Fantasy football managers know that every lineup decision can make or break a week, and choosing the right players to start or sit is where championships are won. With the 2026 NFL season underway, matchups, stats, and trends are more important than ever. From favorable matchups and scoring trends to players you should avoid in tough spots, my weekly positional start and sit guide is built to give you an edge.
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Tight Ends to Start
Dalton Schultz HOU
Dalton Schultz is coming off exactly the type of usage that can turn a normally low-ceiling tight end into a weekly fantasy starter. With Nico Collins sidelined against Cincinnati, Schultz caught 12 of 14 targets for 140 yards, finishing as the TE1 in PPR scoring despite Houston failing to score a touchdown. He now has 16 receptions on 22 targets through two games after opening the season with four catches for 35 yards on eight targets. More importantly, Schultz leads Houston in routes run and targets per route run through two weeks. The Texans’ offense has struggled to generate points, but C.J. Stroud still threw for 353 yards last week, and Schultz became the player he consistently leaned on while Houston’s running game produced almost nothing.
Now he gets an Indianapolis defense that has already shown it can be attacked through the tight end. Mark Andrews caught four passes for 49 yards against the Colts in Week 1 before Travis Kelce erupted for nine receptions, 101 yards and a touchdown last week. Indianapolis also allowed the eighth-most fantasy points per game to tight ends last season. Collins’ availability matters because Schultz obviously isn’t going to command 14 targets every week when Houston has its full receiving corps, but we’ve already seen enough volume to establish a real role regardless. If Collins remains unavailable, Schultz has one of the strongest target-volume projections at the position. Even if Collins returns, Schultz has earned enough involvement for me to keep him in the TE1 conversation against Indianapolis.
Pat Freiermuth PIT
Pat Freiermuth hasn’t given us a massive yardage performance yet, but his consistency through two weeks makes him one of my favorite tight end streamers. He caught all five of his targets for 46 yards and a touchdown against Atlanta before adding four receptions for 32 yards on five targets against New England. That’s nine receptions on 10 targets for 78 yards and a touchdown through two games. In Week 1, he played 70.3% of Pittsburgh’s offensive snaps and ran a route on 72.1% of Aaron Rodgers’ dropbacks while also seeing two red-zone targets. That’s the type of involvement I’m willing to chase at tight end, especially when Pittsburgh doesn’t have an established target hog outside of DK Metcalf.
Cincinnati is where this becomes considerably more interesting. The Bengals were one of the best defenses to target with fantasy tight ends last season, finishing 2025 with the most receptions, receiving yards, and touchdowns allowed to the position. Freiermuth doesn’t need to suddenly become a 100-yard receiver for this start to work. He’s received exactly five targets in each of Pittsburgh’s first two games, caught nine of the 10 passes thrown his way, and already has a touchdown. The red-zone involvement is particularly important because that’s where Freiermuth has historically generated much of his fantasy ceiling. Against a Cincinnati defense that has struggled with this position, five or six opportunities with another legitimate chance at a touchdown are enough for me to start him as a low-end TE1.
Isaiah Likely NYG
Isaiah Likely’s Week 1 explosion wasn’t followed by another massive fantasy performance, but Week 2 might have actually told us more about the sustainability of his role. After catching eight passes for 78 yards and two touchdowns against Dallas, Likely caught five of 10 targets for 33 yards against the Rams. The efficiency was ugly, but I’m considerably more interested in the 10 targets. Jaxson Dart left on New York’s opening possession with a knee injury, yet Likely still led the Giants in targets with Jameis Winston taking over. Through two games, we’re looking at 13 receptions for 111 yards and two touchdowns on 18 targets. That’s an enormous change from the inconsistent opportunities he received while sharing the field with Mark Andrews in Baltimore.
Now Likely gets Tennessee rather than Dallas, which was incorrectly listed in the previous version. The quarterback situation creates some uncertainty, but Week 2 gave us evidence that Likely’s role can survive a change under center. Ten targets in a game where the Giants scored only six points is exactly the type of underlying usage I want to buy rather than panic over the 33 receiving yards. Malik Nabers remains the centerpiece of this offense, but Likely has quickly established himself as one of the next players New York wants to feature in the passing game. We already saw the touchdown ceiling in Week 1 and then the target floor in Week 2. That’s enough for me to keep Likely firmly in my starting lineup against Tennessee.
Tight Ends to Sit
Colston Loveland CHI
We’re reaching the point where I need Colston Loveland to actually show me something before putting him back into a fantasy lineup. He has one reception for three yards on five targets through two games, but the surprising part is that playing time isn’t the problem. Loveland has run 61 routes, more than any other Chicago pass catcher through two weeks. Rome Odunze has run 57, Luther Burden III 55, Kalif Raymond 53, and Cole Kmet 32. That’s arguably more concerning for his immediate fantasy value. Chicago is putting Loveland on the field and sending him into routes; he simply isn’t earning enough opportunities when he’s out there.
Caleb Williams’ hamstring injury adds another layer of uncertainty heading into Philadelphia. Williams is considered week-to-week, and I already wasn’t willing to start a tight end who has turned 61 routes into only five targets and one reception. The route participation gives me plenty of reason to remain patient with Loveland season-long because the opportunity for a breakout is clearly there if his involvement changes. That’s different from trusting him in a Week 3 lineup. Until those routes begin producing actual targets and receptions, Loveland belongs on my bench.
Harold Fannin Jr. CLE
Harold Fannin Jr. gave us a much more encouraging performance in Week 2, so this isn’t nearly as easy of a sit as it looked after the opener. Fannin caught only two passes for 21 yards in Week 1 before rebounding with five receptions for 54 yards on six targets against Tampa Bay. That brings him to seven receptions for 75 yards through two games, and the second performance was a meaningful step in the right direction. He also produced a 21-yard reception from Deshaun Watson, showing some of the receiving ability that made him such an intriguing fantasy option entering the season.
I’m still willing to wait another week before putting him back into my lineup. Carolina isn’t a matchup I’m particularly afraid of, so this is more about establishing that Week 2 represents Fannin’s new role rather than one encouraging performance. Cleveland’s passing game hasn’t been productive enough for me to automatically trust its secondary options, and one six-target game isn’t enough to completely erase those concerns. If Fannin gets another five or six targets against Carolina, especially with consistent route participation, my opinion could change quickly entering Week 4. For now, I like the player, and I’m encouraged by the Week 2 improvement, but I’d rather make him prove that volume is here to stay before using him as my TE1.
Oronde Gadsden II LAC
Oronde Gadsden II is exactly the type of player I want to add before I’m necessarily willing to start him. He played only eight offensive snaps in Week 1 and ran a route on 14% of Justin Herbert’s dropbacks, but injuries created a much larger opportunity against Las Vegas. David Njoku exited with a knee injury, and Charlie Kolar later suffered a forearm injury, helping Gadsden’s route participation jump all the way to 48%. He caught both of his targets for 18 yards and a touchdown. That’s a significant role increase and makes Gadsden one of the more interesting tight end stashes entering Week 3.
It still isn’t enough for me to immediately start him against Buffalo. The touchdown made his Week 2 fantasy line look much better than the underlying volume: two targets, two receptions, and 18 yards. Even a 48% route rate leaves considerable room for his role to grow before we can call him a full-time receiving tight end. The injuries ahead of him could eventually push Gadsden into that role, and that’s why I absolutely want him rostered. But adding an emerging player and immediately trusting him in a starting lineup are two different decisions. I want to see whether the Week 2 route increase continues, and whether it actually translates into more than two targets, before relying on Gadsden as a fantasy starter.
