Fantasy Football Week 8 Tight End Start/Sit: Two Strong Players Have Tough Matchups

Tight ends generally score fewer fantasy points than the other offensive positions, and that has been true early in 2026. Heading into Week 8, the top-scoring standard tight end (Isaiah Likely) is the 61st-highest scorer, behind seven kickers. Trey McBride is 20th in total PPR points, but the next highest ranking is Likely at 37th (though at least no kickers are ahead of him).

That shows just how hard it can be to find consistent points at the tight end position, leaving it more important for fantasy owners to find the best matchups.

Let's look at three tight ends to start and three to sit in Week 8 of the NFL season. Most stats are from NFL.com, and fantasy points and rankings are from FantasyPros.

Use FantasySP's start/sit tool to compare players and help make your toughest lineup decisions each week!

Start

T.J. Hockenson, Minnesota Vikings @ Detroit Lions

Hockenson has been part of Minnesota's slow offensive start, only topping four receptions or 36 yards once. That one game was a 13-catch, 119-yard performance in a great matchup against the Dolphins (more on them in a minute), but Hockenson has otherwise mostly had rough fantasy outings when not finding the end zone.

The good news is that the matchup here is phenomenal (and the rest of the year is looking up for Hockenson, as I discussed in our weekly trade column). Detroit has been a little worse than average in terms of yards per pass attempt allowed, but they have given up by far the most fantasy points per game to tight ends. The position has averaged more than 100 receiving yards per game and scored 10 touchdowns in six games against the Lions, finding success every week.

Hockenson has one of the best outlooks of any tight end this week. He should be in a lineup in most leagues this week unless you also have a guy like McBride or Brock Bowers.

Hunter Henry, New England Patriots @ Miami Dolphins

I just mentioned above that Miami creates a fantastic matchup for tight ends. They have given up the third-most yards per pass attempt and the third-most fantasy points per game to TEs. The position is averaging close to seven receptions, 75 yards, and one touchdown per game against the Dolphins, and even that includes Bowers missing their Week 1 game against the Raiders.

Henry leads the Patriots with 26 receptions and 296 receiving yards while scoring two touchdowns (one short of the team lead). With A.J. Brown injured and then struggling to secure the ball since returning, Henry has been the most reliable pass catcher on the team. He has been at his best over the past four games, averaging 4.8 catches and 56.3 yards per game while scoring both of his TDs.

This is a great chance for Henry to continue his strong play. He isn't a weekly fantasy starter, but Henry should keep seeing plenty of targets, and with the matchup heavily in his favor, this is an opportunity for fantasy owners to deploy the New England tight end.

Mason Taylor and Kenyon Sadiq, New York Jets vs. Las Vegas Raiders

Taylor was a second-round pick in 2025 and Sadiq a first-round pick this year, creating a high-upside duo for New York. Taylor has played more snaps and put up more numbers over the past three weeks, combining for 12 catches, 119 yards, and two touchdowns in that time (versus four, 21, and zero for Sadiq).

The matchup is heavily in their favor this week, as the Raiders have allowed the fifth-most yards per pass attempt and the fourth-most fantasy points per game to tight ends. The biggest benefit has been allowing touchdowns to the position, as Las Vegas has given up eight scores to TEs with at least one in four of seven games and multiple TDs in two games.

Taylor is the better option this week and the one to go after. He has done well recently and is likely to be on the field most often. Sadiq is more of a low-level, deep-league option if you find yourself without a player on Sunday morning. He has a very low floor and is at risk of getting shut out even with a strong matchup.

Sit

Oronde Gadsden, Los Angeles Chargers @ Los Angeles Rams

Gadsden had preseason buzz as a guy who could break out after finding plenty of success as a rookie. Instead, he has played fewer snaps than Charlie Kolar in every game when both were healthy, while averaging just two catches and 17 yards per game. The Chargers have been struggling in about every area, and Gadsden has been part of those woes.

The matchup is also against him in this one, as the Rams have given up the second-fewest yards per pass attempt and the sixth-fewest fantasy points per game to tight ends. They have given up plenty of production to the position the past two weeks, but that came against McBride and Bowers; they otherwise haven't given up more than 33 yards to TEs in any game.

Gadsden (and Kolar) is a player to skip most weeks, and that's especially true in this one. This has the makings of another rough game for the Chargers.

Sam LaPorta, Detroit Lions vs. Minnesota Vikings

LaPorta is TE5 in both standard and PPR scoring despite the Lions already having their bye. He had a fantastic rookie season, fell back a little in his second year, then dealt with injuries last year. He is on pace to come very close to his rookie numbers, so it makes sense to treat him as a weekly starter. With a rough TE matchup against the Packers last week, though, LaPorta was held to just one catch and 18 yards.

Well, the outlook is even bleaker this week. The Vikings have allowed the fourth-fewest yards per pass attempt and the fewest fantasy points per game to tight ends in 2026. The Packers' tight ends found success in Week 1, but only one other team has gotten more than 23 yards combined from the position since then, and Minnesota hasn't given up a touchdown to a tight end all season.

Many owners will start LaPorta because they don't have a better option, and that's fine given how hard it can be to find tight end points, and he still could find the end zone. I suggest trying to find another fantasy player this week if you can because the floor is about as low as it could be.

Colston Loveland, Chicago Bears @ Seattle Seahawks

Let's double up on big-ceiling players with bad matchups! Like LaPorta, Loveland was a high pick who had a strong rookie season, though Loveland was not as consistent. The Chicago tight end struggled to start this year, combining for just 34 yards in the first three games. He has been much better since then, recording at least six receptions and 57 yards in three of the past four games while scoring twice.

The real issue is the matchup here, as the Seahawks have allowed the fewest yards per pass attempt and the third-fewest fantasy points per game to tight ends. They held McBride to 41 yards in Week 2, and the only other players to reach 40 yards were Travis Kelce and Noah Gray, who both had 44 yards last week. Seattle has been maybe the best defense this season when factoring in schedule, and I don't want to trust anyone but the very best fantasy players against them.

Like with LaPorta, some owners will never bench Loveland because of his upside. Loveland has struggled in his tougher matchups, though, including just two catches and 19 yards in Week 5 against the Packers. It's worth seeing if you can find a better outlook this week.