I'm in a couple of leagues where tight ends get a point and a half per reception, and with flex spots you can start three of them. It's been a good year for those teams, since I've got George Kittle and Austin Hooper. But Week 11 isn't looking good for those teams -- or a lot of other players at the position.
Hooper is going to miss time with a sprained MCL. Kittle missed last week and might be down another game or two (San Francisco isn't saying). The Giants (Evan Engram, Rhett Ellison) or on bye, and both those guys are hurt. The Titans (Jonnu Smith) are also on bye.
Maybe Travis Kelce? He's money, right? Well, Kelce faces the Chargers, and that's a team that's done a really nice job against him over the years.
Kelce is probably the game's best tight end, but he's never put up great numbers in the series. He's faced them 10 times in his career, and has never scored.
| KELCE VERSUS THE CHARGERS | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Site | No | Yds | TD |
| 2014 | K.C. | 7 | 84 | 0 |
| 2014 | S.D. | 4 | 33 | 0 |
| 2015 | K.C. | 3 | 18 | 0 |
| 2015 | S.D. | 5 | 46 | 0 |
| 2016 | S.D. | 1 | 8 | 0 |
| 2016 | K.C. | 6 | 74 | 0 |
| 2017 | K.C. | 6 | 46 | 0 |
| 2017 | L.A. | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 2018 | K.C. | 7 | 61 | 0 |
| 2018 | L.A. | 1 | 6 | 0 |
Kelce has had some solid games in the series. He's caught at least 6 passes in half of those games. (Although just 1 in three others.) Certainly in a PPR league, no one should be afraid to start Kelce. Especially with so many guys hurt or on bye at the position.
Maybe Patrick Mahomes will help him get that first touchdown.
--Andy Richardson