By admin 
Two of the most highly regarded TEs in fantasy football going into the 2026 season, Sam LaPorta and Dalton Kincaid, will be in action early in Week 2, as they will be playing in a Thursday night matchup between the Detroit Lions and the Buffalo Bills. With that, here is a breakdown of who is the better TE of the two to have in fantasy lineups this week.
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Sam LaPorta
In Week 1 against the Houston Texans, Kincaid had a breakout fantasy outing. He logged five receptions on six targets for 130 yards. It was the most receiving yards Kincaid has had in a single game in his career. In PPR fantasy formats, he finished as TE5.
Kincaid did this against one of the better defenses in 2025, and one of the better defenses in shutting down TEs. Last season, the Texans allowed the ninth-fewest PPR fantasy points in the NFL to TEs. The Lions also proved to be one of the higher-end teams in defending TEs in 2025, as they ranked 11th for fewest PPR fantasy points given up to the position.
In Week 1 against the Saints, the Lions’ pass defense struggled mightily. They allowed 410 passing yards, the most of any team in Week 1. However, within that TE1 for the Saints, Juwan Johnson only had three receptions on seven targets for 54 yards and a TD.
Final Verdict
When it comes to who should start and who should sit between LaPorta and Kincaid, LaPorta should sit, and Kincaid should start.
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This debate is pretty straightforward. Both TEs have pretty difficult matchups, but Kincaid seems more likely to overcome that and find a way to generate a good fantasy outing. The reason being he dropped a career high in receiving yards against a stop-10 team in defending TEs in 2025; he should be able to do it against a team who were just outside the top-10 in defending TEs in fantasy, who are also coming off a horrendous game overall in defending the pass.
LaPorta with a matchup against the Bills looming, it is not a bad idea for fantasy managers to find a TE stream play off the waivers for Week 2. A couple of options to look at are Seattle Seahawks TE AJ Barner and New England Patriots TE Hunter Henry. Both have more than ideal matchups to have meaningful fantasy performances.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/onsi/fantasy as Fantasy Football Week 2 Start ‘Em, Sit ‘Em: Sam LaPorta vs. Dalton Kincaid.
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This story was originally published September 16, 2026 at 9:06 AM.