2012 Fantasy Football Week 4: Tight Ends (TE) Rankings/Projections

He's only got 18 targets on the season, but Kyle Rudolph is starting to emerge as one of the trusted options from the Vikings in fantasy leagues. Rudolph posted five receptions against the 49ers, two of them going for touchdowns. On the season, Rudolph has three scores and has been an active part of Minnesota’s game plan.

The Vikings will head out to Detroit for a big division matchup against the struggling Lions. Over the past two weeks, the Lions have coughed up three touchdowns to opposing tight ends, making Rudolph a nice option for fantasy lineups this week.

Expect a high-scoring affair in this one, as the Lions will be desperate not to fall to a 1-3 record to start the season.

What Did We Learn From Week 3?

One of the all-time greats, Tony Gonzalez, is going to be a start-worthy tight end until the day he retires.

One of my favorite tight ends from the 2010 class, Dennis Pitta, appears ready to perform as a fantasy-relevant option. Joe Flacco is looking his way often, and Pitta is starting to carve a niche out as a red-zone target, with two touchdowns on the young season.

I’m ready to bail on any hopes of Kellen Davis becoming a TE1 option with the Bears' continued struggles up front.

Sean’s Week 4 Watch List

It’s time for Antonio Gates to step up and start playing up to the level we expect. The Chargers lost, and when that happens a coaching staff looks to its key players and asks, “Why aren’t we getting so and so the football more?”

Playing in an all-important division game, look for Gates to be targeted often. If not, it’s time to be a little concerned about his usage in the offense, and perhaps we would need to bench him until he starts performing.

Coming off a knee injury in the preseason, Jermaine Gresham has had a slow start to the season, but he caught five passes last week and found the end zone. Let’s see if Gresham can keep it going against the Jaguars, or will he lose out on valuable targets to the Bengals' emerging young receiving corps.

1	Jimmy Graham	at Packers
2	Rob Gronkowski	at Bills
3	Vernon Davis	at Jets
4	Tony Gonzalez	Panthers
5	Brandon Pettigrew	Vikings
6	Kyle Rudolph	at Lions
7	Antonio Gates	at Chiefs
8	Jermichael Finley	Saints
9	Brent Celek	Giants
10	Dennis Pitta	Browns
11	Martellus Bennett	at Eagles
12	Jason Witten	Bears
13	Jacob Tamme	Raiders
14	Scott Chandler	Patriots
15	Fred Davis	at Bucs
16	Jermaine Gresham	at Jaguars
17	Jared Cook	at Texans
18	Greg Olsen	at Falcons
19	Owen Daniels	Titans
20	Marcedes Lewis	Bengals

Week 4 Standard Rankings – QB | RB | WR | Waivers | Start / Sit |