Luke Willson

Fantasy Upside

Now that he’s out of the shadows of being a second stringer in Seattle, Luke Willson gets to show what he can do as the starter in Detroit after the team surprisingly waived Eric Ebron. Willson scored a career-high four times last season, on just 15 receptions. He has been a touchdown maker during his five-year career, with 11 of his 89 grabs going for scores. At 6-foot-5, he will become a friend of Matthew Stafford’s, especially in the red zone.

Fantasy Downside

While he’s caught at least 15 passes in every season of his career to date, Willson’s season-high in receptions is just 22. He’s not known to be much of a run blocker, so in order to stay on the field, he’ll need to produce in the passing game. After Week 3 in 2017, Willson caught just nine balls.

2018 Bottom Line

Matthew Stafford likes to spread the ball around, which includes throwing to his TEs. Ebron caught over 50 passes and posted 10 total TDs the past three years, so there’s potential for Willson to have a breakout season. While he could become a threat in the red zone, there are just too many athletic options for Stafford, making Willson a TE2 option for any fantasy roster.

Week 13 vs Vikings
Even with Jimmy Graham on the field, the Seahawks usage of tight ends has been consistent over the past several years - consistently bad. Now, Luke Willson takes over as the No. 1 tight end in Seattle, but that's really his only positive. His fantasy value is minimal and most games, including this week, he won't even rank a TE2.

Week 19: Willson vs Panthers

Luke Willson has made his way back to the top of the fantasy rankings for Seattle tight ends, but that's not saying too much. With the exception of one or two good performances, the unit has been quiet.

Even with the best matchup on the field, (Panthers are only 21st in aFPA to tight ends), there isn't much fantasy help from Willson. He rates a third tier tight end for Divisional Playoff weekend.