One of the most common questions I’m getting from fantasy football owners in Week 8 is should I start Oronde Gadsden?
Gadsden erupted last week, which made him one of the most popular Week 8 Waiver Wire Pickups. Now, managers are wondering if they can trust Oronde Gadsden in their Week 8 Fantasy Football lineups.
Let’s dive into Oronde Gadsden’s Week 8 Fantasy Football Outlook to find out.
Who is Oronde Gadsden? Prospect Profile
Oronde Gadsden is a rookie TE who was selected in Round 5 by the Chargers.
Why Gadsden fell to Round 5 (Pick 165), I do not know. As a 19-year old sophomore at Syracuse, Gadsden broke out for 61-975-6 line, averaging a team-high 75.0 receiving YPG, which was also 1.99x as much as the next-closest Syracuse player. This would be the 2nd-most yards by a TE for any Power Conference TE in at least 10 years.
He then suffered a foot injury that derailed his junior year, but returned as a senior for a 73-934-7 TD line – another Top-5 receiving yardage season within this last decade. He’s on the list twice! In the last 15 years, Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer are the only 2 other FBS Tight Ends to post 800+ yards in multiple seasons.
Sure, Gadsden’s athletic profile was nothing Earth-shattering. He ranked in the 65th percentile for his 40-yard dash (4.72) and 61st percentile for weight-adjusted speed score:
Still, Gadsden’s production profile — far more important — was elite. Gadsden was an elite after-the-catch threat that was deadly at the catch point. In fact, Gadsden posted 56% contested catch rate, which is insane.
Many coaches must have worried about Gadsden’s potential “tweener” status: basically an undersized tight end or oversized slot. The Chargers clearly landed a steal, as Gadsden has been thriving since having his role elevated.
Oronde Gadsden’s NFL Performance So Far
Gadsden made waves throughout NFL Training Camp, drawing enormous praise from nearly everyone inside the Chargers organization. Perhaps most intriguingly, His TE coach Andy Bischoff compared him to Darren Waller, who he previously worked with with the Raiders:
“I know it’s a huge forecast, but I mean I was fortunate to coach Darren Waller…And Darren Waller was a receiver in college. And we turned him into a tight end. He’s got some of those traits. It’s way early. Way early. But he’s twitchy. He separates, he does some really good things in the pass game.”
Over the past two weeks, Gadsden saw his role spike. His snaps leapt from 47.6% and 53.8% from Weeks 4 and 5 all the way to 75% and 79% in Weeks 6 & 7. During those games, his usage, production, and tape mimicked a prime Waller.
Via FantasyLife’s Utilization Hub:
In Week 6, Gadsden ran 27 routes (tied with Keenan Allen, just four fewer than Ladd McConkey) despite Will Dissly returning. On eight targets, Gadsden tied McConkey for a team-high seven catches and gained 68 yards.
In Week 7, everyone worried Quentin Johnston returning would sink Gadsden’s value. Instead, he went nuclear: 9 targets, 7 catches, 164 yards and a TD — good for 29.4 FPs!
As a starter, Gadsden has run 77%+ routes and is averaging 20% target share. He has ranked as a Top-12 TE in both games, and is the No.2 TE in FPs over that span. He currently is 2nd in yards per route run (2.33), Top-10 in Targets per Route, 6th in Red Zone targets (6), and 7th in deep target share (9.5%).
Gadsden’s flashing all the things that made him special at Syracuse: YAC ability. Contested catches. Finding the soft spots of defenses. Knowing when to break out during a broken play to be a threat for the QB. Hayden Winks broke down the film beautifully here:
Gadsden’s heavy-usage (8 & 9 targets) from the past two weeks may seem fluky, especially with Ladd McConkey, Quentin Johnston, and Keenan Allen as viable mouths to compete with.
Yet, Chargers OC Greg Roman has a lengthy track-record producing fantasy friendly TEs. Mark Andrews was Top-5 in FPPG in four straight seasons under Roman, and Vernon Davis had multiple 13 TD seasons under his tutelage too. When Roman has an athletic threat at TE, he squeezes the most out of them.
Gadsden looks like the next great Roman tight end.
Oronde Gadsden Fantasy Football Outlook: Should You Start Oronde Gadsden in Week 8?
Yes, Gadsden likely just posted his season-high in yards (164) and fantasy points (29.4!). No, Justin Herbert isn’t going to throw 55 attempts for 420 yards each week. Yes, he has elite target competition with this trio of WRs.
Still, Gadsden has the receiving profile, quality quarterback, and strong scheme to continue rolling TE1 production out all year, including Week 8.
The Vikings aren’t the best matchup, ranking 21st in Fantasy Points allowed to the position. Yet, they’ve faced minimal competition, and just two weeks ago they allowed both Harold Fannin and David Njoku to find the end zone — Njoku went off for 6 catches (9 tgts), 67 yards, and the 1 TD.
Vegas gives this game a middling projections with 44.5 Over Under, while the Chargers are 3.5 point favorites. If that script plays out and the Chargers are playing from ahead, Gadsden might struggle to see the necessary passing volume. Still, I expect a tight game that keeps Herbert firing all night.
As of now, Gadsden ranks as my TE8 in my Week 8 Fantasy Football Rankings. I keep flip-flopping him and Travis Kelce for the 7th spot.
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