It’s been a wild year for tight ends this season with some big names putting up big duds and some sleepers starting to break through. There has been a lot of turnover from week to week in the top 10 at the position with many tight ends struggling for consistency.
If you’re still looking for late-week waiver wire help at the position or figuring out a cheap play in this spot for your DFS lineup, check out these five deep sleepers who are very affordable in DFS contests and also available on many leagues’ waiver wires.
These players all rank outside my top-10 plays at the position, but they still bring upside and can be low-cost options with upside if you need to call an audible for your squad this week. I’ve been making these picks for a few weeks and here’s how they went last week: Cade Otton ($3,500; 9.5 FPTS), Theo Johnson ($2,700; 6 FPTS), Ja’Tavion Sanders ($2,600; 9.9 FPTS), Hayden Hurst (0.0 FPTS; injured) and Josh Whyle ($2,500; 1.2 FPTS).
Here are my top-five sleeper tight ends for Week 7:
Grant Calcaterra, Philadelphia Eagles
With Dallas Goedert (hamstring) sidelined this week, Grant Calcaterra ($3,200) has a chance to step in as a great bargain option. He’s only $3,200 in DFS contests like the NFL $2.5M Fantasy Football Millionaire [$1M to 1st] and a great cheap option to save by including in your lineups for Sunday afternoon. He’s only rostered in 1% of leagues, too, so if you need him as a fill-in for a season-long league, he’s also worth a look.
Last week, he stepped up after Goedert’s injury and finished with four catches on four targets for 67 yards. The sixth-round pick from the 2022 NFL Draft out of SMU has been in the Eagles’ system since then, although this was his first chance to step into an expanded role and produce. He showed a solid rapport with Jalen Hurts ($7,300) and could find success Sunday against the Giants.
So far this season, New York ranks 14th in points allowed to opposing tight ends and has allowed an average of 40+ receiving yards per game to the position. The Giants have given up at least four tight end receptions in five of their six games, and Calcaterra would be a good value if he gets that much work Sunday.
One thing to keep an eye on, though, is that Albert Okwuegbunam Jr. ($2,500) is eligible to come off IR this week as well. If Albert O. is in the mix, he does raise Calcaterra’s risk factor since he could steal some snaps and targets.
Ja’Tavion Sanders, Carolina Panthers
The Panthers got Ian Thomas ($2,500) back from IR last week and could get Tommy Tremble ($2,900; back, questionable) in the mix this week as well. However, they should continue to give plenty of playing time to Sanders after the rookie tight end had the best game of his career last week against the Falcons.
Sanders caught a career-high five passes for 49 yards and drew seven targets. He was the team’s second-leading receiver behind only Diontae Johnson ($6,600; ankle, questionable) who is battling multiple injuries this week.
While the Panthers’ offense has not been exceptional, they often have had to go pass-heavy due to playing from behind. Andy Dalton ($5,200) hasn’t been as productive as he was earlier in the season, but he has still been good enough to make Johnson, Sanders and a few other pass catchers viable fantasy plays, especially at only a $2,900 salary for DFS contests this week.
Theo Johnson, New York Giants
On the other side of the NFC East matchup between the Eagles and Giants, Johnson continues to step into a regular role for the Giants, and his salary this week is only $2,800 in DFS contests. The return of Malik Nabers ($7,500) could crowd his workload, but it will also draw the defense’s attention, which could leave more space for the rookie to continue to grow into his role.
In the two weeks that Nabers was out, Johnson had five catches for 48 yards and three catches for 30 yards. He caught all eight targets thrown his direction in those two games, which should help him stay a popular option for Daniel Jones ($5,400) even with Nabers back.
The Eagles have been good against tight ends this season, which makes him higher risk, but the rookie continues to show enough potential to be worth considering at this bargain price point.
Will Dissly, Los Angeles Chargers
I feel like I was on the right track last week with Hayden Hurst, but I had the wrong half of the veteran platoon for the Chargers. Hurst went down with a groin injury and hasn’t been able to practice this week, meaning Dissly is much more clearly the top pass-catching tight end for the Chargers this week.
Last week, Dissly’s snap share jumped from 36% to 67% due to the Hurst injury and he had his best game of the season. He hauled in 4-of-5 targets for 26 yards. Dissly now has multiple catches in three straight games, although he has yet to break out for more than 30 yards.
Dissly is a good waiver wire option or can be a great cheap play in the Monday Night Football doubleheader. He is $2,800 in DFS contests for Monday, headlined by the NFL $1.5M Monday Special [$500K to 1st] (Mon). He is a bargain play that opens up good possibilities across the rest of your roster and still offers some solid production of his own.
Harrison Bryant, Las Vegas Raiders
Bryant is all the way down at the minimum salary of $2,500, but he’s a solid sleeper to consider for the Raiders this week since they have so few other options in the passing game. Brock Bowers ($5,800) is a beast and should continue to draw the most targets on the team as the top tight end, but Bryant is worth considering as his primary backup with Michael Mayer (personal) on the reserve/non-football injury list.
Last week, Mayer was out in addition to Davante Adams (hamstring) and Jakobi Meyers ($5,400; ankle). With Adams traded and Meyers doubtful, QB Aidan O’Connell ($4,800) won’t have many pass-catching options to work with once again.
Last week, Bowers got a massive 10 targets and finished with nine catches for 71 yards. Bryant was tied for second on the team with five targets and hauled in three catches for 24 yards. While Bryant has yet to draw any red-zone attention this season, he has proven he can do good work around the goal line in the past and could develop into a touchdown-scorer for this passing game badly in need of playmakers.
He’s high-risk as the team’s second TE, but with so few WR options, O’Connell seems to lean heavily on the position. The Rams are a great matchup for Bryant and Bowers, since they have allowed the second-most fantasy points to the position this season, giving up three touchdowns and an average of 59 receiving yards to the position.
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