Who Should I Start? Austin Hooper or Robert Tonyan Jr.

Wednesday, November 20, 8:04 PM

New England Patriots tight end Austin Hooper (neck) was listed as limited on the team's practice report on Wednesday. Hooper apparently picked up a neck injury in the Week 11 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, but the fact that he practiced at all on Wednesday means he has a good shot of playing this Sunday when the team takes on the division-rival Miami Dolphins. The 30-year-old has seen an uptick in production the last two weeks with rookie quarterback Drake Maye now leading the offense -- he's caught seven of eight targets for 99 yards -- although he's still nothing more than a low-end TE2 for fantasy purposes while ceding most of the tight end pass-catching work to Hunter Henry. In his first year in New England, Hooper has just one trip to paydirt and has 23 receptions (34 targets) for 236 yards in 11 games.

Tuesday, August 27, 5:57 PM

The Minnesota Vikings released tight end Robert Tonyan on Tuesday. The Vikings have plenty of tight end depth, with superstar T.J. Hockenson (knee) on the PUP list and Josh Oliver, one of the best backups in the NFL. The 29-year-old spent the first five seasons of his career with the Green Bay Packers before playing with the Chicago Bears in 2023. In 2020 he had by far the best season of his career, with 586 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns. Tonyan, who has only ever played for NFC North teams, has put together a couple of productive seasons and shown that he has plenty of talent. Tonyan will look to latch onto another team but is off the fantasy radar for now in 2024.