Streaming Tight Ends: Week 13 Targets

Dec 01, 2015

In case you are new to tight end streaming (welcome Gronk owners), the idea here is to identify a waiver wire tight end with a favorable matchup likely to post TE1 caliber fantasy points. The foundation for the matchup research is 4for4’s Schedule-Adjusted Fantasy Points Allowed (aFPA) metric. As the season progresses and more data is available, aFPA gets more and more reliable, using rolling 10-week data. Volume and efficiency metrics are also considered when searching the waivers for tight end streamers.

After a demoralizing streaming week in Week 11, waiver wire tight ends came through strong in Week 12. Kyle Rudolph led the way with 12.3 PPR fantasy points, and even though Heath Miller left early with an injury, all streaming candidates finished with at least 9.5 PPR fantasy points.

For the season, streaming candidates are averaging 8.7 PPR points per game, while optimal picks have posted 14.3 PPR points per game, equivalent to TE7 numbers on the season.

Streaming candidates must be available in at least 40% of Yahoo leagues, in order to ensure that the picks are readily available in most leagues. As always, be sure to consider 4for4’s weekly rankings in case a highly ranked player is still available in your league.

Here are the top streaming options for Week 13:

Scott Chandler vs. Philadelphia

The most glaring void to fill this week is the one left by Rob Gronkowski. With Gronk out, up to 69 percent of the Patriots targets may be on the sideline in Week 13. Enter Scott Chandler. Even with Gronk active, Chandler has seen eight red zone targets this season. Combined, New England tight ends have accounted for 36 percent of all team red zone targets.

Though Gronk was out for just a portion of the game, Chandler led all tight ends in targets in Week 12, with 11. Brandon LaFell is the only active pass catcher on the Patriots with more targets than Chandler on the season, so expect another high volume game for the backup tight end in a week where New England is projected to score over 29 points at home. Scott Chandler is owned in just 11 percent of Yahoo leagues.