Kenyon

Sadiq

He did get in another limited session today, his third in a row, which would suggest he has a strong chance of playing. Sadiq will get a rankings boost with Breece Hall, Adonai Mitchell, and Mason Taylor all ruled out. He’s a fringe TE1, but one with an extremely high ceiling after last week’s 7/105/1 line.

It seems like he’ll be trending towards playing in Week 4, though it would be nice to see a full session on Friday. Sadiq isn’t necessarily a must-play TE1, but with Adonai Mitchell and Mason Taylor trending towards not playing, the circumstances that created his 105-yard explosion in Week 3 are certainly in place for Week 4.

We don’t know exactly what the issue is yet, but Sadiq hit the ground hard on his diving touchdown grab versus the Lions. He was slow to get up and grabbed his abdomen before slowly walking off the field. Sadiq eventually returned and was highly productive during the second half, so it doesn’t appear to be a major concern for Week 4. He is on the TE1/2 borderline, with both Mason Taylor and Adonai Mitchell looking unlikely to suit up this week.

With Mason Taylor and Adonai Mitchell out this week, Frank Reich treated Sadiq as his No. 2 receiver and the results were marvelous. Sadiq scored his first career receiving touchdown on a 24-yard diving grab into the end zone in the second quarter. He appeared to get banged up as he hit the ground and was slow to get up, but the first-round rookie eventually shook it off and remained productive in the second half. Sadiq’s role could take a hit if either Mitchell or Taylor is back next week, but it’s hard to imagine the team scaling things back all that much after this breakout performance. Sadiq will flirt with a TE1 ranking when he takes on the Bears in Week 4.

Taylor, according to head coach Aaron Glenn, will “be just fine.” That could mean he’ll be ready for the Jets’ Week 3 game against the Lions. Through two games Taylor leads the team in tight end routes while rookie Kenyon Sadiq leads in tight end targets. Sadiq, being targeted on 17 percent of his routes, would be a nice streaming play in Week 3 if Taylor is sidelined.

Taylor suffered a thumb injury in Week 2 against the Packers, which will seemingly sideline him for Week 3 and potentially longer. Taylor currently leads Jets tight ends with 78 offensive snaps. Losing for any amount of time elevates rookie TE Kenyon Sadiq to a more prominent role. Sadiq is worth adding in 12-team leagues at this time.

Not only did Sadiq not make a huge impact on the field, but he also played fewer snaps and ran fewer routes than Mason Taylor. Sadiq is an incredibly athletic and talented rookie, but he’s also 21 years old and is going to need a while to adjust to the NFL game. His role will likely increase for the Jets as the year goes on, but he figures to be inconsistent in the early part of the season.

Sadiq’s rushing score came on a first quarter end-around. This was a strong debut for the No. 16 overall pick, especially since Geno Smith attempted only 24 passes in an easy road victory. Awesome stuff, though Pro Football Focus did chart Sadiq as being easily out-snapped by Mason Taylor. It’s obviously promising that getting Sadiq the ball was a point of emphasis when he was on the field, but his No. 2 status in his own position group is going to make him a no-go in the top 12 for the time being.

Sadiq practiced in full throughout the week. Even at full strength health-wise, Sadiq will likely open the year as a pass-catching specialist, with Mason Taylor taking on the traditional inline role. Offensive coordinator Frank Reich even said the team would “scale back” his workload early in the year. Sadiq is worth stashing in deeper leagues but isn’t on the fantasy radar for his NFL debut.

Sadiq is not yet ready for fantasy football TE1 duties, but he appears to have recovered from the setback he suffered in his rehab related to a hernia back in August. The Jets published their Week 1 depth chart earlier today with Sadiq listed as the backup behind TE Mason Taylor.