If you are a fantasy football fan, it’s very likely that your draft is coming up in the next few weeks. Before your draft, it’s important to decide how you plan on attacking the tight end position. One player that could decide your league this year is Raiders’ tight end Darren Waller.
If you selected Waller late in your drafts last season, you likely went very far in your league as he became one of the NFL’s most productive tight ends. But what type of production can you expect from the Georiga Tech star this season?
In a recent article by Pro Football Focus, Waller was named a player you must avoid (at his current cost) in drafts this season. Take a look at why the site is down on Waller’s potential production this year:
Waller is a fantastic real-life TE; I just have my doubts as to whether or not he’ll see this same sort of obtuse target share in 2020. Talented second-year TE Foster Moreau (five TDs on 25 targets in 2019) joins the likes of Dallas Goedert and Irv Smith as a truly talented backup who could thrive with a full-time role, although his health is in question entering the 2020 season. Perhaps ageless wonder Jason Witten will assume a part-time backup role, but that seems a bit unlikely. The team’s decision to add three high-end receiving talents inside of the draft’s top-three rounds adds credence to the idea that 2019 may have been more of an outlier than a sign of even bigger things to come in terms of Waller’s fantasy production.
With the amount of talent the Raiders added at wide receiver and tight end this season, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Waller’s production did dip some. It feels unlikely that he will catch 90 passes again, but it’s also equally unlikely that he will score only three touchdowns this year, as well.
In the fifth or sixth-round of your fantasy drafts, Waller is still a solid tight end pick as he clearly is a favorite of Derek Carr. However, don’t expect Waller to necessarily improve on his numbers from last year due to the added talent around him. But don’t be surprised if Waller still finishes as one of the best tight ends in fantasy football due to his ability to create big chunk plays after the catch.
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