The 2021-22 NFL season has already been extremely entertaining. It has shown fantasy trends that have started to develop and show what could happen the rest of the season. Already some players have proven to be fantasy relevant while some fantasy stars have been alarmingly disappointing to this point. Injuries have started to mount up this season. It is always a great idea to evaluate backup options so that way fantasy managers are prepared if star players miss time. Here are the Week 3 fantasy football tight end rankings.
*Ratings are subject to change due to injury reports or possible move to reserve/COVID-19 list*
(Check out the section below for details on players already rumored to possibly miss this week and how their replacement options rank for the week)
Key:
Must Start- a player who is in your lineup regardless of the matchup or most circumstances. They Will likely finish near the top of the league in points that week and in most weeks.
Starting TE1- a player who makes fantasy owners comfortable starting week after week. Regardless of the matchup, this player has a solid floor.
TD Dependent Starter- a player who may not be a lock to start for a team every week, but will start more times than not because of depth at the position. Their production is based on whether they can get in the end zone or not. It can be the difference between a top 10 performance or top 25 performance
Deep League Starter- a player whose ceiling isn’t high but should put up enough production to be started in deep leagues. When a player like this is started it is because their production though it will likely be low, will be better than a few options.
Leave on the Bench- a player who should be avoided in all lineups that week. Many times this player could even be left on waivers.
| Category | Name | Opponent | Ranking |
| Must Start | Travis Kelce | vs Los Angeles Chargers | TE1 |
| Must Start | Darren Waller | vs Miami Dolphins | TE2 |
| Must Start | George Kittle | vs Green Bay Packers | TE3 |
| Must Start | T.J. Hockenson | vs Baltimore Ravens | TE4 |
| Starting TE1 | Noah Fant* | vs New York Jets | TE5 |
| Starting TE1 | Mark Andrews | vs Detriot Lions | TE6 |
| Starting TE1 | Rob Gronkowski | vs Los Angeles Rams | TE7 |
| Starting TE1 | Kyle Pitts | vs New York Giants | TE8 |
| Starting TE1 | Logan Thomas | vs Buffalo Bills | TE9 |
| Starting TE1 | Dallas Goedert | vs Dallas Cowboys | TE10 |
| Starting TE1 | Jared Cook | vs Kansas City Chiefs | TE11 |
| TD Dependent Starter | Austin Hooper | vs Chicago Bears | TE12 |
| TD Dependent Starter | Jack Doyle | vs Tenneseee Titans | TE13 |
| TD Dependent Starter | Robert Tonyan | vs San Fransisco 49ers | TE14 |
| TD Dependent Starter | Tyler Higbee | vs Tampa Bay Buccaneers | TE15 |
| TD Dependent Starter | Mike Gesicki | vs Las Vegas Raiders | TE16 |
| Deep League Starter | Jonnu Smith | vs New Orleans Saints | TE17 |
| Deep League Starter | Evan Engram* | vs Atlanta Falcons | TE18 |
| Deep League Starter | Pat Freiermuth | vs Cincinnati Bengals | TE19 |
| Deep League Starter | Hunter Henry | vs New Orleans Saints | TE20 |
| Deep League Starter | Tyler Conklin | vs Seattle Seahawks | TE21 |
| Leave on the Bench | David Njoku | vs Chicago Bears | TE22 |
| Leave on the Bench | Cole Kmet | vs Cleveland Browns | TE23 |
| Leave on the Bench | Blake Jarwin | vs Philadelphia Eagles | TE24 |
| Leave on the Bench | Juwan Johnson | vs New England Patriots | TE25 |
| Leave on the Bench | Dalton Schultz | vs Philadelphia Eagles | TE26 |
| Leave on the Bench | Dawson Knox | vs Washington Football Team | TE27 |
| Leave on the Bench | Albert Okwegbunam | vs New York Jets | TE28 |
| Leave on the Bench | Maxx Williams | vs Jacksonville Jaguars | TE29 |
| Leave on the Bench | Anthony Firkser* | vs Indianapolis Colts | TE30 |
| Leave on the Bench | Harrison Bryant | vs Chicago Bears | TE31 |
| Leave on the Bench | Dan Arnold | vs Houston Texans | TE32 |
| Leave on the Bench | Kyle Rudolph | vs Atlanta Falcons | TE33 |
| Leave on the Bench | Mo Alie-Cox | vs Tennessee Titans | TE34 |
| Leave on the Bench | Adam Trautman | vs New England Patriots | TE35 |
| Leave on the Bench | Zach Ertz* | vs Dallas Cowboys | TE36 |
| Leave on the Bench | Pharaoh Brown | vs Carolina Panthers | TE37 |
| Leave on the Bench | Foster Moreau | vs Miami Dolphins | TE38 |
| Leave on the Bench | Tyler Kroft | vs Denver Broncos | TE39 |
| Leave on the Bench | C.J. Uzomah | vs Pittsburgh Steelers | TE40 |
| Leave on the Bench | Eric Ebron | vs Cincinnati Bengals | TE41 |
| Leave on the Bench | Hayden Hurst | vs New York Giants | TE42 |
| Leave on the Bench | Jimmy Graham | vs Cleveland Browns | TE43 |
Possible Changes that can occur before Sunday
TE5 Noah Fant, Denver Broncos
Broncos tight end Noah Fant was limited in practice both Wednesday and Thursday because of an ankle issue. If he was to miss Sunday’s game against the New York Jets Albert Okwegbunam would step in as the Broncos starting tight end and would be the TE11 for the week between Jack Doyle and Austin Hooper.
TE18 Evan Engram, New York Giants
Evan Engram was still limited in practice Thursday due to his calf injury. Many believe he could debut this week in a great matchup against the Atlanta Falcons. If he cannot play Kyle Rudolph would be the TE21 for the week between Tyler Conklin and David Njoku.
TE30 Anthony Firkser, Tennesee Titans
Anthony Firkser didn’t practice Wednesday or Thursday because of the same knee issue that help him out of the game against the Seahawks last week. Mycole Pruitt would likely step into the same role Firkser would have if he was in the lineup so he would also becomes the TE30 between Maxx Williams and Harrison Bryant.
TE36 Zach Ertz, Philadelphia Eagles
Former Pro Bowl tight end Zach Ertz was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list earlier this week. If he isn’t active for the game this week against the Cowboys expect Dallas Goedert to see the little targets he was seeing already in this offense.
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