2017 Buccaneers Fantasy Forecast: TE, Cameron Brate

It’s not all doom and gloom for the Buccaneers starting tight end of course. Even if his fantasy value isn’t as high as it was at the end of last season, he’s still got value. Here are the games you need to look at stashing him for, and which ones you need to sit him for.

Sure Things:

Week 1 @ Miami Dolphins

Remember how I said this Buccaneers tight end may come out the gates slowly? Well, he may also come out quick,

Facing the Dolphins in Week 1 will certainly give him the upper-hand it would seem.

In 2016 this defense gave up the third-most touchdowns to opposing tight ends and averaged 12.1 points against each week.

Not a bad start to the year if you decide to front-load your draft with receivers, running backs and a quarterback.

Weeks 11 and 15 vs Atlanta Falcons

In Brate’s first full year as a starter he got his season going with a three catch, 30-yard performance against Atlanta.

This was Week 1 of 2016 of course, and the Falcons defense had more time to gel and all of that by the time they met again in Week 9.

So, when the Falcons came to Tampa, and yes blew them out, it was Brate who reeled in five catches for 43-yards and a score.

Remember, this came against a better Atlanta defense.

Bottom line is the Falcons were one of the friendliest fantasy football defenses against tight ends a year ago.

They’ve made some improvements to this year’s edition, but this doesn’t spell disaster for Brate.

He should still be able to find success here, so bring him off the bench if you have him.

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Uphill Battles:

Weeks 8 and 16 vs Carolina Panthers

At first glance, the Buccaneers match-up against this division rival should be a prime spot for their starting tight end.

However, in the last two seasons, Brate has just three catches against them with no scores.

Of course, 2015 began with Austin Seferian-Jenkins starting, and he did miss last year’s season finale.

Still, with the outside part of Carolina’s pass defense being the weakest, perhaps you should plan on looking elsewhere for these weeks.

Week 6 @ Arizona Cardinals

When the Bucs take the road to visit the Cardinals there may be some lingering effects from last year’s butt-whooping received in the desert.

In the 2016 version, Brate brought in three passes, but only tallied 16-yards and failed to find the endzone for the second straight game.

In Week 6, we’ll know more of what Howard brings to the offense, and we’ll see how much of an impact Jackson will make as well.

On the surface though, the Cardinals stop tight ends to the tune of just 4.8 points per game in fantasy football scoring.

This was tops in the league last year, and even if Brate is one-year better, it probably won’t bring him up enough to make a huge impact in Week 6.

Analysis:

Sure things are as sure in the NFL as franchise quarterbacks are in the NFL Draft.

Everything in the NFL is hit-and-miss, but here we are doing our best to predict the unpredictable.

Could Brate explode against the Cardinals? Of course.

Could he fall flat against the Falcons in 2017? You bet.

I don’t think so though, and the history supports it.