Kelce
TE · KC vs LV
Proj pts
15.2pts
market
Fannin
TE · CLE vs PIT
Proj pts
13.2pts
market
Harold Fannin Jr. or Travis Kelce: who should I start in Week 4?
Start Travis Kelce. Bench Harold Fannin Jr. Travis Kelce leads at 15.2. Harold Fannin Jr. is the first one out, 2.0 short.
Crowd: started Kelce 90% · Fannin 75%
Highlights
Pros
- Alpha TE usage20% target share
- Spike upside15.3 ceiling
Cons
- Tough matchupTough · D- vs TE
Pros
- Alpha TE usage22% target share
- Favorable matchupFavorable · A+ vs TE
- High floor9.2 floor
Cons
- Below your start line2.0 pts short
- Low team total18.0 team total
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 Travis Kelce
Start Travis Kelce — projects 15.2, a tough matchup vs LV, with a rising role.
Travis Kelce projects 15.2 points on a 7.1–15.3 range. The matchup grades as tough against LV. Usage: targets / game at 6.4. Net: Travis Kelce is start this week.
Working for Kelce: Alpha TE usage (20% target share), Spike upside (15.3 ceiling).
Working against Kelce: Tough matchup (Tough · D- vs TE).
Where Kelce leads the head-to-head: Projection (15.2 vs 13.2); Implied team total (26.0 vs 18.0); Last 3 avg (16.4 vs 12.9); vs season (+1.9 vs +0.8); Bust rate (18% vs 20%); Snap share (82% vs 76%); Red zone targets (13 vs 11); Implied total (26.0 vs 18.0).
Why Harold Fannin Jr.
Sit Harold Fannin Jr. — projects 13.2, a favorable matchup vs PIT.
Harold Fannin Jr. projects 13.2 points on a 9.2–23.3 range. The matchup grades as favorable against PIT. Usage: targets / game at 6.7. Net: Harold Fannin Jr. is a bench this week.
Working for Fannin: Alpha TE usage (22% target share), Favorable matchup (Favorable · A+ vs TE), High floor (9.2 floor).
Working against Fannin: Below your start line (2.0 pts short), Low team total (18.0 team total).
Where Fannin leads the head-to-head: Floor (9.2 vs 7.1); Ceiling (23.3 vs 15.3); Target share (22% vs 20%); Matchup grade (recency weighted) (A+ vs D-); Last 5 avg (13.9 vs 12.4); Consistency (51% vs 46%); Boom rate (20% vs 18%); Targets / game (6.7 vs 6.4); Touchdown dependence (19% vs 15%); Grade vs TE (recency weighted) (A+ vs D-).
Recent form
Travis Kelce's last 5 games: PPR points 8.6, 4.2, 10.1, 25.1, 13.9 (oldest to newest).
Harold Fannin Jr.'s last 5 games: PPR points 20, 11, 4.1, 10.4, 24.1 (oldest to newest).
Kelce has already beaten Fannin's 13.2 projection in 2 of his 5; Fannin has beaten Kelce's 15.2 in 2 of his 5.
At least 1 of these 5 were played before the 2026 season — the card does not date them.
Matchup
Travis Kelce (KC) faces LV, kickoff Sun 4:25 PM ET. The matchup is rated tough. Betting line: implied team total 26.0, spread -4.5.
Harold Fannin Jr. (CLE) faces PIT, kickoff Thu 8:15 PM ET. The matchup is rated favorable. Betting line: implied team total 18.0, spread +2.5.
What flips it
Kelce's edge is 2 points (15.2 to 13.2). Fannin's ceiling (23.3) clears Kelce's projection, so a big game from Fannin flips it. Kelce's floor (7.1) sits under Fannin's projection, so a quiet game from Kelce 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.