Who Should I Start? Tyler Conklin or Cole Kmet

Friday, March 21, 10:24 PM

Former New York Jets tight end Tyler Conklin reached an agreement on an undisclosed one-year deal on Friday with the Los Angeles Chargers, according to his agent, Mike McCartney. Conklin heads to the AFC West after spending the last three years with the Jets, where he had 170 catches on 246 targets for 1,622 yards and seven touchdowns in 50 games (43 starts). While the 29-year-old did have a career-high four touchdowns in 16 games (15 starts) last year, he had just 51 catches and 449 yards (his lowest total since 2020) on 72 targets. The former fifth-round selection (157th overall) by the Minnesota Vikings in 2018 out of Central Michigan has the opportunity to be the Chargers' top pass-catching tight end in 2025, but he'll also be sharing playing time with Will Dissly. Dissly had a very similar 50-481-2 line to Conklin a year ago in L.A. Expect Conklin to be a touchdown-dependent TE2 in fantasy in his new home.

Friday, September 12, 11:25 PM

Chicago Bears tight end Cole Kmet had a quiet season opener, catching just one of four targets for 31 yards in the 27-24 loss to the Minnesota Vikings. His lone grab came on the final drive, a highlight-worthy one-handed diving catch over the middle. While rookie Colston Loveland has entered the rotation, Kmet still dominated usage, logging 90% of the snaps compared to Loveland's 56%, and handling 77% of one-tight-end sets versus Loveland's 23%. The volume and role remain encouraging, but the matchup is a major concern in Week 2. The Bears face a Detroit Lions defense that allowed the fewest fantasy points to tight ends in 2024. With a difficult opponent and a reduced ceiling due to Loveland's presence, Kmet is better left on fantasy benches this week.