Who Should I Start? Josh Oliver or Isaiah Likely

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.

Wednesday, September 24, 11:18 PM

Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely (foot) was listed as a limited participant during the team's walk-through practice on Wednesday, according to the team. A foot injury has kept Likely out for the first three games of the 2025 season, but head coach John Harbaugh is hoping that the 25-year-old will be able to make his season debut in Week 4 against the Kansas City Chiefs this Sunday. Likely's return will be bad news for Mark Andrews, who broke out for six catches, 91 yards, and two touchdowns in Monday night's loss to the Detroit Lions after catching just two passes for seven yards the first two weeks. Likely will almost certainly be on a snap count if he returns this weekend in a bad matchup, so he would not be a recommended fantasy play. When fully healthy and sharing time with Andrews, Likely will be a touchdown-dependent TE2 in Baltimore's high-scoring offense.