Schultz
TE · HOU vs DAL
Proj pts
14.1pts
market
Kraft
TE · GB vs TB
Proj pts
12.2pts
market
Dalton Schultz or Tucker Kraft: who should I start in Week 4?
Start Dalton Schultz. Bench Tucker Kraft. Dalton Schultz leads at 14.1. Tucker Kraft is the first one out, 1.8 short.
Crowd: started Schultz 56% · Kraft 56%
Highlights
Pros
- Spike upside19.1 ceiling
Pros
- Red-zone role1.5 RZ targets/g
- Favorable matchupFavorable · A- vs TE
- Spike upside21.7 ceiling
Cons
- Below your start line1.8 pts short
- Cooling off6.5 last 3
Some recent form, opportunity and matchup figures still lean on the 2025 season (not enough games played this season yet).
Week 4 · Updated Tue 6:00 AM ET
Why Dalton Schultz
Start Dalton Schultz — projects 14.1, an even matchup vs DAL, with a rising role.
Dalton Schultz projects 14.1 points on a 5.8–19.1 range. The matchup grades as neutral against DAL. Usage: targets / game at 6.2. Net: Dalton Schultz is start this week.
Working for Schultz: Spike upside (19.1 ceiling).
Where Schultz leads the head-to-head: Projection (14.1 vs 12.2); Implied team total (25.5 vs 21.5); Last 3 avg (13.2 vs 6.5); vs season (+0.0 vs -1.3); Consistency (48% vs 37%); Bust rate (24% vs 25%); Targets / game (6.2 vs 5.5); Red zone targets (14 vs 12); Implied total (25.5 vs 21.5).
Why Tucker Kraft
Sit Tucker Kraft — projects 12.2, a favorable matchup vs TB, but the role is cooling.
Tucker Kraft projects 12.2 points on a 6.4–21.7 range. The matchup grades as favorable against TB. Usage: targets / game at 5.5. Net: Tucker Kraft is a bench this week.
Working for Kraft: Red-zone role (1.5 RZ targets/g), Favorable matchup (Favorable · A- vs TE), Spike upside (21.7 ceiling).
Working against Kraft: Below your start line (1.8 pts short), Cooling off (6.5 last 3).
Where Kraft leads the head-to-head: Floor (6.4 vs 5.8); Ceiling (21.7 vs 19.1); Matchup grade (recency weighted) (A- vs C-); Last 5 avg (11.4 vs 11.1); Boom rate (25% vs 18%); Snap share (86% vs 71%); Touchdown dependence (31% vs 10%); Grade vs TE (recency weighted) (A- vs C-).
Recent form
Dalton Schultz's last 5 games: PPR points 4.9, 11.3, 7.5, 26, 6 (oldest to newest).
Tucker Kraft's last 5 games: PPR points 33.3, 4, 9.5, 3.5, 6.6 (oldest to newest).
Schultz has already beaten Kraft's 12.2 projection in 1 of his 5; Kraft has beaten Schultz's 14.1 in 1 of his 5.
At least 1 of these 5 were played before the 2026 season — the card does not date them.
Matchup
Dalton Schultz (HOU) faces DAL, kickoff Sun 1:00 PM ET. The matchup is rated neutral. Betting line: implied team total 25.5, spread -2.5.
Tucker Kraft (GB) faces TB, kickoff Sun 1:00 PM ET. The matchup is rated favorable. Betting line: implied team total 21.5, spread -3.5.
What flips it
Schultz's edge is 1.9 points (14.1 to 12.2). Kraft's ceiling (21.7) clears Schultz's projection, so a big game from Kraft flips it. Schultz's floor (5.8) sits under Kraft's projection, so a quiet game from Schultz flips it too. Confidence in the call: moderate.
How to read these numbers
- Confidence in the call
- How clear-cut this start/sit call is — how decisively the player beats the alternative he competes with (for a starter, the best player on your bench; for a bench player, the last one in your lineup), on both projected points and the overlap of their likely ranges. A clear play reads high; a genuine toss-up reads lower. It rates the decision, not the player’s own volatility, and is not a measured accuracy rate.
- Floor
- The 20th percentile of the same simulated distribution.
- Ceiling
- The 90th percentile of the same simulated distribution.
- Matchup grade
- The opponent’s points allowed to this position per game, weighted toward recent games, then graded on a curve across the 32 defenses.
- Implied team total
- The points the betting market expects this team to score, derived from the game total and the spread. Market-derived, not modelled by Nuvela.
- Trend
- The direction of his scoring across the trailing window, classified as heating, steady or cooling.
- Consistency
- The share of his games that landed within a set band of his own per-game average.
- Boom rate
- The share of his games that finished inside the top 12 scorers at his position for that week.
- Bust rate
- The share of his games that came in under half of what he was projected for that week.
- Defense funnel
- Whether the opponent’s rush defense and pass defense are far enough apart to push offenses one way. A gap inside the band reads Neutral.
- Game script projection
- The expected state of the game for his team — favoured, level or trailing — taken from the closing spread.
More start/sit comparisons from this week's PPR projections. Open a pair for the call and the reasoning.