Who Should I Start? Josh Oliver or AJ Barner

Tuesday, June 10, 1:52 PM

The Minnesota Vikings signed tight end Josh Oliver to a three-year, $23.25 million contract extension on Tuesday with a maximum value of $27.5 million, according to Athletes First's Andrew Kessler. The deal includes $11.9 million in new guarantees and $19.5 million in total guarantees. With T.J. Hockenson missing time due to injury in 2024, Oliver had 22 receptions on 28 targets for a career-high 258 yards and three touchdowns in 15 regular-season games (12 starts), but it still wasn't enough to move the fantasy needle. The 28-year-old former third-rounder (69th overall) by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 2019 NFL draft out of San Jose State excels as a run-blocker and will primarily be used in that role again in 2025. And now that Hockenson will be ready for the start of this season, we'd expect Oliver to be less involved as a pass-catcher.

Friday, September 12, 3:21 PM

Seattle Seahawks tight end AJ Barner had a quiet game in Week 1 against the San Francisco 49ers. He will look to bounce back in Week 2 when Seattle visits the Pittsburgh Steelers. Barner caught one of two targets for zero yards in the season opener. That stat line is completely unusable in fantasy, but his 85% snap share was telling. The Seahawks clearly view Barner as their current No. 1 tight end, and no one behind him did anything to threaten that position in the short term. In Barner's defense, only seven of Sam Darnold's 16 completions went to anyone not named Jaxon Smith-Njigba. There was not much to go around in a passing game that was clearly still working through the kinks. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak is good at featuring his tight ends. It is only a matter of time before one of the tight ends on this team emerges. With Barner's considerable playing time, he could start to find himself in fantasy relevance. For now, take a wait-and-see approach with Barner remaining on the waiver wire.