Ladarius Green Daily Fantasy News, Rankings, Projections

Jesse James will start at tight end for the Steelers today. We're projecting his ownership at 20% on FanDuel and 22% on DraftKings, both figures are less than Martellus Bennett's. James picked up a career-high 83 yards against the Chiefs on six targets, the most he's received since Week 5. Considering Bennett's health and the number of alternate options Tom Brady has at his disposal, a swap to James may make sense. While Bennett picks up more scoring work, James could be involved more frequently in other parts of the field as Roethlisberger doesn't have many reliable weapons outside of Antonio Brown and Le'Veon Bell.

No surprise here as Green is still healing from a concussion. His absence will provide Jesse James another start. Due to the dearth of options at tight end this weekend, James projects as our TE3 and he's squarely in play. However, we're not projecting a large gap between his ownership levels and that of the clear top option, Jared Cook, meaning there is a limited advantage to be gained from a game theory perspective by rostering the lesser tight end. On FanDuel their prices are only a $1,000 apart, so it's not going to free up too much extra salary, but on DraftKings their prices are $2,400 apart, which makes a big difference given the tight pricing on DK this weekend. James set a career-high in Kansas City with 83 yards. His six targets were the most he's received since Week 5 when he posted a 6/43/1 line. If Malcolm Butler can successfully shut down Antonio Brown and Logan Ryan handles Eli Rogers, both plausible situations to an extent, James could pick up more targets than normal. New England has done well defending the position this year, they were in the top 8 in fantasy points allowed per game to tight ends. James certainly won't have the floor or ceiling of Jared Cook but he's worth a look in tournaments. It's probably better to use him at DraftKings over FanDuel given the pricing at the position.

Green remains in the concussion protocol but he had a limited practice on Friday and made the trip to New England with the squad. He wasn't able to practice with the first team today, which is an indication that Pittsburgh's coaching staff is fully preparing to go into the game with Jesse James as their starter. Due to the dearth of options at tight end this weekend, James projects as our TE3 and he's squarely in play. However, we're not projecting a large gap between his ownership levels and that of the clear top option, Jared Cook, meaning there is a limited advantage to be gained from a game theory perspective by rostering the lesser tight end. On FanDuel their prices are only a $1,000 apart, so it's not going to free up too much extra salary, but on DraftKings their prices are $2,400 apart, which makes a big difference given the tight pricing on DK this weekend. James set a career-high last week with 83 yards. His six targets were the most he's received since Week 5 when he posted a 6/43/1 line. If Malcolm Butler can successfully shut down Antonio Brown and Logan Ryan handles Eli Rogers, both plausible situations to an extent, James could pick up more targets than normal and post a nice line. New England has done well defending the position this year, they were in the top 8 in fantasy points allowed per game to tight ends. James certainly won't have the floor or ceiling of Jared Cook, who should be in line for extra work himself with all of the injuries plaguing the Green Bay receiving corps, but he's worth a look in tournaments. It's probably better to use him at DraftKings over FanDuel given the pricing at the position.

Green remains in the concussion protocol and should be considered very doubtful for Sunday's game in New England. He was able to practice in a limited fashion Wednesday but was held out today. He was listed on the injury report with an illness, so it's not clear if he was held out for that reason, the concussion, or both. If he's ultimately unable to suit up, Jesse James would start at tight end and be a viable option in GPPs given the lack of quality choices at the position. Still, our ownership projections don't display a large gap between James and Jared Cook - 38% vs. 20% on FanDuel and 38% vs. 22% on DraftKings - meaning there's not a huge advantage to be gained from a game theory perspective by pivoting to the lesser TE. We'll learn more regarding Green's status when Pittsburgh practices tomorrow but at this point, he's not expected to play Sunday

Green remains in the protocol but this is a positive sign. Given his history of concussions, there's still a chance he's unable to be cleared to play on Sunday. If he is able to suit up, he'll be an interesting tournament option on the upcoming two-game slate that features very few tight end options. Jared Cook will be a super chalky choice, so there will be some merit to a pivot in order to differentiate GPP lineups. A few things still need to happen: Green would need to have a good week of practice, get cleared, and it'd be best to have some assurance he'll get a normal complement of snaps (or close to it) for this to be a viable play. It's definitely a situation to keep an eye on.

It's looking very much like we won't see Green again this postseason. His history with concussions was concerning before this season, and things haven't improved at all in his first year with the Steelers. Green was acting as the next-in-command to Antonio Brown among the receiving corps, and his presence would theoretically make it tougher for the Patriots to heavily attack Brown with double coverage. Jesse James will draw another start and while he's a good bet to play the large majority of the snaps, his volume is still concerning. You can do worse on a two-game slate if you're looking to punt the TE spot, however. Jared Cook and Martellus Bennett are still superior options.

Green was held out of practice again on Thursday and all signs point to him sitting out this weekend. Green has a history of concussions and may not be able to return this year if the Steelers advance in the playoffs. Jesse James will get the start at tight end but he won't be a great option in fantasy, he projects as our TE7. James rarely receives more than four targets and his quarterback, Ben Roethlisberger, plays worse on the road. Roethlisberger averaged 3.3 passing touchdowns per game at home this season and just 1.1 outside of Pittsburgh, meaning James' touchdown expectation, which was already low, needs to be downgraded. Expect Ben to primarily target Antonio Brown, Le'Veon Bell, and Eli Rogers. With Kansas City ranking 7th in pass DVOA and 26th in rush DVOA, Pittsburgh may rely heavily on Bell this weekend.

Things are not looking good for Green. After returning to practice for a couple of days last week, he was held out on Friday and seems to have stalled in the protocol process. He wasn't able to return to practice today and it appears that he's on the doubtful side for Sunday. If he misses, Jesse James would draw another start. Although he was in play last week due to the limited selection at the position, there are plenty of better tight ends available in the divisional round. Ben Roethlisberger will continue to prioritize Antonio Brown, Le'Veon Bell, and Eli Rogers in the passing game.

The Steelers TE continues to struggle recovering from a concussion as he is still in the league protocol. He did practice two days last week but was unable to get onto the field on Sunday. He has a chance to play this week but right now that is uncertain. It'd be a tough match up against the Chiefs regardless as they are routinely one of the top teams in the league at covering the TE, but he does have significant upside if he does play. We'll continue to monitor the situation and update it if anything changes.