If you’ve overcome the turkey coma and the Black Friday rush and are ready for another week of DFS fantasy football, DraftKings has a great 10-game slate on tap for Sunday afternoon. One key position to target for value is tight end, where the salary options go lower than at any other position. Getting the right fantasy football sleeper at a bargain rate will open up so many potential possibilities with the rest of your roster, so check out my top options who look ready to step up in Week 13 at tight end.
Each Saturday here at DraftKings Network, I list out my top fantasy football sleeper tight ends from the main slate of the week to help you find the biggest production for the lowest salary.
The picks in this post can be excellent values for DFS contests and can also serve as sneaky plays in your season-long league since they are in a position to exceed expectations. Earlier this week, I highlighted my top-15 starters at tight end, and in this list, we’ll focus on players mostly outside those 15 players who still bring a high fantasy football ceiling in their Week 13 matchups.
Week 13 Fantasy Football Sleeper TEs (analysis below):
- Harold Fannin Jr., Cleveland Browns ($3,400)
- AJ Barner, Seattle Seahawks ($3,200)
- Dawson Knox, Buffalo Bills ($3,000)
- Colby Parkinson, Los Angeles Rams ($2,800)
- Gunnar Helm, Tennessee Titans ($2,600)
Week 12 Results:
- Brenton Strange, Jacksonville Jaguars ($3,400; 14.3 FPTS)
- Brock Wright, Detroit Lions ($3,000; 5.9 FPTS)
- Gunnar Helm, Tennessee Titans ($2,700; 11.1 FPTS)
- Mike Gesicki, Cincinnati Bengals ($2,600; 7.5 FPTS)
- Josh Whyle, Green Bay Packers ($2,500; 1.1 FPTS)
Whether you’re looking for value plays in your DFS contests like the NFL $2.5M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st] or looking for a last-minute addition from the waiver wire, here are my top five fantasy football sleeper tight ends for Week 13 of the 2025 season:
Harold Fannin Jr., Cleveland Browns ($3,400)
The Browns will give Shedeur Sanders ($4,200) a second straight start this week, and the rookie Fannin was one of the top targets for the rookie QB in his first start last week. Fannin led the team in targets (six) and receptions (four) while racking up 40 receiving yards.
His ability to break tackles and pick up yards after the catch will keep him as one of the key playmakers and top options for Sanders, as he continues to grow in the offense. In Week 12 against the Raiders, Fannin played a season-high 90% of snaps and operated clearly ahead of David Njoku, who did play 49% of snaps but did not get a single target. While Njoku will likely be more involved this week, Fannin should still get plenty of looks.
The 49ers have been a slightly better than average matchup for tight ends. Opposing tight ends have four touchdowns in the last four weeks and have totaled 273 receiving yards (68.3 yards per game) in that window. Fannin has really good upside and is my favorite fantasy football sleeper at tight end for under $3,500 this week.
AJ Barner, Seattle Seahawks ($3,200)
Barner is a unique tight end since he contributes in the running game along with as a receiver. He spends time in the backfield in “The Barn Yard” formation, which is what the Seahawks call their version of the tush push. Last week, he had a quiet game with two catches for 18 yards, but he had a monster week in the prior game, hauling in a career-high 10 catches for 70 yards against the Rams. He also had a huge week with a pair of touchdowns against the Bucs:
Barner has produced double-digit fantasy points in five of the last eight games, and he has a high ceiling, despite his boom-or-bust tendencies. This week, Barner is in a top-10 matchup against the Vikings, who have allowed six tight end touchdowns in 11 games, with an average of 55.7 receiving yards per week to the position.
Dawson Knox, Buffalo Bills ($3,000)
The Bills are in a great matchup for tight ends, since the Steelers allowed the fourth-most fantasy points to tight ends. Opposing tight ends have scored seven touchdowns in the last 10 games against the Steelers. Dalton Kincaid (hamstring, questionable) was able to get in a limited practice on both Thursday and Friday, so he could be ready to return, but if not, Knox will remain very involved in his place.
Knox has three catches in two of the last three weeks, and he has totaled 16 catches for 195 receiving yards on the year. He scored a touchdown back in Week 6, but he hasn’t been able to post any big weeks since then.
With such a favorable matchup, though, he does have good upside if he gets another start in Pittsburgh.
Colby Parkinson, Los Angeles Rams ($2,800)
The Rams placed Tyler Higbee (ankle) on IR, which has opened up the door for Parkinson to post a few good weeks in a row.
Parkinson had 10 catches on 11 targets in the last three weeks with a touchdown in each game, averaging 12.5 fantasy points per game. He remains touchdown-dependent but since he found the end zone three weeks in a row, he has enough upside to be worth a shot if you need a fantasy football sleeper at tight end under $3,000.
Gunnar Helm, Tennessee Titans ($2,600)
Another very cheap play at tight end that comes loaded with upside is Titans’ rookie Gunnar Helm. Helm has posted back-to-back big games after the bye week, and the Titans seem focused on getting him involved down the stretch.
In Week 11, Helm had four catches on five targets for 29 yards against the Texans and followed that up with six catches on seven targets for 51 yards against the Seahawks in Week 12.
He played the exact same amount of snaps as Chig Okonkwo ($3,600; foot) last week, and he could be even more involved this week since Okonkwo is questionable after missing Thursday’s practice and getting a limited session in on Friday. If Okonkwo is out, Helm would be my favorite fantasy football sleeper at tight end this week. Whether Okonkwo plays or not, Helm also brings value from a game theory perspective, since he saves so much salary and can be used in a FLEX or tight end as a minimum salary option to get the right stacks and superstars in other spots.
