T.J. Hockenson Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that the Vikings are releasing WR Adam Thielen. It's been a long-rumored, contract-related move. The 32-year-old (until August) has seen his target share decline for two straight seasons. Thielen also tallied a career-low 10.2 yards per catch last season and posted his second smallest averages in both receptions and yards per game since becoming a starter in 2016. We'd still bet on Thielen finding opportunity somewhere else, but it's tough to know how big a role to expect until he lands. You can take some shots on Thielen at his already depressed ADP in current best ball drafts. But don't target him too heavily or expect a huge payoff. Thielen's departure leaves opportunity for WR K.J. Osborn and TE T.J. Hockenson. Don't be surprised, though, if Minnesota adds a wide receiver early in the NFL Draft.

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson led the team in receiving with 10 catches on 11 targets for 109 yards in Sunday's Wild Card loss vs. the Giants. This explosion comes only a few weeks after his 13-109, 2 TD performance against the Giants in Week 16. WR Justin Jefferson totaled 47 receiving yards, hauling in 7 of his 9 targets on the day. Both Hockenson and Jefferson figure to be big contributors to this Vikings' offense moving forward into 2023.

Vikings TE Irv Smith has been activated from IR, putting him on track to play vs. the Bears on Sunday. He's been out since going down with a significant high-ankle sprain in Week 8. Smith's return is a boost to Minnesota's passing game, but he's unlikely to be a big fantasy factor in the postseason behind TE T.J. Hockenson.

Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell said Friday that his regulars will start this weekend's game vs. the Bears but that there's a plan to potentially pull them early to get backups some reps, according to ESPN's Kevin Seifert. The Vikings can't get the NFC's #1 seed and can only climb from #3 to #2 with a 49ers loss to the Cardinals. QB Kirk Cousins, RB Dalvin Cook, WRs Justin Jefferson and Adam Thielen and TE T.J. Hockenson are candidates to leave Sunday's game early.

Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell said Monday that he won't sit his starters in Sunday's regular-season finale vs. the Bears -- although he added that he could make "more subtle" adjustments to playing time. The Vikings can't get the NFC's #1 seed but are still alive for the #2 seed with a win plus a loss by the 49ers. Minnesota kicks off at 1 pm ET, while 49ers-Cardinals doesn't start until 4:25 pm ET, so there won't be any scoreboard watching going on. It's possible that the Vikings pull guys like QB Kirk Cousins, RB Dalvin Cook, WR Justin Jefferson and TE T.J. Hockenson if they build a big lead, but we're currently projecting full playing time for all of them.

Vikings QB Kirk Cousins threw for just 205 yards in Sunday's loss to the Packers, with 1 TD and 3 INTs. The lone TD went to WR Jalen Nailor from 47 yards out, helping him lead the team with 89 yards on 3 catches. TE T.J. Hockenson led the team with 12 targets, catching 7 for 59 yards. WR K.J. Osborn added a TD catch, but it came from QB Nick Mullens in garbage time. WR Justin Jefferson managed just 1 reception for 15 yards among 5 looks. Minnesota closes out the regular season with an upside matchup at Chicago.

Vikings TE Irv Smith (ankle) has been designated to return from IR. He's been out since going down with a significant high-ankle sprain in Week 8. Minnesota, of course, swung a deal for TE T.J. Hockenson since then. Smith's return could be a slight boost to the Vikings passing game, but he won't be a fantasy factor in the regular season or playoffs, barring a Hockenson injury.

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson tallied 13 catches for 109 yards and 2 TDs in Saturday's win over the Giants. He tied WR Justin Jefferson for the team lead with 16 targets, while no other Viking drew more than 5 looks or exceeded 3 receptions.

Vikings WR K.J. Osborn tied WR Justin Jefferson for the team target lead (16) in Saturday's come-from-behind OT win over the Colts. Osborn caught 10 balls for a team-high 157 yards and scored. Jefferson returned from an injury check (chest) to catch 12 passes for 123 yards and a TD. WR Adam Thielen managed just 3 receptions on 4 targets for 41 yards and a TD. TE T.J. Hockenson added 3-33 receiving on 9 looks.

Vikings WR Adam Thielen caught 7 of 8 targets for 65 yards and a TD in Sunday's loss to the Lions. He trailed Justin Jefferson's lead in receptions, tying TE T.J. Hockenson for 2nd on the team in targets and ranking 3rd in yardage. Hockenson managed a 6-77 receiving line. WR K.J. Osborn claimed the other TD catch to go with 5 catches for 38 yards on 5 targets.

