Who Should I Start? Darren Waller or Sam LaPorta

Wednesday, December 17, 8:45 PM

Miami Dolphins tight end Darren Waller (rest, knee) was limited on Wednesday after taking a scary-looking hit to the knee during Monday night's loss to the Steelers. Waller has played in each of the last three games since missing five weeks with a pectoral injury, and began each of those weeks with a limited/rest practice. The additional designation of the knee injury is new for Week 16 and will need to be monitored, though he seemed to finish the game without limitation, catching two late touchdown passes. Waller will be one of the most difficult start/sit decisions for fantasy semifinals. The Dolphins face a historically bad Bengals defense, but the Wednesday news that quarterback Tua Tagovailoa will be benched in favor of 7th-round rookie Quinn Ewers casts a considerable shadow over Miami's offensive outlook. Waller is RotoBaller's TE8 for Week 16, but the new injury designation may be the deciding factor for many fantasy managers to pivot to another streamer.

Friday, November 21, 12:17 PM

According to Detroit Football Network's Justin Rogers, Detroit Lions tight end Sam LaPorta (back) is likely to miss the remainder of the season after successful surgery on his back. The 24-year-old was amid a rebound campaign, posting a 40/489/3 line before sustaining a back injury in their 44-22 win over the Commanders in Week 10. However, his status quickly deteriorated, and he's now facing a significant recovery. Fellow tight end Brock Wright (ankle) will operate as Detroit's TE1 in his teammate's stead, with Ross Dwelley working in behind him. Neither projects to be particularly useful for fantasy.