Who Should I Start? Chigoziem Okonkwo or Tucker Kraft

Friday, September 6, 1:57 PM

Tennessee Titans tight end Chigoziem Okonkwo takes on the Chicago Bears in an NFL opening weekend matchup. The former fourth-round pick was a popular breakout candidate last season, and while that didn't pan out due to the ineffectiveness of Ryan Tannehill at QB, Okonkwo was much more productive when Levis took over as the starting quarterback. There's some post-hype sleeper vibes around Okonkwo heading into year three, but he is still at best the fourth target in this offense behind Ridley, Hopkins, and Pollard/Spears at the moment. With the Bears ranking middle-of-the-pack against tight ends last season and Okonkwo near the bottom of the pass-catching pecking order, he's better left on fantasy benches in Week 1.

Saturday, September 7, 1:01 AM

Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft had a pretty quiet night in the stat sheet in the Packers' 34-29 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Sao Paulo on Friday night. Kraft caught 2-of-3 targets for 37 yards, but the story is that Kraft was the TE1 in snaps and routes well over presumptive starter Luke Musgrave. Per Nathan Jahnke of PFF, Kraft dominated routes per dropback 30-8 and also in snaps as Kraft ran all but three snaps. Even if Kraft's utilization going forward remains as it was in Week 1, Kraft is still a streaming option if you need a tight end, not as somebody you need to plug into fantasy lineups immediately. Of course, there's the Jordan Love aspect, as Love left the game with an undisclosed lower-body injury. If Love plays in Week 2 against the Indianapolis Colts, Kraft is a mid-range fantasy TE2 with volume-based upside.