Who Should I Start? Austin Hooper or Gerald Everett

Saturday, September 20, 2:49 AM

New England Patriots tight end Austin Hooper has seen increased usage within the team's offense, but it's not enough to justify starting him in fantasy football against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 3. Hooper's snap share jumped from 32 percent in Week 1 to 62 percent in Week 2, and his pass-catching volume increased, too. The 30-year-old caught all three of his targets for 38 yards last week, out-producing Hunter Henry despite playing fewer snaps than him. Hooper remains the No. 2 tight end on the depth chart behind Henry, but he's still seeing decent playing time, especially in two-tight end sets. This week, Hooper is facing a mid-range Steelers defense that has allowed the 12th-most fantasy points to tight ends. Hooper ranks as RotoBaller's TE41 this week, and he can be benched in most leagues.

Friday, February 21, 4:00 PM

The Chicago Bears informed veteran tight end Gerald Everett on Friday that he is being released after one season, according to The 33rd Team's Ari Meirov. The move to cut Everett will save the Bears $5.5 million in salary cap space for the 2025 season. He'll leave behind just $1 million in dead-cap money after catching only eight passes for 36 yards and no touchdowns as the No. 2 behind Cole Kmet in his lone season in Chicago after signing a two-year, $12 million deal last year. Everett will turn 31 years old in June and probably isn't anything more than a veteran No. 2 TE at this point in his career. Heading into last year, Everett had five straight seasons of at least 408 receiving yards with the Los Angeles Rams, Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Chargers. His best season came two years ago in 2022 with the Bolts, when he had a 58-555-4 line in 16 games.