The Jets limited Vikings WR Justin Jefferson to 45 yards on 7 catches among 11 targets in Sunday's Minnesota win. Jefferson did find the end zone from 10 yards out in the middle of the 4th quarter to save what would have been a disappointing fantasy day by his standards otherwise. A Week 14 clash with the Lions presents an opportunity for Jefferson to avenge his worst outing of the year: 3 catches for 14 yards in Week 3. TE T.J. Hockenson and WR Adam Thielen tied for 2nd in targets against the Jets with 6 apiece. Hockenson caught 4 for 33 yards. Thielen caught 2 balls for 27 yards.

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson amassed 139 yards and a TD on 9 catches in Thursday night's win over the Patriots. WR Adam Thielen trailed him by just 1 target and matched Jefferson's 9 catches, tallying 61 yards and a TD. TE T.J. Hockenson snagged the other of Kirk Cousins' 3 scoring tosses, totaling a 5-43-1 receiving line among 6 targets. The Minnesota passing game gets a tougher draw against the Jets in Week 13.

Vikings QB Kirk Cousins managed only 12-of-23 passing for 105 yards in Sunday's beatdown at the hands of the Cowboys. He took 7 sacks and lost a fumble in the 40-3 defeat, giving way to Nick Mullens for late mop-up duty. TE T.J. Hockenson led Minnesota pass-catchers with just 5 catches and 34 yards. WR Justin Jefferson checked in just behind with a 3-33 line on 5 targets. WRs Adam Thielen and K.J. Osborn were the only other Vikings to catch more than 1 pass. (They each caught 2.) Minnesota gets challenging matchups the next 2 weeks as well, against the Patriots and Jets. The 1st of those comes on Thanksgiving night.

New Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson led the team with 9 receptions Sunday in his 1st game since the trade. He caught all 9 of his targets (2nd on the team) for 70 yards. Only WR Justin Jefferson drew more looks, catching 7 of 13 for 115 yards and a TD. WR Adam Thielen garnered 7 targets and tallied 3 receptions for 67 yards. QB Kirk Cousins totaled 265 yards on a lackluster 22-of-40 (55%) passing. Minnesota heads to Buffalo next Sunday for 1 of the league's toughest passing matchups.

Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson is expected to be a "key part" of the offense against the Commanders today, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Hockenson, of course, was just traded to Minnesota on Tuesday. He "worked extra hours to get up to speed on the game plan," per Fowler. "Team plans to get him in there as much as it can, given the time constraints of the week." We'd still be surprised if Hockenson played a full slate of snaps today. But it's certainly possible that he's targeted at a high rate when he's on the field. Consider him a risk/reward Week 9 fantasy play.

The Lions are trading TE T.J. Hockenson to the Vikings, along with a 2023 4th-round pick and a 2024 conditional 4th-round pick, in exchange for a 2023 2nd-round pick and 2024 3rd-round pick, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports. It's surprising for a few reasons, most notably because it's an intra-division trade and involves a former 1st-round pick still on his rookie deal. Hockenson counts just $6.5 million against this year's salary cap and has a $9.3 million 5th-year option for 2023. He's been slightly underwhelming through 3+ NFL seasons considering he was the 8th overall pick of the 2019 NFL Draft. But Hockenson's 44.0 receiving yards per game since 2019 rank 10th among TEs. He's averaged a career-best 56.4 yards per game so far this year and ranks 7th among 31 qualifying TEs in Pro Football Focus' 2022 receiving grades. Minnesota is an OK spot for Hockenson's rest-of-season fantasy value. He'll obviously be behind WR Justin Jefferson in the pecking order but could challenge WR Adam Thielen for the #2 spot. And the Vikings have been a pass-leaning offense this year, ranking 7th at 38.0 pass attempts per game. (The Lions rank 15th at 35.7.). Hockenson will face negative fantasy-scoring matchups the next 2 weeks vs. Washington and Buffalo, but the schedule looks nice after that. Detroit, meanwhile, is left with TEs Brock Wright and James Mitchell. Wright is the preferred add but is probably only worth a look in TE-premium leagues like the FFPC. RB D'Andre Swift and WR Amon-Ra St. Brown should pick up more targets with Hockenson gone.