Kraft
TE · GB vs TB
Proj pts
12.2pts
market
Likely
TE · NYG vs ARI
Proj pts
12.2pts
market
Isaiah Likely or Tucker Kraft: who should I start in Week 4?
Start Tucker Kraft. Bench Isaiah Likely. Tucker Kraft leads at 12.2. Isaiah Likely is the first one out, 0.1 short.
Crowd: started Kraft 56% · Likely 54%
Highlights
Pros
- Red-zone role1.5 RZ targets/g
- Favorable matchupFavorable · A- vs TE
- Spike upside21.7 ceiling
Cons
- Cooling off6.5 last 3
Pros
- Favorable matchupFavorable · A vs TE
Cons
- Low TE usage12% target share
- Thin volume3.0 targets/g
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 Tucker Kraft
Start 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 start 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: Cooling off (6.5 last 3).
Where Kraft leads the head-to-head: Floor (6.4 vs 5.2); Ceiling (21.7 vs 12.5); Target share (19% vs 12%); Consistency (37% vs 27%); Targets / game (5.5 vs 3.0); Snap share (86% vs 57%); Red zone targets (12 vs 6); Touchdown dependence (31% vs 9%).
Why Isaiah Likely
Sit Isaiah Likely — projects 12.2, a favorable matchup vs ARI, with a rising role.
Isaiah Likely projects 12.2 points on a 5.2–12.5 range. The matchup grades as favorable against ARI. Usage: targets / game at 3.0. Net: Isaiah Likely is a bench this week.
Working for Likely: Favorable matchup (Favorable · A vs TE).
Working against Likely: Low TE usage (12% target share), Thin volume (3.0 targets/g).
Where Likely leads the head-to-head: Matchup grade (recency weighted) (A vs A-); Last 3 avg (13.1 vs 6.5); Last 5 avg (13.1 vs 11.4); vs season (+3.7 vs -1.3); Grade vs TE (recency weighted) (A vs A-).
Recent form
Tucker Kraft's last 5 games: PPR points 33.3, 4, 9.5, 3.5, 6.6 (oldest to newest).
Isaiah Likely's last 3 games: PPR points 3.3, 8.3, 27.8 (low to high; the card does not say which came first).
Kraft has already beaten Likely's 12.2 projection in 1 of his 5; Likely has beaten Kraft's 12.2 in 1 of his 3.
At least 1 of these 5 were played before the 2026 season — the card does not date them.
Matchup
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.
Isaiah Likely (NYG) faces ARI, kickoff Sun 1:00 PM ET. The matchup is rated favorable. Betting line: implied team total 21.5, spread +1.5.
What flips it
Kraft and Likely are level on projection (12.2). Likely's ceiling (12.5) clears Kraft's projection, so a big game from Likely flips it. Kraft's floor (6.4) sits under Likely's projection, so a quiet game from Kraft flips it too. Confidence in the call: lower.
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.