Chig

Okonkwo

He did, however, say that he wants to stay in Tennessee. Okonkwo turned his three grabs into 55 yards and a score last week. That put him at a 54/558/3 receiving line on the year. All three of those numbers are either new career-highs for Okonkwo or at least tie his previous high-water mark. Okonkwo may never hit the next gear for fantasy purposes, but he’s a capable start who works well with the ball in his hands. He should have no issues finding a multi-year contract as a free agent in the spring.

Okonkwo broke free for a 43-yard score at the top of the second quarter by bull-rushing through Saints corner Kool-Aid McKinstry after securing a short toss from Cam Ward. The one play alone put him over 40 yards with a score for the second week in a row. Backup tight end Gunnar Helm was only targeted twice. He caught just one pass. Okonkwo will remain in the TE2 mix for his Week 18 date with the Jags.

Okonkwo led the Titans in catches on an afternoon where Cam Ward took another modest but legitimate step forward. His score was a seven-yarder on a shovel pass. The Titans’ most consistent compiler this season, Okonkwo has now caught at least four passes three of the past four weeks, but spiked weeks have not been a thing. This is a low-ceiling offense, one where Ward is really spreading the ball around. That means Okonkwo will keep maxing out as a low-upside TE2 for the fantasy finals against the Saints.

Okonkwo led the team in targets, but that’s mainly because the Titans seem to only want to run screen passes, which leads to plenty of targets for their tight ends and running backs. Okonkwo did have a nice 17-yard catch and run in the first half, where he broke a few tackles, but this is not a role that provides consistent fantasy value.

Still yet to score this season, Okonkwo continues to pair the most modest of floors with the most nonexistent of ceilings. That will not change during the fantasy playoffs, leaving Okonkwo out of sight, out of mind in both re-draft and DFS fantasy.

Okonkwo has been playing through a foot injury the last few weeks and still leads the Titans in receptions and receiving yards on the season. His 29 yards make him the first Titans pass-catcher to cross the lowly 400 receiving yards mark for the season. Rookie Gunnar Helm has eaten into Okonkwo’s workload but the Titans’ current passing offense utilizes both tight ends before it does wide receivers. Okonkwo is a low-end TE2 moving forward.

Elic Ayomanor, who missed last week’s game with a hamstring injury, is also expected to suit up. Okonkwo has been losing work to Gunnar Helm lately, with the rookie tight end going for 51 yards on six grabs last week. Okokwo has caught more than three passes once in his past five games. Ayomanor scored twice in the first three weeks of the season and has since gone quiet. He has seen plenty of targets and air yards as of late, but Cam Ward’s struggles have drained the fantasy value from this offense. Neither Ayomanor nor Okonkwo should make it into fantasy lineups this week.

Okonkwo sandwiched a Thursday absence with two limited sessions. The veteran tight end continues to play through the injury, but he is barely fantasy-relevant. Even if Okonkwo takes the field against the Jaguars, he does not need to be in starting lineups.

Okonkwo has played through this foot injury for weeks. Over the last two, he banked half-PPR TE11 and TE19 finishes. The downgrade is not encouraging and he does not need to be in fantasy lineups against the Jaguars in Week 13, if active.

Okonkwo has been dealing with a foot issue for a couple weeks but has been able to play through it. He gets a limited practice on Wednesday and should still be good to go for Week 13 against the Jaguars. Rookie Gunnar Helm has been getting more opportunities at the tight end spot, so fantasy managers are unlikely to be eyeing Okonkwo in a week where no teams are on bye.