Who Should I Start? Darren Waller or Cade Stover

Tuesday, July 8, 2:02 PM

The Miami Dolphins have officially agreed to send a 2026 sixth-round draft selection in exchange for former New York Giants tight end Darren Waller and a conditional 2027 seventh-round pick, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. This trade seemingly came out of nowhere, directly following the announcement that Miami had traded Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Waller posted back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons in 2019 and 2020, but he did not eclipse 700 yards in 2021, 2022, and 2023 before taking the 2024 season off. While he should not be expected to be a high-end TE1, the tight end spot is always shallow, meaning he could find his way onto the fantasy football radar in 2025. A mid-range TE2 or even low-end TE1 season is not out of the realm of possibilities. Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle present fierce target competition, but they also open the middle of the field up with their explosive skill sets.

Tuesday, January 14, 4:42 PM

Houston Texans rookie tight end Cade Stover (collarbone) suffered a broken collarbone in the wild-card win over the Los Angeles Chargers last Saturday and will require season-ending surgery. The Texans officially placed Stover on Injured Reserve on Tuesday. The 24-year-old first-year player caught all four of his targets for 28 yards in the 32-12 win over the Bolts and played 36 offensive snaps. Stover was mostly a blocker for the Texans in his first year in the NFL and took a back seat pass-catching-wise to starter Dalton Schultz, as he had only 15 catches for 133 yards and one touchdown on 22 targets over 15 regular-season games. If Teagan Quitoriano (calf) isn't activated from IR to play this Saturday in the Divisional Round against the hosting Kansas City Chiefs, Irv Smith Jr. would operate as the primary backup to Schultz.