Fantasy football: Cade Otton among 4 must-start Week 5 tight ends

Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Cade Otton (R) breaks a tackle from Philadelphia Eagles safety Tristin McCollum on Sunday at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. Photo by Steve Nesius/UPI
1 of 5 | Tampa Bay Buccaneers tight end Cade Otton (R) breaks a tackle from Philadelphia Eagles safety Tristin McCollum on Sunday at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla. Photo by Steve Nesius/UPI | License Photo

MIAMI, Oct. 3 (UPI) -- Cade Otton is among my four must-start fantasy football tight ends for Week 5.

Travis Kelce leads my Top 20 tight end rankings, which are listed below. My Week 5 quarterback, running back and wide receiver rankings also are available. These positional rankings will be updated based on developments, including injuries. My top free agent targets for Week 5 are available here.

Tucker Kraft, Pat Freiermuth and Tyler Conklin join Otton as my must-start options. George Kittle, Dalton Kincaid, Brock Bowers and Jake Ferguson join Kelce in my Top 5.

Those with stock in Trey McBride, Cole Kmet, Evan Engram and David Njoku should monitor their injury status before plugging them into starting lineups.

Players from the Philadelphia Eagles, Tennessee Titans, Detroit Lions and Los Angeles Chargers should be benched or dropped as those teams serve Week 5 byes.

Tucker Kraft

Kraft sits at No. 6 in my Week 5 tight end rankings. The Green Bay Packers pass catcher finished second among tight ends in fantasy points in Week 4, when he logged season-highs in targets (nine), catches (six) and receiving yards (53) and hauled in his first touchdown and converted a two-point conversion.

Kraft caught at least two passes in each of his first three games before his breakout performance. I expect his target total to eclipse six for the second-consecutive time in Week 5, when the Packers face the Los Angeles Rams.

The Packers are expected to be without injured wide receiver Christian Watson, which should lead to more looks for their other pass catchers, including Kraft.

The Rams allowed the sixth-most fantasy points and seventh-most receiving yards to wide receivers through four weeks. They surrendered at least 34 yards or a touchdown to a tight end in every game this season. Like most tight ends, Kraft is a touchdown-or-bust play, but I expect him to haul in one of quarterback Jordan Love's multiple touchdown tosses.

Pat Freiermuth

Freiermuth is a Top 10 option so far this season, in terms of fantasy points per game. The Pittsburgh Steelers veteran was the No. 3 tight end in Week 4, when he caught five passes for 57 yards and a score.

Freiermuth totaled at least four catches in each game this season. He also averaged 39 yards per game and received 20 targets over that span.

This week, the Steelers will face the Dallas Cowboys. I expect the Steelers to be playing from behind in this matchup, forcing Justin Fields to throw more passes, especially in the second half. Look for Freiermuth to log at least 60 yards. He is my No. 7 option.

Cade Otton

Otton is my No. 9 option for Week 5. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers pass catcher didn't find the end zone through his first four games, but turned 17 targets into 13 catches for 99 yards over the last two weeks.

I expect the Buccaneers' passing attack to extend its run of success this week against the Atlanta Falcons, with quarterback Baker Mayfield accounting for multiple touchdowns for the fourth time in five games. Look for Otton to be on his radar when the Buccaneers enter the red zone.

Tyler Conklin

Conklin is a fringe TE1 this week, when his New York Jets take on the Minnesota Vikings in London. The Jets tight end totaled just 17 yards in Week 4, but continues to draw a large about of targets, with 14 over his last two games.

The Vikings allowed 46.8 yards per game to tight ends through the first four weeks of the season. Conklin should triple his Week 4 output and has a great chance to score in this matchup. He is my No. 10 play.

Week 5 fantasy football tight end rankings

1. Travis Kelce, Kansas City Chiefs vs. NO

2. George Kittle, San Francisco 49ers vs. ARI

3. Dalton Kincaid, Buffalo Bills at HOU

4. Brock Bowers, Las Vegas Raiders at DEN

5. Jake Ferguson, Dallas Cowboys at PIT

6. Tucker Kraft, Green Bay Packers at LAR

7. Pat Freiermuth, Pittsburgh Steelers vs. DAL

8. Juwan Johnson, New Orleans Saints at KC

9. Cade Otton, Tampa Bay Buccaneers at ATL

10. Tyler Conklin, New York Jets at MIN

11. Cole Kmet, Chicago Bears vs. CAR

12. Kyle Pitts, Atlanta Falcons vs. TB

13. Brenton Strange, Jacksonville Jaguars vs. IND

14. Colby Parkinson, Los Angeles Rams vs. GB

15. Trey McBride, Arizona Cardinals at SF

16. Mark Andrews, Baltimore Ravens at CIN

17. Hunter Henry, New England Patriots vs. MIA

18. Mike Gesicki, Cincinnati Bengals vs. BAL

19. Dalton Schultz, Houston Texans vs. BUF

20. Isaiah Likely, Baltimore Ravens at CIN

NFL: Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeat Philadelphia Eagles

Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield looks to pass against the Philadelphia Eagles during the first half at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa on September 29, 2024. The Buccaneers defeated the Eagles 33-16. Photo by Steve Nesius/UPI | License Photo

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