Cade Otton, Darnell Washington, Ja'Tavion Sanders, and Noah Gray earned upticks in production last week. Who is a for-real fantasy threat? Who is fool's gold?
Welcome to Week 8 of the 2024 Footballguys Roundtable. Our intrepid panel of fantasy pundits discusses and debates four topics every week. We split the conversation into separate features.
This week's roundtable features these four topics:
- Fantasy True or False
- Real or Fool's Gold, TE Edition (see below)
- Who Benefits From Recent Lineup Changes
- QBs Suffering Due to Other Injuries
Let's roll.
For Real-Fool's Gold, TE Edition
Matt Waldman: Consider the list of Week 7 producers at tight end.
Which options have for-real fantasy value? Which are fool's gold?
Jeff Haseley: In the last five games, with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin being involved, Otton has a team target share of 25%, 19%, 17%, 17%, and 22%. He will be a heavily targeted option for Mayfield with all of the injuries on offense.
Washington's highest target game this year was four targets in last week's game. Before that, two targets were his high. Russell Wilson may unlock him as an option in the offense, but he is unlikely to see much action, especially with Pat Freiermuth still part of the picture.
Sanders is starting to emerge in Carolina's receiving corps, with 5+ targets in each of the last three games. The passing game will feed through Diontae Johnson, Adam Thielen (eligible to return in Week 8), and Xavier Legette. Sanders, while improved, will be more of a complementary piece than a primary target.
I don't see a scenario where Gray is a consistent option in the Chiefs passing game as long as Travis Kelce is on the field. He is good enough to produce good games here and there, but consistency with how Kansas City flows their offense, is the main detractor from Gray being fantasy-relevant.
Phil Alexander: Cade Otton is for real. While I've never been much of a believer in Otton as a talent, the pending target consolidation in Tampa Bay is undeniable. In this year's desolate tight-end landscape, he has already cleared the low bar of performing as a top-10 player. Weekly top-5 finishes are not out of the question with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin out of the lineup.
Darnell Washington is fool's gold. He ran nine routes in Week 7 and belongs nowhere near your fantasy lineup.
Ja'Tavion Sanders is fool's gold, though it took more than one streak test to be sure. The rookie is a solid dynasty asset and has the potential for a strong second half, but his two useful games have come with Tommy Tremble playing zero snaps. Sanders, Tremble, and Ian Thomas have appeared in zero games together this season, so we have no idea what the playing time rotation looks like once Carolina has a healthy tight end room.
Noah Gray is fool's gold. With the way Kansas City's offense is playing, I'm not sure how interested I'd be in Gray if Travis Kelce were to miss time.