Who Should I Start? Trey McBride or Michael Mayer

Saturday, September 13, 10:46 AM

Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride needs no introduction at this point. Last season, he was the second-most targeted tight end and saw the eighth most overall. In Week 1, he received another nine targets and caught six of them for 61 yards. The only area he's lacked in thus far in his career is finding the end zone. For fantasy purposes, that hasn't hindered his production, especially in PPR formats. According to RotoBaller's matchup ratings, McBride has the second-best rating against the Carolina Panthers among all tight ends. The only one above him would be Brock Bowers if he ends up playing. It should go without saying that McBride should be in all lineups.

Tuesday, September 16, 12:45 PM

Las Vegas Raiders tight end Michael Mayer was a savvy waiver-wire pickup heading into Week 2 because star tight end Brock Bowers was questionable to play on Monday night against the Los Angeles Chargers due to a knee injury he picked up in the Week 1 win over the New England Patriots. However, Bowers was inactive in Monday's 20-9 loss and caught five of his eight targets for 38 yards. Meanwhile, Mayer once again took a back seat to Bowers in a Raiders offense that failed to find the end zone all night. The 24-year-old hauled in both of his targets for just nine yards against a stingy and stick Chargers D. The Raiders will continue to use Mayer alongside Bowers, but he's a distant No. 2 in Chip Kelly's offense and should only be rostered in TE-premium leagues. Mayer will not be a realistic fantasy starter going into Week 3 against the Washington Commanders.