Week 5 Fantasy Football Rankings: Owen Daniels and 3 TEs That Will Explode

With so much emphasis on quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers, tight ends can often be taken for granted both in the NFL and in fantasy football. With passing the ball becoming more and more important, however, tight ends have become big parts of many teams' offenses.

With San Diego Chargers tight end Antonio Gates perpetually dealing with a foot injury, the door is open with regards to which tight end will step up and grab the brass ring. Here are three tight ends that will score you big points in Week 5.

Jimmy Graham, New Orleans Saints

Despite a myriad of weapons that includes Marques Colston, Robert Meachem, Devery Henderson and Lance Moore, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees has formed an excellent rapport with second-year tight end Jimmy Graham.

The ultra-athletic Graham showed incredible promise as a pass receiver late last season, but Jeremy Shockey was blocking his path to extended playing time. With Shockey now in Carolina, however, Graham has become one of the Saints' biggest offensive threats.

Through four games, Graham has reeled in 24 passes for 367 yards and three touchdowns. At 6'6", he has also become an ideal red-zone target. The Carolina Panthers have done a nice job against the pass this season, but Brees and the Saints will pass on anyone and everyone. Graham has back-to-back 100-yard games, and I expect him to continue his hot streak.

Dallas Clark, Indianapolis Colts

Few tight ends in the NFL have been more consistent than the Indianapolis Colts' Dallas Clark over the past few seasons. With quarterback Peyton Manning sidelined by a neck injury, though, Clark's production has dropped off considerably this season.

Clark would regularly catch eight, nine or even 10 balls in a game with Manning under center, but through four games, he has just 13 catches for 129 yards and a touchdown with the combination of Kerry Collins and Curtis Painter throwing to him.

Painter didn't look to Clark much last week, but one would think that he would eventually identify Clark as a valuable safety valve. Clark will have as good of a matchup as he can hope for this weekend against the Kansas City Chiefs. With safety Eric Berry out for the season, the Chiefs are prone to big plays down the middle, and that is where Clark excels.

Owen Daniels, Houston Texans

As horrible as Houston Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson's hamstring injury was for his fantasy owners, it was equally great for owners of tight end Owen Daniels. For the past several seasons, Daniels has been the No. 2 target for quarterback Matt Schaub.

With Johnson on the shelf, possibly for a few weeks, Daniels ascends to that No. 1 spot by default. He has had a decent season to this point with 14 grabs for 182 yards and three touchdowns, but I would expect his production to increase markedly over the next couple weeks.

While the Oakland Raiders will place more defensive focus on stopping Daniels, he will still be covered by safeties and linebackers the majority of the time, so he should be heavily targeted. Let's not forget that Daniels was the best tight end in football before suffering an ACL injury two seasons ago, so he should be fully recovered and ready to assume that role once again.