Who Should I Start? Michael Mayer or Brenton Strange

Monday, December 29, 9:33 AM

Las Vegas Raiders third-year player out of Notre Dame, Michael Mayer, stepped in for the injured Brock Bowers (knee) on Sunday, and dominated, hauling in nine of his 10 targets for 89 yards. The 10 targets were the most on the team, with Tre Tucker with the second most at six targets. With Bowers landing on the Injured Reserve and set to miss the rest of the 2025 season, Mayer will have an opportunity to continue to showcase his skill set for one more game before the regular season is over. Entering Week 18, Mayer will be in the low-end TE1 conversation against the Kansas City Chiefs, who also have had their fair share of injuries. The biggest question to monitor with Mayer would be whether Geno Smith (ankle) or Kenny Pickett will be throwing him passes. Regardless, Mayer should dominate target share, and because of that, find himself as a valuable fantasy asset in most 12-team or larger leagues.

Saturday, December 27, 12:20 PM

Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Brenton Strange has been inconsistent, but he has a chance to be serviceable against the Indianapolis Colts in Week 17. Strange hasn't been the most targeted, but since returning from injury in Week 12, he has had decent involvement in the Jaguars thriving offense. He did manage 93 yards in Week 12 and a touchdown each in Weeks 13 and 16, but his overall season numbers don't stand out in any way. However, in a plus matchup and a week with plenty of injured tight ends, Strange is certainly startable. Fantasy managers can do better, but can also do much worse than Strange, who might be an injury replacement for injured studs Brock Bowers (knee) and George Kittle (ankle) for numerous fantasy managers in their Week 17 fantasy championships.