It’s time we officially welcome Zach Ertz to the “Trusted Tight End Club.” It’s been a horrible year for tight ends, but Ertz has been an oasis in the desert. The biggest criticism against his game was he rarely found the end zone. He now has five touchdowns through seven games, which is a career high. Carson Wentz deserves some of the credit, but Ertz is shaping up to be the best passing option for the Eagles in his fifth season. He plays the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday. The numbers suggest it will be a tough game for him since the 49ers have given up the third fewest points to tight ends this season. That didn’t seem to stop Jason Witten from making a remarkable touchdown catch against the Niners defense last week and Ertz is the better talent at this point in their careers.
Elsewhere around the league in Week 7, Jordan Reed finally found the end zone this season, O.J. Howard took advantage of the Bills’ defense for two touchdowns, Evan Engram stayed hot, and Jared Cook showed you the peaks and valleys of his talents in one game. You can feel a bit better about Reed, Engram, and to an extent, Cook, but I wouldn’t run to pick up Howard just yet since Cameron Brate is still a factor in the Buccaneers’ offense.
Unfortunately, the New York Giants are off in Week 8, so I can’t recommend starting whichever tight end is playing them. Kyle Rudolph is in a good spot to bounce back when the Vikings play the Browns. Stefon Diggs should miss another week, which could lead to more targets for Rudolph. Top talents Jordan Reed and Travis Kelce both have great matchups. If you are looking to stream the position or find inexpensive DFS plays, give George Kittle a look despite his poor game in Week 7, and I could see Julius Thomas doing something of note against the Ravens Thursday night.
Did I miss a tight end you are interested in or do you have a lineup question? Leave it in the comment section after taking a look at our Week 8 rankings!
Tight end rankings, Week 8
(SK: Scott Kaliska; JG: Jeff Goldberg; DG: Derek Gordon; KB: Kyle Bennett; JM: Jason Marcum)
TE rankings, Week 8
Rk | Consensus | Tm | Opp | SK | JG | DG | KB | JM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Rob Gronkowski | NE | vs. LAC | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| 2 | Zach Ertz | PHI | vs. SF | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| 3 | Travis Kelce | KC | vs. DEN | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| 4 | Hunter Henry | LAC | @ NE | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| 5 | Austin Seferian-Jenkins | NYJ | vs. ATL | 8 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| 6 | Jordan Reed | WAS | vs. DAL | 7 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| 7 | Jimmy Graham | SEA | vs. HOU | 5 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| 8 | Cameron Brate | TB | vs. CAR | 9 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 9 |
| 9 | Kyle Rudolph | MIN | vs. CLE | 6 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 8 |
| 10 | George Kittle | SF | @ PHI | 15 | 9 | 9 | 11 | 11 |
| 11 | Jason Witten | DAL | @ WAS | 10 | 13 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| 12 | Vernon Davis | WAS | vs. DAL | 24 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 |
| 13 | Jack Doyle | IND | @ CIN | 13 | 12 | 14 | 13 | 13 |
| 14 | Tyler Kroft | CIN | vs. IND | 12 | 14 | 13 | 14 | 14 |
| 15 | Jared Cook | OAK | @ BUF | 11 | 16 | 16 | 15 | 15 |
| 16 | O.J. Howard | TB | vs. CAR | 20 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 18 |
| 17 | Ed Dickson | CAR | @ TB | 18 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 16 |
| 18 | Nick O'Leary | BUF | vs. OAK | 16 | 21 | 18 | 19 | 17 |
| 19 | Austin Hooper | ATL | @ NYJ | 17 | 20 | 20 | 20 | 19 |
| 20 | Zach Miller | CHI | @ NO | 14 | 19 | 19 | -- | 20 |
| 21 | Benjamin Watson | BAL | vs. MIA | 19 | 17 | 22 | 21 | 21 |
| 22 | A.J. Derby | DEN | @ KC | -- | 22 | 21 | 22 | 23 |
| 23 | Julius Thomas | MIA | @ BAL | 21 | 24 | 24 | 24 | 22 |
| 23 | Ryan Griffin | HOU | @ SEA | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 24 |
| 24 | Dion Sims | CHI | @ NO | -- | -- | -- | 18 | -- |
| 25 | Eric Ebron | DET | vs. PIT | 22 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| -- | Coby Fleener | NO | vs. CHI | -- | 25 | 25 | 25 | 25 |
| -- | David Njoku | CLE | vs. MIN | 25 | -- | -- | -- | -- |
