Who Should I Start? Mitchell Wilcox or Juwan Johnson

Monday, April 22, 4:39 PM

The New England Patriots signed free-agent tight end Mitchell Wilcox on Monday, the team announced on X. Originally undrafted out of the 2020 class, Wilcox has spent the last four years with the Cincinnati Bengals. In 48 career games, the South Florida product has hauled in 29 of his 35 targets for 211 yards and one touchdown. The Patriots re-signed Hunter Henry to a three-year, $27 million deal this offseason, so the TE1 role is occupied in Foxborough. Wilcox could have the chance to compete with Austin Hooper for the TE2 job, but Hooper is likely the favorite to back up Henry. That said, Wilcox can be ignored in fantasy football.

Saturday, December 14, 5:26 AM

New Orleans Saints tight end Juwan Johnson (foot) was limited in practice twice to start the week but logged a full practice on Friday. He carries no designation heading into the Saints' Week 15 clash with the Washington Commanders. Even with the Saints' wide receiver corps banged up and utilityman Taysom Hill (knee) suffering a season-ending injury in Week 13, Johnson has not moved past being a touchdown-dependent fantasy option. Odds for another score are not in his favor in Week 15, as Jake Haener will make his first NFL start over Derek Carr (concussion, hand). While it is often assumed that an inexperienced starter might turn to their tight ends as safety blankets, when Carr missed three games earlier this season Johnson saw 13 targets and produced a 9-114-0 line. Johnson's prospects for fantasy relevance were slim to begin with but without Carr, his potential takes a hit and he should not be relied on for the first round of the fantasy playoffs.