Who Should I Start? Pat Freiermuth or Ja'Tavion Sanders

Monday, January 5, 9:20 PM

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Pat Freiermuth has seen an expanded role in the offense lately. The loss of Darnell Washington (forearm) has moved Freiermuth up the depth chart. Over the last four games, Freiermuth has hauled in 13 receptions for 179 yards, but he hasn't scored a touchdown since Week 12. The 27-year-old will head into a playoff matchup against a tough Houston Texans defense this week. The Texans' defense has been generally strong versus opposing tight ends, which isn't good news for Freiermuth. The increased target share will certainly help, but Freiermuth should be viewed as a lower-end option for this difficult Wild-Card matchup. The return of DK Metcalf from a two-game suspension is also bad news for Freirmuth.

Sunday, December 28, 5:08 PM

Carolina Panthers tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders (ankle) suffered a broken ankle during Sunday's Week 17 loss against the Seattle Seahawks, according to head coach Dave Kanales. He will undergo surgery during the upcoming week. This injury will shut down Sanders for the final week of the regular season and presumably all of the playoffs, should Carolina qualify. He ends the year with just 29 catches for 190 yards and one touchdown through 13 games. It was a disappointing campaign for the tight end out of Texas, who showed promise as a rookie but evidently wasn't able to take a second-year leap in 2025. Tommy Tremble, Mitchell Evans, and James Mitchell will step up as the Panthers' top tight ends going forward.