Analyze Evan Engram's matchup for week 10
Evan Engram is a recommended sit for Week 10 after being shut out in Week 9 and losing snaps to Adam Trautman; even a middling Raiders TE defense can’t offset his declining usage.
The Raiders have allowed the 15th-most fantasy points to tight ends this season (3.5 PPG), but that middling stat is misleading—Las Vegas ranks 25th in total points allowed (25.5 PPG) and just surrendered 83 yards to the position in Week 2. More importantly, the matchup is rendered moot by Engram’s collapsing snap share (51% last week) and zero-catch outing on three targets against Houston. Denver’s offense is shifting toward a committee approach at tight end, capping Engram’s ceiling regardless of opponent.
Engram has fallen off a cliff: from 4–5 catches a game early in the year to a complete zero-catch blanking in Week 9 while Adam Trautman out-snapped him 73% to 51%.
Evan Engram’s 2025 campaign has devolved into a cautionary tale of role erosion. After opening the season with steady 4- to 5-catch outings, he’s averaged a meager 26.9 yards per game and now finds himself in a true timeshare with Adam Trautman. The Week 9 shutout on three targets wasn’t an outlier—it was confirmation that Denver’s coaching staff no longer views him as a featured piece. Trautman’s superior blocking has earned him 73% of the snaps, relegating Engram to a part-time receiving specialist who isn’t even being schemed open. Even Thursday-night chaos factors (short prep, sloppy execution) work against him, as the Broncos are more likely to lean on the run and quick perimeter passes than on a tight end who can’t stay on the field.
From a defensive standpoint, the Raiders are hardly a shutdown unit—they’re 25th in points allowed and have already given up 83 yards to tight ends in a single 2025 contest—but that generosity is ancient history relative to Engram’s current usage. Las Vegas has tightened its coverage over the past month, mixing safety brackets and linebacker cloud coverage to squeeze intermediate middle routes, the very area Engram used to exploit. With Denver’s offensive line banged up, expect extra chip responsibilities from the remaining tight-end snaps, further limiting Engram’s routes. The matchup on paper is neutral; the reality on film is a defense that can devote extra attention because it doesn’t respect Denver’s play-action or vertical threats.
Fantasy managers should view Engram as a bench-only option in 12-team leagues and a waiver-wire cut candidate in 10-team formats. The tight-end position has surprising depth this season; streaming alternatives like Dalton Kincaid, Taysom Hill, or even rookie flyers offer both higher floors and comparable ceilings. Unless you’re in a 14-team league or a two-TE format, Engram belongs on the wire until Denver recommits targets—and snaps—to its once-promising free-agent addition.