Juwan Johnson Headlines Week 1 Fantasy Football Tight End Waiver Wire Pickups

The tight end position can be fickle in fantasy football if you don’t roster one of the premier options. If you don’t have Brock Bowers, Trey McBride, Colston Loveland, or Tyler Warren to deploy each week, using the waiver wire is a feasible strategy at tight end.

With the long wait for Week 1 finally over, which tight ends should we target on the waiver wire in fantasy football?

All stats used in this article are from PFF or Sumer Sports unless stated otherwise.

Juwan Johnson, New Orleans Saints

Juwan Johnson was an underrated piece of the New Orleans Saints’ offense in 2025, and he excelled once Tyler Shough became the starter in Week 9. From Week 9 to Week 18 of last season, Johnson was the TE9 in fantasy points per game (9.2) in half-PPR leagues.

Juwan Johnson's YPRR with Tyler Shough at QB:

1.95

(Colston Loveland led qualified TEs with a 1.86 rate) https://t.co/LEjHjpWtuS
— Jacob Gibbs (@jagibbs_23) September 3, 2026

Among TEs with 250-plus routes run last year, Johnson had the 12th-highest target share (18.1%), 9th-highest catch rate (75.5%), and 7th-most yards per route run (1.67). While Johnson is already rostered in 66% of leagues on Yahoo, he’s worth adding if he’s available, especially with rookie Jordyn Tyson sidelined and a positive Week 1 matchup against the Detroit Lions.

Dalton Schultz, Houston Texans

Dalton Schultz isn’t the most enticing selection at the TE position, but he figures to be on the field plenty and has a decent role on the Houston Texans. Following Houston’s bye week in Week 6 last season, Schultz was the TE12 in fantasy points per game (9.0).

Texans will use a lot of 12 and 13 personnel, which is consistent with what we’ve heard all summer, per @jonmalexander

This + the add of Kayshon Boutte (vertical threat) is just going to boost Nico Collins a lot

Will also help Dalton Schultz basically never come off the field pic.twitter.com/3qXnHwo6yh
— Zain Dhanani (@DhananiZain) September 2, 2026

Although Nico Collins is the clear WR1 on the Texans and recently acquired Kayshon Boutte is expected to be a vertical threat for C.J. Stroud, Schultz remains a trustworthy option in the short-to-intermediate range. Schultz commanded the 10th-highest target share (19.2%), 4th-highest catch rate (77.4%), and 12th-most yards per route run (1.54) among TEs with 250-plus routes run in 2025.

Schultz is currently rostered in only 47% of leagues on Yahoo.

Terrance Ferguson, Los Angeles Rams

While Schultz is far from an upside play at TE, Terrance Ferguson is a pure ceiling option to take a chance on when searching the waiver wire. Ferguson was given limited playing time and had an interesting role as a rookie last season, but there’s reason to believe we'll see him handle an expanded role in 2026.

Highest aDOTs by a TE in @FantasyPtsData history

[min. 25 targets]

1. Terrance Ferguson (2025) - 18.3
2. Darren Waller (2022) - 14.0
3. Kyle Pitts (2022) - 13.9
4. Greg Dulcich (2022) - 12.5
5. Kyle Pitts (2023) - 11.9
6. Darren Waller (2025) - 11.3 pic.twitter.com/sBf8iivJjo
— Fantasy Points Data (@FantasyPtsData) August 13, 2026

Despite running only 168 routes a season ago, Ferguson posted the highest average depth of target (18.6) and most yards per reception (21.0) at the TE position. Even if Ferguson doesn’t continue to see an insane amount of valuable downfield targets, there’s a lack of target competition behind Puka Nacua and Davante Adams.

At the moment, Ferguson is rostered in 25% of leagues on Yahoo.

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