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Fantasy Football: Week 4 Tight End Rankings

By Alex Butler

MIAMI, Sept. 28 (UPI) -- This season, tight end is probably the most unpredictable position in fantasy football. The top tier players have slipped in production or haven't been on the field enough to garner shoe-in starts.

Because of that, the position has become more balanced in talent, with once lower tier players moving into the top-10 and becoming weekly starts.

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Here are my top 20 tight ends for this week. You can also look at my top add/drops for the week and visit other positional rankings, in the links below.

TOP SHELF

Carolina Panthers tight end Gren Olsen is my top ranked tight end for Week 4. I like the Panthers to dominate the Atlanta Falcons in this match up, with Cam Newton struggling in Week 3. The Falcons have allowed the most fantasy points per game to tight ends this season. Olsen is tied with Kyle Rudolph for the most targets among tight ends through three games. Baltimore Ravens tight end Dennis Pitta has had a resurgence in 2016. I expect that to continue against the Oakland Raiders. The Raiders have allowed the eighth-most fantasy points per game to tight ends this season. Pitta leads the Ravens in receptions and receiving yards.

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Baltimore Ravens tight end Dennis Pitta. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI

SNEAKY PLAYS

Chicago Bears tight end Zach Miller battles the Detroit Lions this weekend. The Lions have allowed the most touchdowns and third most fantasy points per game to tight ends so far this season. The Lions were also bad at covering the tight end last season, allowing a league-high 12 touchdowns. New Orleans tight end Coby Fleener should be in for another big week against the San Diego Chargers. If I can, I'm looking to get any piece of the Saints offense this week. I can see Drew Brees putting up fantastic stats against a Chargers secondary allowing the most receiving yards to tight ends heading into Week 4.

LONGSHOTS

RANK NAME TEAM OPPONENT
1 Greg Olsen Carolina Panthers at Atlanta
2 Rob Gronkowski New England Patriots vs. Buffalo
3 Jordan Reed Washington Redskins vs. Cleveland
4 Dennis Pitta Baltimore Ravens vs. Oakland
5 Delanie Walker Tennessee Titans at Houston
6 Kyle Rudolph Minnesota Vikings vs. New York Giants
7 Travis Kelce Kansas City Chiefs at Pittsburgh
8 Dwayne Allen Indianapolis Colts vs. Jacksonville
9 Julius Thomas Jacksonville Jaguars vs. Indianapolis
10 Jimmy Graham Seattle Seahawks at New York Jets
11 Eric Ebron Detroit Lions at Chicago
12 Zach Miller Chicago Bears vs. Detroit
13 Gary Barnidge Cleveland Browns at Washington
14 Coby Fleener New Orleans Saints at San Diego
15 Jason Witten Dallas Cowboys at San Francisco
16 Jacob Tamme Atlanta Falcons vs. Carolina
17 Hunter Henry San Diego Chargers vs. New Orleans
18 Jesse James Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Kansas City
19 Cameron Brate Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs. Denver
20 Clive Walford Oakland Raiders at Baltimore

Dallas Cowboys veteran Jason Witten continues to stay relevant, even in his 14th season in the NFL. Although he hasn't scored yet, Witten is on pace for his highest number of targets since 2013. I think rookie Dak Prescott looks for Witten for consistency in this one, behind a running-back heavy offensive strategy. The San Francisco 49ers have allowed the fourth-most fantasy points per game to the position through three games and Witten has enough left in the tank to take advantage of that. Falcons tight end Jacob Tamme looks like he has a tough match up against the Panthers, but he could be a decent play. With the Panthers concentrating on Julio Jones and Atlanta's outside threats, look for Tamme to see plenty of looks from Matt Ryan. The Panthers have already allowed two scores to tight ends and I think Tamme has a shot at six in this road match up. I can also see the Falcons trailing early here and being forced to throw. Tamme will be a solid outlet for Ryan if the coverage dictates an intermediate passing game. The Panthers have allowed touchdowns to tight ends in its last two contests.

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