Coming into their Thursday Night Football game against the Tennessee Titans, the Indianapolis Colts have several questions regarding the status of their tight ends. Which Colts TE should fantasy football managers look to play in their lineups between Mo Alie-Cox, Trey Burton, and Jack Doyle, and will all of them even suit up for the team? On an offense that targets the tight end on 22.5% of their attempts and is already missing a key wide receiver in Parris Campbell, there could be some hidden value in finding the right player for fantasy.
TE Jack Doyle has been ruled out for Thursday’s game against Tennessee
The Indianapolis Colts announced on Wednesday that TE Jack Doyle has been ruled out of Thursday’s Week 10 matchup against the Tennessee Titans.
Doyle suffered a concussion just before halftime of Sunday’s Week 9 loss to the Baltimore Ravens while attempting to make a catch inside the red zone. Head coach Frank Reich had said earlier in the week that he didn’t think it would be possible for Jack Doyle to be able to get back in time for Thursday night’s game against the Titans. With Doyle out, the team will turn to Trey Burton and, depending on his status, Mo Alie-Cox at the tight end position against a Titans’ defense that allows the 12th-most fantasy points per game to opposing tight ends at 13.89.
2020 has been a relatively quiet fantasy season for Jack Doyle, seeing 15 targets in his seven games played. He has caught nine passes for 108 yards and one score total but has failed to cross 50 yards in a game. His 15 targets rank third on the team amongst fellow tight ends Mo Alie-Cox and Trey Burton. Jack Doyle’s fantasy outlook is bleak until he returns to form.
Mo Alie-Cox is questionable for TNF but has been seen at practice
Short week practice reports make it hard to get a true gauge on what a player’s actual status will be leading into a Thursday game, and this is no different. The Colts didn’t hold a formal practice for the second straight day, instead opting for a walk-through session. TE Mo Alie-Cox was upgraded as a full participant for Wednesday’s faux practice and is now officially listed as questionable for the game.
Alie-Cox was a non-participant on Monday’s practice but was elevated to limited for Tuesday’s walk-through. This is what I mean by it being hard to gauge – we are dealing with estimated status reports vs. players actually on the field going through drills.
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Alie-Cox has been listed on the injury report since the team returned from their bye week in Week 7. He was inactive the following week against the Detroit Lions. He then returned to game action for Sunday’s Week 9 game against the Baltimore Ravens, playing 35 offensive snaps total and finishing with three receptions for 43 yards.
Due to the timeshare the Colts employ at TE, Mo Alie-Cox and his hot start to the season cooled off rather quickly. From Weeks 2 to 4, Alie-Cox was a near must-start, catching nine of his targets for 174 yards and two touchdowns. He finished as TE10 and TE5 in Weeks 2 and 3.
One of the biggest reasons for the decline in performance is his limited snap count. Week 9 was the first time Mo Alie-Cox has seen above 41% of the team’s offensive snaps since Week 4. With Jack Doyle out for fantasy managers in Week 10, he could be in line for a better fantasy performance and worth a start in deeper leagues. The downside is the lack of red zone targets once Trey Burton gets fully healthy. Being a touchdown-dependent player while losing those crucial targets makes for a low floor.
Can fantasy managers trust Colts TE Trey Burton or Mo Alie-Cox this week?
Week 9 was rough for Trey Burton, who played 43% of the snaps and caught one of his four targets for six yards. The issue with Burton is that he has been extremely volatile with his fantasy performances on the season.
Burton enjoyed a brief stretch in Weeks 5 and 6 where he racked up nine receptions for 91 yards and one receiving touchdown. However, he hasn’t exceeded 16 receiving yards in any of his other three games this season. Even his touchdowns have been unconventional. For example, Reich dug into the scouting film and tapped into Burton’s quarterback and wildcat ability that he showed at Florida and had a rushing touchdown in back to back weeks.
With Jack Doyle out of the game and T.Y. Hilton’s status up in the air, Trey Burton could be a fantasy play but only in deeper leagues.
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I don’t love the fantasy floor that either Trey Burton or Mo Alie-Cox have on Thursday Night Football. However, going against the 21st ranked defense against the position that has allowed the second-most red zone targets to tight ends makes this more interesting.
The key to this game will be the target distribution in the red zone. Both will likely see a similar snap share, so it comes down to who can get the attention of Philip Rivers in the end zone. Before you plug either guy into your lineup, I would look on the waiver wire first to see if someone like Dallas Goedert or Eric Ebron is out there as both are available in less than 60% of leagues and offer far more value to your fantasy team not only for Week 10 but in the future as well.
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Tommy Garrett is a writer for PFN covering Fantasy Football. You can read more of his work here and follow him at @TommygarrettPFN on Twitter.