Who Should I Start? Tyler Higbee or Kyle Pitts Sr.

Saturday, September 6, 2:45 PM

Los Angeles Rams tight end Tyler Higbee remains atop the depth chart heading into Week 1 against the Houston Texans, but he's not a reliable fantasy option given the competition for targets posed by wide receivers Puka Nacua and Davante Adams. Higbee has a track record of lower production when he's third or lower in the pecking order. In the two games where Higbee, Nacua, and Cooper Kupp were all healthy last year, Higbee averaged just 4.8 fantasy points. Fantasy managers should expect the veteran tight end to have a similar role this year, or perhaps a slightly smaller role if Terrance Ferguson emerges as a pass-catching threat. He can be avoided in all 1TE leagues this week.

Friday, September 5, 10:07 PM

Atlanta Falcons tight end Kyle Pitts Sr. has one of the highest ceilings and lowest floors of any tight end in the league. The former first-round draft pick logged six games of four catches or more in 2024, but also had eight games where he caught just two passes or fewer. Despite that dynamic, the 24-year-old still managed to finish just outside the top 12 TEs in receiving yards and in fantasy points thanks to the third-highest average yards per reception (12.8) among TEs and four touchdown receptions. In two contests against the Buccaneers last year, Pitts Sr. hauled in 11 passes for 179 yards and two scores, and he could be in for another productive day on Sunday against a Tampa defense that struggled to cover the middle of the field in 2024. Also, with Darnell Mooney in jeopardy of missing or being limited in this contest, the 6-foot-6 pass catcher could see a few extra targets. The fifth-year pro projects as a volatile high-end TE2 in Week 1.