This Sneaky Tight End Sleeper Could Win Your Fantasy Football Playoff Matchup

While most positions are struggling for positive matchups this late in the season, tight end actually has a decent outlook this week. All four teams were good against the pass, but they were in the middle (or worse) against tight ends in fantasy.

That creates some intrigue and options and leaves us looking at the players more than the teams they are facing. There aren't many big names left, but there are a few successful players who scored a lot of touchdowns.

Let's look at the four starting tight ends in action this weekend and who is most worthy of a spot in your fantasy lineup. Most stats are from NFL.com.

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Start

AJ Barner, Seattle Seahawks vs. Los Angeles Rams

My inclination was the put Barner on the “Sit” list, but his two games against the Rams swayed me the other direction:

• Week 11 @ Rams: 10 catches on 11 targets for 70 yards
• Week 16 vs. Rams: 4 catches on 6 targets for 49 yards and a touchdown

Barner wasn't a great fantasy player this season, only reaching four receptions four times and 50 yards five times, but two of his best games were against LA.

Los Angeles allowed the 11th-fewest yards per pass attempt and were 15th in fantasy points given up to tight ends. Carolina's putrid TEs didn't do anything against the Rams in the opening round, but Colston Loveland and Cole Kmet combined for seven catches, 87 yards, and a touchdown last week.

Barner has a low floor, but his previous games against the Rams were good, so he has a little fantasy intrigue. I'm not excited about counting on him, but given the limited options, it's about the best we can hope for.

Hunter Henry, New England Patriots @ Denver Broncos

Henry is the best player from this group. He averaged 3.5 receptions and 45.2 yards per game with seven touchdowns; that's modest work, but it put him inside the top five in standard and the top 10 in PPR. He had three catches for 64 yards and a touchdown in the first playoff game but just one catch for five yards last week.

The Broncos gave up the second-fewest yards per pass attempt but the 11th-most fantasy points to tight ends. The position has averaged close to six catches and 60 yards per game with seven touchdowns on the season against Denver, including the playoffs. Last week, Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox combined for nine receptions, 115 yards, and a touchdown.

I would never recommend this matchup in the regular season, but based on where we are, Henry has a decent outlook. Henry is my favorite DFS play at tight end this week.

Sit

Evan Engram, Denver Broncos vs. New England Patriots

Engram's underwhelming season continued last week, when he caught one pass for seven yards. That came against a tough tight end defense in Buffalo, and this one is just a bit better.

The Patriots allowed the 10th-fewest yards per pass attempt but the 14th-most fantasy points to tight ends, following the pattern of the other teams we have talked about. New England has done well shutting down the position in the playoffs, allowing just three catches for 30 yards to Oronde Gadsden before Houston's tight end group was torn apart by injuries last week.

Regardless of the matchup, there's just no upside to Engram here. On top of struggling to make an impact all season, Bo Nix is out for the rest of the playoffs, leaving Jarrett Stidham under center. There is a low floor for Denver's offense, and Engram is likely to feel the effects.

Colby Parkinson, Los Angeles Rams @ Seattle Seahawks

It has been the same story for Parkinson essentially the whole second half of the season, as he hasn't built up much volume but keeps finding the end zone, putting him on the fantasy radar. That continued in the Wild Card Round when he caught two passes for 34 yards and a score.

He had three catches for 56 yards last week in a decent matchup against the Bears but didn't get into the end zone. There is a low floor for Parkinson if he again fails to score a touchdown.

In the two games these teams played during the season, Parkinson first had two catches for 14 yards and a TD then had two receptions for 21 yards, matching his season-long work. We are likely to see something similar here.

The Seahawks allowed the fewest yards per pass attempt this season and the 12th-most fantasy points to tight ends. They fit the same profile as the others but probably with the best defense remaining (though the others could argue their case).

Parkinson just has a low floor if he doesn't get into the end zone, and that showed against Seattle during the second half of the season. I'm not keen on counting on him to score again in this one.