Start Travis Kelce or Brenton Strange? Week 8

Updated Oct 27, 8:26 AM ET. Locks at kickoff, graded after. Week 9 answer posts Tuesday.

Latest

Oct 21, 7:13 PM ET: Travis Kelce: Listed Questionable (Ankle) (Sleeper injury feed)

Start Travis Kelce over Brenton Strange

Start

Travis Kelce

TE · KC · at DEN

Market projects: 11.9; recent weeks avg
DEN D vs TE: 16.0; 9th most to TEs (2026)
Upside: High; 91 of 100 at TE
Snap share: 78%; Through Week 7
Target share: 20%; Through Week 7

Sit

Brenton Strange

TE · JAX · vs IND

Market projects: 8.6; recent weeks avg
IND D vs TE: 13.7; 13th most to TEs (2026)
Upside: High; 94 of 100 at TE
Snap share: 79%; Through Week 6
Target share: 19%; Through Week 6

Should I drop Brenton Strange for Travis Kelce?

Yes, on the rest of the season. Travis Kelce projects 123 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (12.3 a game over 10 games), Brenton Strange 87 (8.7 a game over 10 games). For Week 8 the call starts Travis Kelce over Brenton Strange.

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Our Week 8 call

Start Travis Kelce over Brenton Strange in Week 8.

Market-based projections have Travis Kelce at 11.9 points and Brenton Strange at 8.6, a gap of 3.3. No player market is posted for Travis Kelce this week yet, so his 11.9 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 6 and 7 (12.7 and 11.1); the call is rebuilt when his market posts. No player market is posted for Brenton Strange this week yet, so his 8.6 is the average of his market-based projections in Weeks 5 and 6 (8.3 and 8.8); the call is rebuilt when his market posts. Drafters take Travis Kelce at ADP 113 and Brenton Strange at 202.

What the market projects

No Week 8 player market is posted for Travis Kelce yet. His market-based projections were 12.7 and 11.1 points in Weeks 6 and 7, an average of 11.9, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

The market-based projection for Travis Kelce is 0.4 touchdowns (7 market sources).

No Week 8 player market is posted for Brenton Strange yet. His market-based projections were 8.3 and 8.8 points in Weeks 5 and 6, an average of 8.6, which stands in until his Week 8 market posts.

The market-based projection for Brenton Strange is 0.4 touchdowns (7 market sources).

That puts Travis Kelce 3.3 points ahead of Brenton Strange on these projections.

Week 8 matchups

Travis Kelce and KC visit DEN on Sunday at 4:25 PM ET.

DEN allowed 16.0 fantasy points a game to TEs this season over 7 games, the 9th most in the league.

Tight ends caught passes for 65 yards and 0.6 touchdowns a game against DEN.

Brenton Strange and JAX host IND on Sunday at 1:00 PM ET.

IND allowed 13.7 fantasy points a game to TEs this season over 7 games, the 13th most in the league.

Tight ends caught passes for 45 yards and 0.7 touchdowns a game against IND.

By points allowed to the position, Travis Kelce has the softer matchup.

Injury status

Travis Kelce is not on the injury report.

Brenton Strange is not on the injury report.

Usage before Week 8

Through Week 7, Travis Kelce played 78 percent of KC snaps, drew 20 percent of the targets, earned 19 percent of the air yards and had 5 percent of the red zone chances.

Travis Kelce, Week 3 against MIA: 41 of 52 snaps, 2 targets and 2 catches for 59 yards, 1 touchdown.

Travis Kelce, Week 4 against LV: 50 of 60 snaps, 4 targets and 2 catches for 15 yards.

Travis Kelce, Week 6 against LAC: 40 of 61 snaps, 5 targets and 4 catches for 53 yards.

Travis Kelce, Week 7 against SEA: 44 of 53 snaps, 8 targets and 4 catches for 44 yards.

Through Week 6, Brenton Strange played 79 percent of JAX snaps, drew 19 percent of the targets, earned 17 percent of the air yards and had 5 percent of the red zone chances.

Brenton Strange, Week 3 against NE: 48 of 62 snaps, 5 targets and 3 catches for 32 yards.

Brenton Strange, Week 4 against CIN: 53 of 61 snaps, 8 targets and 7 catches for 95 yards.

Brenton Strange, Week 5 against PHI: 58 of 72 snaps, 8 targets and 7 catches for 68 yards.

Brenton Strange, Week 6 against HOU: 54 of 71 snaps, 7 targets and 5 catches for 44 yards.

Their 2025 seasons

In 2025, Travis Kelce played 17 games for KC and scored 193.2 PPR points, 11.4 a game, finishing TE3.

He caught 76 of 108 targets for 851 yards and 5 touchdowns, with 11 red zone targets and 428 air yards.

He was on the field for 81 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

In 2025, Brenton Strange played 12 games for JAX and scored 118.0 PPR points, 9.8 a game, finishing TE23.

He caught 46 of 60 targets for 540 yards and 3 touchdowns, with 9 red zone targets and 293 air yards.

He was on the field for 76 percent of the offense's snaps in the games he played.

Their other Week 8 calls

Locks at kickoff, graded after. When the start/sit engine grades week 8, the call and the result appear on the public record, wrong ones included.

Drop or keep

Should I drop Brenton Strange for Travis Kelce?
Yes, on the rest of the season. Travis Kelce projects 123 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (12.3 a game over 10 games), Brenton Strange 87 (8.7 a game over 10 games). For Week 8 the call starts Travis Kelce over Brenton Strange.
Should I drop Travis Kelce for Brenton Strange?
No. Keep Travis Kelce: he projects 123 market-implied PPR points from Week 8 through Week 17 (12.3 a game over 10 games), Brenton Strange 87 (8.7 a game over 10 games). For Week 8 the call starts Travis Kelce over Brenton Strange.

Should I drop Brenton Strange?