Week 7 Waiver Wire: Jake Ballard and Other Top Tight Ends to Pick Up Now

Having a reliable tight end rarely happens in fantasy (cue every Antonio Gates fantasy owner), meaning you are likely forced to juggle every week.

Here are three tight ends that have been putting up solid numbers recently that should continue to have success:

Jake Ballard, New York Giants

Ballard came out of nowhere to gain 183 yards and two touchdowns over the last three weeks. His incredibly soft hands, combined with his tall frame and ability to find the soft spot in coverage, has made him one of Eli Manning’s favorite targets of late.

The Giants run a very pass-heavy offense and Ballard has emerged as a big part of it.

He’s on a bye this week, but after that he faces three defenses in a row that are prone to giving up big fantasy numbers in the Dolphins, Patriots and 49ers.

Fred Davis, Washington Redskins

Davis is a top tight end to start now that Chris Cooley is going to miss multiple weeks with a fractured index finger.

On Sunday Davis had 95 yards on six catches and you can expect that sort of production for the foreseeable future—regardless of who starts at QB.

With poor pass defenses in Carolina and Buffalo on deck, pick up Davis, who is available in over 50 percent of standard ESPN leagues.

Jared Cook, Tennessee Titans

The Titans are short on receiving targets after losing Kenny Britt, and Cook is beginning to emerge as one of the main options for Matt Hasselbeck. In his past two games he has amassed over 150 yards and a touchdown and had the benefit of a bye this past week to allow the coaching staff to figure out other ways to get him the ball.

With soft pass defenses in Houston and Indianapolis next up, Cook is the sort of under the radar pickup that could pay off in a big way.