Who Should I Start? Hunter Long or John Bates

Friday, November 14, 9:42 PM

Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Hunter Long (hip, knee) has been ruled out ahead of the Week 11 matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers. Long was limited in practice this week, but that won't be enough to get him on the field this weekend. Long will miss his second straight game, which is bad news with Brenton Strange (quad) still sidelined. That means, Johnny Mundt and Quintin Morris will be the primary tight ends this weekend. Neither player offers viable streaming value for this Week 11 matchup.

Wednesday, December 24, 10:23 AM

Washington Commanders tight end John Bates was outsnapped 37 to 27 by second-year tight end Ben Sinnott in last week's loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Bates has served as Washington's No. 2 TE for most of the season, primarily as a blocker. He posted his highest route share (50%) of the season in Week 15 with Zach Ertz (knee) out for the season, but that mark cratered in Week 16, falling to just 16%, his lowest since Week 2. Sinnott profiles as the better receiving option and is seeing his role increase in that area. He jumped to a season-high 56% route share last week. Bates seems to be trending back toward his typical role as the top blocking tight end and shouldn't be considered a fantasy option on Christmas Day against the Dallas Cowboys, especially considering Washington's starting QB is likely to be Josh Johnson with Marcus Mariota (hand, quadriceps) injured.