Fantasy football Week 7 TE preview: Don't run away from Pat Freiermuth and Tyler Higbee

Target shares, red-zone roles and injuries in Pittsburgh and Los Angeles create prime bounce-back spots for both pass-catchers Oct 20, 2026 at 5:30 pm ET • 2 min read The tight end position is looking better than ever. Brock Bowers, Trey McBride, and Isaiah Likely are producing like WR1s. Sam LaPorta and George Kittle are averaging 15 Fantasy points per game. And there have been a ton of flashes from other guys, most recently Kyle Pitts and Colston Loveland. But one thing I have also noted is that many of those big games by tight ends outside the top five have been followed by duds. Most recently, that happened to Pat Freiermuth and Tyler Higbee. I am not quite ready to run away from either.Freiermuth was added to the injury report late last week with a calf injury and may not have been 100%. That does not change how excellent this environment is for him. Aaron Rodgers is throwing nearly 40 passes per game, and the Steelers have two healthy wide receivers that Rodgers trusts. Freiermuth has proven to be one of Rodgers' favorite red zone targets and I would not be surprised if Freiermuth bounces back in Week 7 against the Saints.Higbee was a harder sell early in the Rams most recent game. It was Colby Parkinson week, and many speculated that you couldn't trust any tight end on this team. But the injury to Davante Adams may change that. Higbee has been very good when used this year and Matthew Stafford needs someone he trusts opposite Puka Nacua. Eventually, I would expect that to be Terrance Ferguson, he should be added if he's available, but for Week 7 either Higbee or Parkinson could be a top 12 tight end and I favor Higbee.Here's everything else you need to know about tight end in Week 5: Week 7 TE Preview TE Preview Numbers to Know 8.5 -- Tyler Higbee is averaging 8.5 yards per target. That's double Colby Parkinson's average.183 -- Pat Freiermuth has run 183 routes this year, which ranks sixth amongst receivers. 16% -- Harold Fannin is down to a 16% target per route run rate. It's impossible to have any faith in him in this role.31.7% -- George Kittle has a 31.7% target share with Mike Evans off the field. He could take things to another level.29 -- Kyle Pitts has run 29 routes each of the past two weeks. He only ran 28 routes the two weeks before. Hopefully he's here to stay.0.65 -- Jake Ferguson is averaging 0.65 yards per route run. That ranks dead last amongst tight ends with 20 targets this season. TE Preview Waiver Wire Targets Week 7 Streamers (TE Preview) Projections powered by Sportsline Projections powered by Sportsline TE Preview Heath's Projections My full set of Week 7 Fantasy football projections for every position is now available here. Find out which of my favorite plays are projected to score higher than consensus rankings and which don't live up to their draft hype, at least in Week 7. Projected stats for all starting tight ends are updated throughout the week, so check back before you set your lineup for the latest information.