Tight End Start 'Em, Sit 'Em Players For Fantasy Football's Week 1

Michael Fabiano | Sep 5, 2025

Bills TE Dalton Kincaid is a sit this week. / Sports Illustrated

Start ‘Em, Sit 'Em is the ultimate look at the best and worst matchups based on a PPR scoring system in fantasy football. This column will not cover the elite players in the NFL like Josh Allen, Bijan Robinson or Ja’Marr Chase. Instead, I'll look at the players who could exceed or fail to meet expectations at each position. For all of your final fantasy lineup decisions, be sure to check out my weekly player rankings, which will be updated daily throughout the 2025 NFL season.

Fab's Top 10 Fantasy Tight Ends Week 1

1. Trey McBride at Saints
2. Brock Bowers at Patriots
3. George Kittle at Seahawks
4. Sam LaPorta at Packers
5. Travis Kelce at Chargers (Fri.)
6. David Njoku vs. Bengals
7. T.J. Hockenson at Bears (Mon.)
8. Evan Engram vs. Titans
9. Mark Andrews at Bills
10. Tyler Warren vs. Dolphins

Complete Week 1 tight end rankings

Start Em, Sit Em: QBs | RBs | WRs | Ks/DSTs

Week 1 Start ‘Em: Tight Ends

Start of the Week

David Njoku vs. Bengals (1 p.m. ET, Fox): Njoku is one of my favorite tight end plays of the week, as he faces a Bengals' defense full of question marks. What’s more, the veteran has scored 14-plus points in three of his last four games against Cincinnati. I also like that he’ll be catching passes from Joe Flacco … in five games playing together back in 2023, Njoku recorded 30 catches, 390 yards and scored four touchdowns.

Start ‘Em

Tyler Warren vs. Dolphins (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Warren is a solid breakout candidate in his rookie year, and I like him as a fantasy starter in Week 1. He saw plenty of looks during the preseason in limited snaps, and a matchup against Miami in his first regular-season game is favorable. Their defense has plenty of holes in the back seven, and this unit allowed more than 13 fantasy points per game to opposing tight ends this past season.

Evan Engram vs. Titans (4:05 p.m. ET, Fox): Engram is in a great spot to find success this season, playing in an offense that has helped plenty of tight ends find fantasy stardom. I like him as a top 10 option against the Titans in his Broncos debut,, as Engram has put up an average of 16.6 fantasy points in six career games against them. That includes a pair of contests where Engram has recorded more than 23 fantasy points.

Hunter Henry vs. Raiders (1 p.m. ET, CBS): Fantasy managers in need of a tight end this week should consider Henry. In games where Drake Maye was the quarterback last year, Henry saw a 19.2% target share and averaged nearly 50 receiving yards per game. He also has a great matchup against a questionable Raiders defense that allowed the third-most fantasy points to tight ends last season, so Henry looks like a nice streamer.

More Starts

• Jake Ferguson at Eagles (Thurs. 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC)
• Dallas Goedert vs. Cowboys (Thurs. 8:20 p.m. ET, NBC)
• Kyle Pitts vs. Buccaneers (1 p.m. ET, Fox)

Week 1 Sit ‘Em: Tight Ends

Sit of the Week

Dalton Kincaid vs. Ravens (8:20 p.m. ET, NBC): Kincaid is in a rough spot this week in a tough matchup against the Ravens. Their defense was middle of the road against tight ends last season, but it held Kincaid to a combined 11.8 points in two matchups (one in the postseason). He’s also failed to score more than 9.3 points in eight of his 14 home games against AFC opponents, so he has no trend in his favor this weekend.

Sit ‘Em

Colston Loveland vs. Vikings (Mon. 8:15 p.m. ET, ESPN, ABC): The 10th overall pick in the NFL Draft, Loveland enters this season with high expectations. However, it’s tough to start him this week against the Vikings. Their defense allowed just three touchdowns to tight ends all of last season, and Loveland will have plenty of competition for targets in the Bears passing game. I’d keep him on the sidelines in this NFC North battle.

Jonnu Smith at Jets (1p.m. ET, CBS): Smith was one of the best tight ends in fantasy football last season, but a trade to Pittsburgh has hurt his value for 2025. He’ll contend with fellow tight end Pat Freiermuth for targets, and Smith has been dealing with a bum knee since early August. The Jets were also tough on tight ends a season ago, allowing the ninth-fewest fantasy points to the position. Start Smith with caution.

Dalton Schultz at Rams (4:25 p.m. ET, CBS): Schultz might see an uptick in value with Christian Kirk and Braxton Berrios hurt, but I' still be wary of starting him outside of deeper tight end premium formats. He was held to single digits in all but two games last season, and he averaged fewer than seven points per game. So, while the Rams were generous to opposing tight ends last season, I find it hard to start Schultz this week.

More Sits

• Chigoziem Okonkwo at Broncos (4:05 p.m. ET, Fox)
• Mike Gesicki at Browns (1 p.m. ET, Fox)
• Juwan Johnson vs. Cardinals (1 p.m. ET, CBS)