The Position Is Thin. The Opportunity Doesn’t Have to Be.

Three weeks into the season, tight end is already becoming what it usually becomes in fantasy football: a weekly search for reliable opportunity.

Unless you have one of the difference-makers at the position, simply chasing last week’s touchdown usually isn’t enough. We want to know who’s earning targets, who’s becoming a bigger part of the offense and which young tight ends could be one role change away from becoming much more valuable.

And this week’s waiver wire actually gives us several options.

Here are the tight ends we’re targeting for Week 4 and beyond.

🔥 1. JUWAN JOHNSON — NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

~55% rostered | Priority Add

This one starts with a simple instruction:

Check your waiver wire.

Johnson won’t be available everywhere, but NFL.com makes him its No. 1 overall waiver-wire target this week—not merely the No. 1 tight end. NFL

That’s important because we’re not looking at a tight end who simply caught a touchdown and suddenly appeared on the fantasy radar.

We’re looking at sustained involvement in the passing game.

Johnson has already reached seven or more targets twice through three games, and the Saints have continued to make him part of their weekly passing attack.

🎯 Why We’re Buying

At tight end, dependable opportunities can be more valuable than chasing a player who needs a touchdown to save his fantasy day.

Johnson is giving us something much more interesting:

Volume.

If he’s still sitting on your waiver wire, he belongs near the top of the list.

Beyond the ADP Call:
🔥 ADD — and potentially start immediately.

🚀 2. KENYON SADIQ — NEW YORK JETS

~30–35% rostered | Upside Add

Now we’re getting interesting.

Sadiq entered the league with significant draft capital, but Week 3 gave fantasy managers their first real look at what the rookie could become.

Week 3:

8 targets
7 receptions
105 yards
1 touchdown

FantasyPros notes that Sadiq finished just behind Garrett Wilson on the Jets in receptions, receiving yards and targets. FantasyPros

That isn’t a random two-catch, one-touchdown TE performance.

Eight targets and 105 yards demand attention.

The question isn’t whether Week 3 was impressive.

The question is:

👀 How much of the role sticks?

Rookie tight ends don’t always develop quickly. When one starts commanding this type of opportunity this early, we’re willing to get there before we have complete confirmation.

NFL.com has Sadiq fifth among all Week 4 waiver players, while FantasyPros’ Pat Fitzmaurice ranks him among his leading available tight ends. NFL

Beyond the ADP Call:
🚀 ADD. We’re betting on talent + expanding opportunity.

📈 3. DARREN WALLER — CAROLINA PANTHERS

~10–25% rostered depending on platform | Immediate Help

Waller is one of the more fascinating names on the wire because this isn’t simply a speculative stash anymore.

His involvement is giving us something tangible to work with.

CBS lists Waller at 26% rostered and specifically highlights him among its preferred Week 4 TE options, while RotoBaller’s broader waiver data had him available in nearly 90% of leagues on that platform. CBS Sports

That discrepancy is exactly why we always tell you to check your league rather than assume somebody is unavailable.

The bigger point:

Waller has re-established himself as a legitimate part of Carolina’s passing game.

For a position filled with players seeing three or four opportunities per week, we’re interested when a TE starts receiving meaningful volume.

Beyond the ADP Call:
📈 ADD if you need immediate TE help.

🎯 4. BRENTON STRANGE — JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS

~20–30% rostered | Week 4 Streamer

Strange hasn’t exploded statistically.

That may actually be why he’s still available.

Through three games:

10 targets
7 receptions
72 yards
1 touchdown

But Week 3 brought his season high with five targets, and now the matchup gets extremely interesting. FantasyPros

Week 4: Cincinnati.

FantasyPros points out that Cincinnati allowed the most receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns to tight ends last season, and the problem hasn’t disappeared. Pittsburgh’s tight ends produced 97 yards against Cincinnati in Week 3 after Dalton Schultz had gone for 140 yards against the Bengals the previous week. FantasyPros

That’s the kind of matchup information we want when streaming this position.

