Fantasy Football: 3 Tight End Streaming Options for Week 1

Tight end has long been the most volatile position in fantasy football. While 2024 offers an exciting crop of tight end options at the top, not every fantasy team has the luxury of rostering an elite option.

Unless you were one of the lucky few to nab a top guy, you'll likely be scouring the waiver wire in search of a diamond in the rough.

However, just because you punted on the tight end position doesn't mean all hope is lost.

Streaming tight end is a real, and effective, strategy -- you just have to know where to look.

That's where I come in, giving you three tight end streamers to target each and every week of the 2024 NFL season. All of these guys should be available in the majority of 12-team leagues and at the very least possess value for the upcoming week.

All NFL projections via our numbers at FanDuel Research, and NFL odds references are to FanDuel Sportsbook. Statistics via NFL Next Gen Stats and Pro Football Focus unless otherwise stated.

Fantasy Football Tight Ends to Stream for Week 1

Taysom Hill, New Orleans Saints

Matchup: vs. CAR

I've been touting Taysom Hill as one of the top fantasy football sleepers all offseason, but he's currently rostered in few enough leagues that he may have gone undrafted.

If you didn't secure one of the top tight ends in your draft, Hill is a capable streamer ahead of his Week 1 matchup with the Carolina Panthers.

Carolina wasn't bad against the position in 2023, but they have PFF's 25th-ranked secondary and 18th-ranked linebacker unit entering 2024.

But Hill isn't a normal tight end, and his upside lies primarily via red zone usage. He ranked second on the New Orleans Saints with a 20.9% red zone opportunity share last season, resulting in six total touchdowns. That came alongside a career-high 33 receptions and 291 receiving yards.

That sets him up nicely against a Panthers defense that surrendered the fifth-highest red zone touchdown rate (63.2%) in 2023.

Hill didn't score in his lone head-to-head matchup with Carolina last season, but he still netted 8.2 fantasy points thanks to 75 rushing yards.

He has +200 odds to score a touchdown this week in a game where the Saints sport a 23.0 implied team total.

Our NFL projections are bullish on Hill in Week 1, projecting him for 6.5 half-PPR fantasy points (14th among tight ends).

Hunter Henry, New England Patriots

Matchup: at CIN

Hunter Henry has become synonymous with the term "tight end streamer" since joining the New England Patriots, and it's easy to come around on him again as a one-off for Week 1.

Henry finished as the TE18 in half-PR scoring last season, though he netted double-digit fantasy points five times. That included Week 1 of 2023, during which he caught five passes for 56 yards a touchdown, resulting in 14.1 fantasy points -- good for the TE1 in that week.

He returns atop the Patriots tight end depth chart in 2024, though much of the offense looks different this season.

At least to start the season, Henry will be catching passes from Jacoby Brissett. Brissett doesn't offer a ton of upside for his receivers, but he's proven more than capable of propelling his pass-catchers to solid fantasy performances. In the one game he played more than 40% of snaps for the Washington Commanders last season, Brissett helped tight end Logan Thomas to an 18.8% target share and threw him a touchdown.

That played out over a larger sample in 2022, too. In 11 games with Brissett as the Cleveland Browns starter, tight end David Njoku averaged 8.7 fantasy points per game (seventh at the position during that sample) and a 17.5% target share (10th).

That sets Henry up well against a Cincinnati Bengals defense that surrendered the second-most fantasy points to tight ends in 2023. Cincy is also a hefty 9.5-point favorite in Week 1, so we could see New England fall into a negative game script early and air it out even more.

For Week 1, Henry's receiving yards prop is set at 27.5 -- a mark he exceeded in 7 of 14 games last year.

We project Henry for 3.1 receptions, 34.5 yards, and 5.8 fantasy points in Week 1. That's good for 17th among tight ends.

Noah Fant, Seattle Seahawks

Matchup: vs. DEN

The Noah Fant and Rob Gronkowski comparisons feel a bit silly in hindsight, but Fant is still uber-athletic for a 6-foot-4, 250-pound tight end, and he's only 26-years-old entering his sixth NFL season. A full breakout may be far-fetched, but there's reason to be bullish on him kicking off 2024 in style.

Granted, Fant is coming off TE18 and TE34 seasons in his first two years with the Seattle Seahawks, and he didn't crack double-digit fantasy points once last season.

But new head coach Mike Macdonald has voiced his excitement about Fant. It's fair to be excited about the potential impact of offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb after his Washington Huskies finished 13th nationally in scoring and second in passing yards last season.

Still, streaming Fant in Week 1 is all about his matchup with the Denver Broncos. Denver surrendered the most fantasy points to tight ends last season, letting up the fifth-highest target rate and most yards per route run. On top of that, they allowed the most receiving touchdowns to the position. Fant has +400 odds to score a touchdown in Week 1.

We project Noah Fant for 2.8 receptions, 30 yards, and 5.5 fantasy points. That's our 19th-highest projection among tight ends in Week 1.

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The above author is a FanDuel employee and is not eligible to compete in public daily fantasy contests or place sports betting wagers on FanDuel. The advice provided by the author does not necessarily represent the views of FanDuel. Taking the author's advice will not guarantee a successful outcome. You should use your own judgment when participating in daily fantasy contests or placing sports wagers.