McBride
TE · ARI vs NYG
Proj pts
21.1pts
market
Kelce
TE · KC vs LV
Proj pts
15.2pts
market
Travis Kelce or Trey McBride: who should I start in Week 4?
Start Trey McBride. Bench Travis Kelce. Trey McBride leads at 21.1. Travis Kelce is the first one out, 5.9 short.
Crowd: started McBride 99% · Kelce 90%
Highlights
Pros
- Clear start5.9 pts clear
- Alpha TE usage28% target share
- Target volume9.9 targets/g
Cons
- Tough matchupTough · D+ vs TE
Pros
- Alpha TE usage20% target share
- Spike upside15.3 ceiling
Cons
- Below your start line5.9 pts short
- Tough matchupTough · D- vs TE
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 Trey McBride
Start Trey McBride — projects 21.1, a tough matchup vs NYG.
Trey McBride projects 21.1 points on a 15.6–24.2 range. The matchup grades as tough against NYG. Usage: targets / game at 9.9. Net: Trey McBride is start this week.
Working for McBride: Clear start (5.9 pts clear), Alpha TE usage (28% target share), Target volume (9.9 targets/g).
Working against McBride: Tough matchup (Tough · D+ vs TE).
Where McBride leads the head-to-head: Projection (21.1 vs 15.2); Floor (15.6 vs 7.1); Ceiling (24.2 vs 15.3); Target share (28% vs 20%); Matchup grade (recency weighted) (D+ vs D-); Last 3 avg (19.7 vs 16.4); Last 5 avg (19.2 vs 12.4); Consistency (56% vs 46%); Bust rate (12% vs 18%); Targets / game (9.9 vs 6.4); Snap share (91% vs 82%); Red zone targets (34 vs 13); Touchdown dependence (21% vs 15%); Grade vs TE (recency weighted) (D+ vs D-).
Why Travis Kelce
Sit 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 a bench this week.
Working for Kelce: Alpha TE usage (20% target share), Spike upside (15.3 ceiling).
Working against Kelce: Below your start line (5.9 pts short), Tough matchup (Tough · D- vs TE).
Where Kelce leads the head-to-head: Implied team total (26.0 vs 23.0); vs season (+1.9 vs +0.2); Boom rate (18% vs 12%); Implied total (26.0 vs 23.0).
Recent form
Trey McBride's last 5 games: PPR points 23.6, 13.5, 24.5, 18.1, 16.5 (oldest to newest).
Travis Kelce's last 5 games: PPR points 8.6, 4.2, 10.1, 25.1, 13.9 (oldest to newest).
McBride has already beaten Kelce's 15.2 projection in 4 of his 5; Kelce has beaten McBride's 21.1 in 1 of his 5.
At least 1 of these 5 were played before the 2026 season — the card does not date them.
Matchup
Trey McBride (ARI) faces NYG, kickoff Sun 1:00 PM ET. The matchup is rated tough. Betting line: implied team total 23.0, spread -1.5.
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.
What flips it
McBride's edge is 5.9 points (21.1 to 15.2). Kelce's ceiling (15.3) stays under McBride's projection and McBride's floor (15.6) stays over Kelce's, so neither range reaches the other's projection. Confidence in the call: high.
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.