Who Should I Start? Isaiah Likely or Noah Gray

Wednesday, July 30, 10:08 AM

Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely (foot) is expected to miss at least six weeks of action to repair a broken bone in his foot. Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network noted that while the expectation is that the tight will miss six weeks, there is a belief that he could recover on a faster timeline. While Likely could be in danger of missing the start of the regular season, he has avoided a significant injury. The 25-year-old sustained this injury during Tuesday's practice session. Fantasy managers should continue to keep a close eye on his status in case this injury begins to linger. Last season, Likely enjoyed an impressive start to the campaign, tallying 111 yards in the season opener. However, he would only go on to tally over 70 receiving yards in one game during the remainder of the season. When healthy, Likely will be deployed as the No. 2 tight end in Baltimore behind Mark Andrews, which will continue to limit his fantasy ceiling.

Friday, August 8, 10:40 AM

Kansas City Chiefs tight end Noah Gray has looked very strong in training camp and is receiving strong buzz from reports. Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated noted that the tight end looks like a "high-end" starter. Throughout his four-year career in Kansas City, Gray has typically taken the backseat to future Hall of Famer Travis Kelce. However, after catching just 28 passes in both 2022 and 2023, Gray was able to enjoy a mini-breakout season in 2024. Last fall, Gray caught a career-best 40 passes for 437 yards and five touchdowns. He enjoyed productive stretch from Weeks 10 through 15 when he averaged a solid 10.2 PPR points per game. Fantasy managers should keep an eye on his progression early in the season as he could continue to carve out a role behind Kelce. However, for now, Kelce remains the clear TE1 in Kansas City. Gray is best viewed as a high-upside TE3 in deeper formats.