Who Should I Start? Evan Engram or Cade Otton

Tuesday, February 17, 4:41 AM

Denver Broncos tight end Evan Engram had a frustrating 2025 season, failing to live up to preseason expectations. Engram signed with the Broncos after three years in Jacksonville. He had been a top-five fantasy tight end in two of his three years with the Jaguars, and the one exception was his injury-shortened 2024 campaign. Fantasy managers had high hopes for Engram in Denver, where he could have played the "joker" role in Sean Payton's offense. Instead, he was held to just 4.75 targets per contest, and he finished the year with just one touchdown. These subpar stats resulted in Engram ranking as the overall TE29 in PPR leagues, which was the lowest single-season mark of his career (minimum 10 games played). It doesn't seem like this year was a fluke, either. Engram truly just struggled to get on the field, playing fewer than 50% of the offensive snaps in 13 of his 16 contests. Barring a major scheme change this offseason, we can expect a similar pattern for Engram in 2026. He's a risky redraft option in next summer's drafts. Meanwhile, dynasty managers might want to trade Engram while they still can, capitalizing on any name value he has left.

Monday, February 16, 6:21 AM

Across 16 games in 2025, Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Cade Otton recorded 59 receptions for 572 yards and one touchdown on 81 targets. Despite injuries in Tampa Bay to key pass-catchers like wideouts Mike Evans and Chris Godwin Jr. that sidelined them for large chunks of the season, Otton never fully emerged as a go-to target for Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield. Across four NFL seasons, Otton has never recorded more than 59 catches, 600 receiving yards, or four touchdowns in a single year. Heading into his age-27 season, Otton is now set to hit unrestricted free agency. If he leaves Tampa Bay, Otton could benefit by landing in a situation with less competition for targets. However, based on his track record to this point, there's no guarantee that a new team would sign Otton to be its unencumbered number one receiving tight end, which is the role he's held over the last two seasons in Tampa Bay. Whether he's back with the Buccaneers or not, Otton appears to have a defined production ceiling that limits his fantasy appeal in dynasty formats going forward.