Week 5 TE Waiver Pickups & Adds: Robert Tonyan Thriving In Green Bay

Looking at the tight end leaders there are some familiar faces and some new ones. Robert Tonyan is one of those new names who is now leading all fantasy tight ends after last night’s game against Atlanta. Travis Kelce and Mark Andrews are in the top five in scoring, while George Kittle spends Week 4 making up for the lost time. What we might not have expected is the top ten scoring from Jimmy Graham, Dalton Schultz, and Mo Alie-Cox. Now there are bye weeks creeping up and this week Green Bay and Detroit are on bye. While Tonyan is the hot pick-up, he is on bye this week, as is TJ Hockenson. The injury bug continues as Noah Fant is going to be week-to-week and is not expected to play against New England. Jared Cook has not been able to practice and was easily ruled out against Detroit. The groin injury sounds like it will cause him to miss some more time. Tampa was hit hard with OJ Howard news as he is done for the year. Rob Gronkowski has a questionable tag now due to a shoulder injury. Week 6 you will also need to prepare for the Darren Waller bye week and Jared Cook will be on a bye as well.

Week 5 TE Waiver Wire Pickups

Robert Tonyan – Green Bay Packers

Robert Tonyan took the number one spot in fantasy scoring in basically two weeks. He broke out against the Falcons with three touchdowns and while it came in a game without Allen Lazard and Davante Adams, Tonyan is here to stay regardless. It is very clear that Aaron Rodgers and Matt LaFleur are going to get creative with the running backs but Tonyan was something they didn’t have last year. Jimmy Graham just got in the way and was not a playmaking option for this group. With Lazard out for a few weeks, Tonyan should be the number three guy behind Aaron Jones and Adams moving forward. Tonyan has been targeted twice in the red zone in a small-time being on the field and has caught both targets for two touchdowns.

For those who are not familiar with Tonyan, he was undrafted despite having some very strong workout skills. He moves extremely well for his size and is certainly a mismatch for defenders. He had 56 receptions and 10 receiving touchdowns at Indiana State in his senior year and had 150 catches over three seasons with 20 touchdowns. These are quite productive numbers for a tight end at the college level, even at a smaller school. Ton

Mo Alie-Cox – Indianapolis Colts

With Michael Pittman and Parris Campbell out for the foreseeable future, the Colts will rely on a lot of two-tight end sets that favor more Mo Alie-Cox. Trey Burton and Jack Doyle are getting pushed aside a bit so far this season. Philip Rivers has also looked his way of late and he has shown to have more of the big play upside and touchdown potential in this offense. While he is a touchdown-dependent option, so are most of the names needed right now. He played 33 snaps this week, and while Doyle and Burton were also over 30, this offense is giving a lot of targets to the tight ends. The Colts have some excellent matchups ahead of them with Cleveland and Cincinnati before the bye week and then Detroit right after. Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Green Bay are the only remaining tough defenses the Colts face, otherwise, it is divisional games and the Raiders. I am still not willing to spend a ton of FAAB in this spot but he is worth a few bucks.

Dalton Schultz – Dallas Cowboys

It was another big game for Dalton Schultz who continues to climb the rankings in fantasy scoring. Dallas has a terrific schedule coming up, and Schultz can take advantage of some of these defenses. He will face the Giants, Cardinals, and Washington over the next three weeks. Schultz ranks fifth in fantasy scoring at the position, ahead of Tyler Higbee, Hunter Henry, and Zach Ertz. Schultz leads all Cowboys in red-zone targets with five so far this season. He also ranks 4th in targets, and in this offense that still means a lot. With the Cowboys offense thriving and the defense struggling, Schultz will continue to find himself in excellent game scripts and has one of the best quarterbacks throwing to him. This is likely the last week to get Schultz and for FAAB leagues you are going to have to up your bid a bit more following another big week.

Austin Hooper – Cleveland Browns

Austin Hooper hasn’t exactly gotten off to a great start with Cleveland, and the money they spent on him remains a questionable decision. However, he is third in line in targets as expected with 17, and has two red-zone targets as well. Did Hooper take a hit leaving Atlanta? Quite possibly, but taking a swing at him off the waiver wire is a lot different from drafting him. He saw his highest target share in the win against Dallas with seven leading him to a 5-34-1 line. The Browns have an up and down schedule over the next few weeks with Indy and Pittsburgh but things lighten up with Cincinnati, Las Vegas, and Houston. Hooper is worth a look if the Browns offense continues to put up solid numbers.

Eric Ebron – Pittsburgh Steelers

While Eric Ebron was quiet in Week 1, he has had 12 targets over the last two games putting up over 20 PPR points. Pittsburgh now has their bye week out of the way, meaning they play every week from here on out barring any sort of unforeseen changes. Ebron was drafted in deeper leagues and might be a stash for some, but in shallow or even 12-man leagues you can find him out there. He won’t be on many people’s radar with the Steelers not playing this past week. For FAAB you can likely get away with tossing in a very low number, as this is just a low-risk high reward type of grab at a position that has been highly volatile.