off of the field in Week 11 with an ankle injury. If he is unable to play in Sunday’s outing, Anthony Firkser will make for an intriguing DFS play.

The Seahawks officially placed TE Greg Olsen on injured reserve after he suffered a foot injury that had him carted off of the field Sunday.

Bye weeks

There are no teams on bye in Week 12.

Streaming options

Austin Hooper, Cleveland Browns

Since returning from his appendectomy, Austin Hooper hasn’t been particularly serviceable for fantasy managers. He did see five targets in Week 11, however — a trend in the right direction. A matchup against a soft defense in the Jacksonville Jaguars could be just the ticket for a bounce back. The Jaguars defense has allowed eight total touchdowns to the tight end position, tying for most in the league, while giving up an average of 56 receiving yards per game to tight ends. Another week out from surgery and a soft matchup may be just the spark he needs.

Robert Tonyan, Green Bay Packers

Tonyan has been in a bit of a dry spell in terms of scoring touchdowns since his monstrous three-score performance in Week 4. Tonyan has seen nine targets in his last two games, and though the Bears defense can be daunting, they have been generous to tight ends as of late. Since Week 8, the Bears are allowing an average of 61 receiving yards to tight ends and a per game. Aaron Rodgers may look to Tonyan to move the chains if he’s given any trouble from the Bears corners.