Dalton Kincaid, Pat Freiermuth, and Hunter Henry Impacting Week 16 Rankings

If you have made it this far in the fantasy football playoffs, there is a high chance that you had a weekly startable TE this season. For those of you who were not blessed with an Evan Engram or a George Kittle, you probably had to stream weekly while you waited for a gem to pop up on the waiver wire.

Injuries make it even more challenging to decide on a starting TE, and Dalton Kincaid, Pat Freiermuth, and Hunter Henry are all dealing with issues that could limit them this week. What are the latest fantasy injury updates regarding these tight ends?

TE Injury Updates

Dalton Kincaid, TE, Buffalo Bills

The rookie Kincaid has been having a solid season for the Buffalo Bills, especially as soon as fellow TE Dawson Knox went down with an injury. Knox missed Weeks 8-12, which allowed Kincaid an opportunity to step up.

During Knox’s absence, Kincaid was the TE10, with his highest finish being TE4 in Week 10 against the Denver Broncos. He became an every-week starter in a desert landscape of playable TEs.

Knox has now returned to the field for Buffalo, and Kincaid is now battling an injury. He was listed as limited in practice on Wednesday with a shoulder injury; he seems to have been battling this injury for a little while. Last week, he was limited in all three practices with thumb and shoulder issues. Still, he didn’t have an injury designation for last week’s game against the Dallas Cowboys.

If Kincaid is held out of the Week 16 game against the Los Angeles Chargers, it will be the Dawson Knox show. The Bills are fighting for a spot in the playoffs, so fantasy managers can expect whoever is on the field to be giving their all.

Pat Freiermuth, TE, Pittsburgh Steelers

There was some real promise surrounding the Pittsburgh Steelers’ TE Freiermuth and his potential usage this season. Unfortunately, in Week 5, he went down to an injury that took him out of commission through Week 10.

He returned in Week 11 against the Cleveland Browns, but he could not produce. He finished as the TE39 that week.

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Freiermuth popped up on the injury report Wednesday with a knee injury. He was limited in practice, but head coach Mike Tomlin did not mention him while discussing other injuries on the team.

If you are a fantasy manager relying on Freiermuth, you want to make sure you have a pivot option available if he cannot play this week. If he is held out, we could see WRs George Pickens and Diontae Johnson get more targets, but if QB Mitchell Trubisky or Mason Rudolph are under center, those targets might not be incredibly valuable.

Hunter Henry, TE, New England Patriots

The Patriots are in a state of flux so unique that all of New England doesn’t know what to do. From switching QBs mid-season to the rumors that legendary head coach Bill Belichick will be moving on after this year, there is little for fantasy managers to take joy in around New England. As of late, Henry has been doing his best to bring some light into some very dark fantasy days.

With QB Bailey Zappe under center, the last two games have been stellar for Henry, finishing as the TE3 in both Weeks 14 and 15.

Henry picked up a knee injury during last week’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs, though, and he did not practice on Wednesday. Hopefully, he can go this week — the matchup against the Broncos is a juicy one. Denver has given up the most points to fantasy TEs this season.

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