John Geliebter-USA TODAY Sports
One year after winning the NFC East, the Washington Redskins are at the bottom of the pack with a 3-11 record. The head coach benched the franchise quarterback. Now, their rookie tight end will miss the rest of the season.
The Redskins placed Jordan Reed on the IR. Reed has been suffering from post-concussion symptoms over the last couple of weeks. In order to rebound in 2014, the Redskins are shutting down two of their best offensive weapons. Reed is ranked the 17th-best fantasy tight end, so owners won’t be missing a lot of production in Reed’s absence.
Here are three players available to fill in for Reed in Week 16.
Delanie Walker: Walker had eight catches for 53 yards and a touchdown last week against the Arizona Cardinals, the league’s worst defense against tight ends. This week, Walker faces the Jacksonville Jaguars, a defense allowing 9.8 fantasy points per game to opposing tight ends. Available in about 70 percent of ESPN.com leagues, Walker is a legitimate TE1 play this week.
Mychal Rivera: The Oakland Raiders tight end is widely available, owned in just 0.6 percent of leagues, which should be a lot higher. Rivera has scored touchdowns in the last two games and in three of the last five. He is the Raiders third-most targeted receiver this season. The San Diego Chargers have allowed tight ends to score in four of their last six games. He may not be the most attractive option out there, but there aren’t many players available this late in the season.
Logan Paulsen: If you owned Reed, why not pickup his backup? Paulsen was on the field for 93 percent of the Redskins’ plays last week. Unfortunately, even in Reed’s absence, Paulsen has not topped three receptions or 44 yards since Week 3. He has scored a touchdown in two of his last three games. In a divisional matchup against the Dallas Cowboys, Paulsen becomes a nice sleeper.
Bill Pivetz is a fantasy football writer for Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @Mr_Piv1127.