We’re not claiming Strange suddenly became an elite fantasy TE.

We’re saying:

Role + matchup + availability = exactly what we’re looking for in a streamer.

Beyond the ADP Call:
🎯 One of our favorite Week 4 streaming options.

👀 5. ORONDE GADSDEN II — LOS ANGELES CHARGERS

~15–20% rostered | Upside Stash

This one is less about chasing last week’s fantasy score and more about looking ahead.

Gadsden remains widely available—RotoBaller lists him at roughly 15% rostered—and he’s still showing up on Week 4 waiver boards despite the uneven early production. RotoBaller

That’s exactly the type of TE we want to monitor.

Young.

Athletic.

Available.

And potentially capable of turning an expanding role into something much more valuable later in the season.

If you need guaranteed Week 4 production, there are safer choices above him.

If your roster allows you to think a few weeks ahead?

That’s where Gadsden becomes interesting.

Beyond the ADP Call:
👀 STASH — we’re buying the possibility of a larger role before the breakout.

🌱 GET THERE BEFORE THE WAIVER WIRE DOES

This is where Beyond the ADP goes a little deeper.

Not every waiver pickup needs to start Sunday.

Sometimes the better move is identifying a player one or two weeks before everyone else starts searching his name.

⭐ TERRANCE FERGUSON — LAR | ~35–37%

Ferguson may be the most intriguing stash of this group.

He broke out for 6 catches, 54 yards and a touchdown in Week 2, but an ankle injury disrupted his Week 3 game. He returned after initially leaving, then aggravated the ankle and was eventually ruled out. RotoBaller

So this isn’t necessarily the player to grab if you’re desperate for a starter Sunday.

But if the ankle checks out?

We’re interested.

Young receiving tight ends with demonstrated upside shouldn’t sit on waivers simply because of one poorly timed injury.

Call: STASH and monitor the ankle.

🌱 A.J. BARNER — SEA | ~5–14%

Barner is exactly the kind of name that can disappear beneath the bigger waiver headlines.

FantasyPros’ current numbers have him at 12 targets, 8 receptions, 90 yards and a touchdown through three games, with roughly 13% rostered. FantasyPros

That’s enough underlying involvement to keep him firmly on our deeper-league radar.

Call: DEEP ADD / WATCHLIST.

🌱 GUNNAR HELM — TEN | ~4–6%

We’re not adding Helm because we expect him to suddenly become a Week 4 TE1.

This is a young-player stash.

RotoBaller has him around 4% rostered, meaning he’s available almost everywhere. RotoBaller

If you have a deep bench or play in dynasty formats, these are exactly the players worth watching before their opportunity grows.

Call: DYNASTY/DEEP STASH.

👀 GREG DULCICH — MIA | ~7%

Here’s one where the Week 3 usage matters.

Dulcich caught 5 of 7 targets for 55 yards against Kansas City after producing only four receptions over the first two games.

He now has 9 catches for 90 yards through three weeks. RotoBaller

We’re not ready to call him a standard-league starter.

But seven targets is enough to get our attention.

Call: WATCH / ADD in deeper PPR leagues.

📊 THE BEYOND THE ADP BOARD

Roster percentages vary significantly by platform, so we’re using ranges where the major sites differ rather than pretending there’s one universal number. For example, CBS currently lists Sadiq at 44% and Waller at 26%, while other waiver datasets have both substantially lower. CBS Sports

🎯 FINAL WORD

Tight end is a position where fantasy managers can spend weeks chasing last Sunday’s touchdown.

We’re looking for what happens before the touchdown.

Targets.
Routes.
Snap growth.
Matchups.
And young players whose roles are beginning to expand.

If you need production immediately, Johnson, Waller and Strange deserve attention.

If you’re hunting upside, Sadiq is the name that jumps off the page after Week 3.

And if you have room to think ahead, Ferguson, Gadsden and Barner are the types of players we’d rather roster before their opportunity becomes obvious.

Don’t chase last week’s touchdown. Chase the usage that could create NEXT week’s points.

BEYOND THE ADP
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