Who Should I Start? Rashod Bateman or Tucker Kraft

Saturday, October 4, 2:28 PM

Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Rashod Bateman had just one catch in Week 4 against the Kansas City Chiefs, bringing his season-long totals to 10 receptions for 112 yards and a touchdown on 17 targets. Baltimore's passing game will be shorthanded in Week 5, as Cooper Rush will replace Lamar Jackson (hamstring) at quarterback in a tough matchup against the Houston Texans. Houston's defense has allowed the seventh-fewest passing yards (790) and second-fewest number of passing touchdowns (three) in the NFL. Bateman is typically reliant on downfield targets for production, which may be tough to come by with Rush under center. At best, Bateman profiles as a desperation deep-league flex option in Week 5.

Tuesday, October 7, 4:18 PM

Green Bay Packers tight end Tucker Kraft has had a solid start to his second season as the full-time starting tight end for the Packers, but is he a bit overrated for fantasy football? In Week 4, when Jordan Love had 43 pass attempts, Kraft could only manage five targets with five receptions for 56 yards. Kraft has been fine this season and perhaps has been propped up by his monster 6-124-1 game in Week 2. Besides that game, Kraft has averaged just four targets, three receptions, 34 yards outside of Week 2. What's additionally concerning is that his per-route metrics are starting to slide. In Week 1, Kraft earned a target on 22.2 percent of his routes run, but that percentage has slipped to 21 percent, 17 percent, and in Week 4, 13 percent. Kraft is what he is: a volatile boom-or-bust option with an inconsistent target-earning profile. You can start Kraft in good fantasy matchups and hope he gets into the end zone in bad matchups. This week is a good matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals, so Kraft is a fine start. Just know that while the ceiling is very high, Kraft's fantasy points floor is shockingly low.