Who Should I Start? Ian Thomas or Noah Fant

Tuesday, March 25, 1:32 PM

The Las Vegas Raiders announced on Tuesday that they signed free-agent tight end Ian Thomas (calf) to an undisclosed deal on Tuesday. Thomas will head to the AFC West after spending the first seven years of his NFL career with the Carolina Panthers after they selected him in the fourth round (101st overall) in the 2018 NFL draft out of Indiana. The 28-year-old never really established himself as a fantasy asset in Carolina, with his best season coming in his rookie campaign with a 36-333-2 line on 49 targets in 16 games (six starts). Thomas landed on Injured Reserve in 2024 with a calf injury and only caught three of six targets for seven yards in five games (two starts). He scored four touchdowns in his first three seasons but hasn't found the end zone since. In Vegas, he'll provide TE depth behind Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer and will remain off the fantasy radar.

Friday, October 17, 9:11 AM

Cincinnati Bengals tight end Noah Fannt caught all four of his targets for 44 yards and a touchdown in Thursday night's 33-31 win over the Steelers. Fant expectedly played his highest snap share of the season so far (68.4%) with top tight ends Mike Gesicki (pectoral) and Tanner Hudson (concussion) both ruled out for this game. The 27-year-old capitalized on a Pittsburgh defense that has struggled against tight ends, finding the end zone for the first time since Week 1 and recording a season-high in receiving yards. The Bengals' offense looked much improved with newly acquired Joe Flacco under center, putting Fant back into streamer consideration next week if he gets another start.