Fantasy Football Week 13 Tight End Rankings: Just go add Pat Freiermuth

Need a tight end to survive the bye weeks in Week 13?

Try Pat Freiermuth .

Need a tight end because you lost Mark Andrews last week?

Try Pat Freiermuth.

Need a tight end because you just haven't had a good one all season?

Yep, try Pat Freiermuth.

Freiermuth is rostered in 53% of CBS Fantasy leagues heading into Week 13, which means there's about a coin-flip's chance he's available in your league. And, unless you have Travis Kelce , Trey McBride , Sam LaPorta , or George Kittle , you should probably be making him a high priority on the waiver wire this week. In fact, given the sorry state of options at other positions on the wire right now, Freiermuth should probably be the highest priority on the wire right now if you need a tight end.

Is that an overreaction? Perhaps. Freiermuth had a huge game in Week 12, leading all players entering Monday night with 120 receiving yards while catching nine of 11 passes for the revitalized Steelers offense. However, he had just one catch on one target the previous week with pretty similar playing time (54% snaps, 39% route participation; 59% of snaps, 62% of routes in Week 13), so it could have just been a one-week fluke against a Bengals defense that has struggled with tight ends.

But, while we've seen the emergence of a few must-start options at tight end of late, it's still not a position where everyone in the league has one. And, unless you already do, can you really pass on someone who showed the kind of upside Freiermuth did in Week 12? Especially when it came immediately after the Steelers fired their offensive coordinator and showed a new emphasis on targeting the middle of the field in the passing game?

Besides, if Freiermuth isn't available, you're looking at the likes of Jonnu Smith (40% rostered), Tyler Conklin (34%), Gerald Everett (26%), or Juwan Johnson (14%) as your best choices, and none of them has shown anywhere near the kind of upside Freiermuth just did; none of them come with a particularly high floor, either. Maybe Freiermuth flops. Maybe Week 12 was a career-game he'll never come close to replicating. Can you really afford not to take the risk? In most of my leagues, I know I can't.

Here are my rankings for Week 13 at the tight end position:

Fantasy Football Today Newsletter Know What Your Friends Don't Get tips, advice and news to win your league - all from the FFT podcast team.

I agree to receive the "Fantasy Football Today Newsletter" and marketing communications, updates, special offers (including partner offers), and other information from CBS Sports and the Paramount family of companies.

By pressing sign up, I confirm that I have read and agree to the Terms of Use and acknowledge Paramount's Privacy Policy

See All Newsletters Please check the opt-in box to acknowledge that you would like to subscribe.

Keep an eye on your inbox. Sorry! There was an error processing your subscription.

Week 13 Tight End Rankings