Who Should I Start? Michael Mayer or Elijah Arroyo

Sunday, January 4, 7:54 AM

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Michael Mayer should continue to operate in a high-volume role during Sunday's Week 18 contest against the Kansas City Chiefs. The Raiders recently placed Brock Bowers (knee) on injured reserve, ending his season and putting Mayer into the starting role for the final two games of the year. Last weekend, he exploded as the top target in Geno Smith's offense, catching nine of 10 targets for 89 yards. In total, throughout the three games that Bowers has missed and Mayer has played this year, the latter tight end has 15 catches, 149 yards, and one touchdown. A quarterback change is expected in Week 18, though, as Kenny Pickett steps in for the injured Smith (ankle). Pickett struggled to the tune of 64 yards and one turnover in his lone start this year, but he should still be able to support a fantasy-relevant role for Mayer on Sunday. At worst, Mayer will operate as a security blanket in case Pickett struggles to throw the ball deep or needs to get the ball out quickly. As it stands, he ranks as the overall TE8 in RotoBaller's latest fantasy football rankings for Week 18.

Sunday, January 25, 5:15 PM

Seattle Seahawks rookie tight end Elijah Arroyo (coach's decision) is officially inactive for Sunday's NFC Championship against the Los Angeles Rams. Seattle activated Arroyo from injured reserve on Saturday, and the fact that he didn't have an injury designation seemed to indicate that he would play. In the end, though, he'll be a healthy scratch as the Seahawks look to punch their ticket to the Super Bowl. Arroyo was held to a modest 15 catches and 179 yards during the regular season, and it's been more than a month since he last played in an NFL game, so his absence on Sunday is not necessarily surprising. AJ Barner will continue to lead the tight end room against the Rams, while Eric Saubert and Nick Kallerup round out the depth chart.