Who Should I Start? Donald Parham or Mitchell Wilcox

Monday, August 12, 8:26 PM

As things currently stand in training camp, The Athletic's Daniel Popper lists Los Angeles Chargers tight ends Will Dissly, Hayden Hurst and Stone Smartt as the three TEs he thinks will make the final roster. Donald Parham Jr. and Ben Mason have missed significant practice time with injuries, and when Parham has been on the field, he has been working with the second and third teams. His blocking also remains a weakness. Zach Heins and Luke Benson have flashed at times, but they don't seem deserving of a roster spot over one of the other team's receivers. Smartt has improved as a blocker, which is why Popper thinks he'll earn a 53-man roster spot for a run-heavy Greg Roman offense this year. Parham's fantasy value in dynasty/keeper leagues is quickly evaporating, even though he set career-highs in catches (27), yards (285) and touchdowns (four) in 2023.

Monday, April 22, 4:39 PM

The New England Patriots signed free-agent tight end Mitchell Wilcox on Monday, the team announced on X. Originally undrafted out of the 2020 class, Wilcox has spent the last four years with the Cincinnati Bengals. In 48 career games, the South Florida product has hauled in 29 of his 35 targets for 211 yards and one touchdown. The Patriots re-signed Hunter Henry to a three-year, $27 million deal this offseason, so the TE1 role is occupied in Foxborough. Wilcox could have the chance to compete with Austin Hooper for the TE2 job, but Hooper is likely the favorite to back up Henry. That said, Wilcox can be ignored in fantasy football.