Fantasy football rankings, Week 13: Tight end features breakout candidates

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Dan Ciarrocchi of Pro Football Focus breaks down the top 25 options for Week 13 and highlights three breakout candidates.

By Dan Ciarrocchi Nov 28, 2013, 7:25am EST

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There's nothing more refreshing for fantasy owners than a week that produces predictably satisfying results, and that was Week 12 in a nutshell for owners with the usual suspects at tight end. The studs, not the sleepers, topped the leaderboard with huge games from Jimmy Graham, Jason Witten, Rob Gronkowski and Vernon Davis.

But with every team playing this week for the first time since Week 3, there will be a deep pool of tight ends of all investment values to put up points. Let's take a look at a few breakout candidates:

WEEK 13 BREAKOUTS

Jordan Cameron, Cleveland Browns (vs. Jacksonville Jaguars):

He's back! Well, not Cameron, per se, because he never technically left in the first place, but Brandon Weeden did. Now, Weeden is back in action with Campbell sidelined this week, and Cameron's fantasy owners may see their tight end get out of his fantasy football rut. Cameron averaged six targets and 65 yards per game with Weeden in action, but then endured a noticeable decline with Campbell under center.

An uptick in production should be in order this week, especially versus a Jacksonville Jaguars defense that has allowed the second-most points to tight ends this season and an average of 69 yards per game. If there was a week where Cameron rights the ship, expect it to be this one.

Martellus Bennett, Chicago Bears (vs. Minnesota Vikings):

After putting up a few clunkers with Josh McCown under center, Bennett's owners could exhale after the hulking tight end put up 62 yards and a score versus the St. Louis Rams. Bennett has put up gains of 42 and 37 over the past two weeks, and that big-play ability is something that the Chicago Bears would love to include this week against a susceptible Minnesota Vikings defense.

The Vikings secondary is in shambles, and the fact that they have allowed the fourth-most points to tight ends this season and nine touchdowns to them on the year is pretty damning evidence toward that. Fantasy owners could do far worse than take a Thanksgiving-weekend flier on Bennett, who could be in for a feast.

Greg Olsen, Carolina Panthers (vs. Tampa Bay Buccaneers):

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been torched by slot receivers and secondary receiving options in recent games (see: Rishard Matthews, Harry Douglas and Nate Burleson). With Darrelle Revis occupying the No. 1s and the ineptitude of other corners and safeties in coverage, it's not hard to see the incentive behind other teams' quarterbacks looking for their supporting cast instead of star receivers.

The Panthers love putting Greg Olsen in the slot, and he could be in for a big Thanksgiving weekend to follow-up scoring in four of his last five games, including his previous matchup with the Buccaneers. Olsen has caught 17 passes for 204 yards and two of his five touchdowns from the slot so far, and he finds himself in prime position to pad those totals this Sunday.

Let's take a look at the top 25 tight ends for Week 13:

Rank	Player	Team	Opponent
1	Rob Gronkowski	NE	HOU
2	Jimmy Graham	NO	SEA
3	Jason Witten	DAL	OAK
4	Julius Thomas	DEN	KC
5	Jordan Cameron	CLE	JAC
6	Greg Olsen	CAR	TB
7	Vernon Davis	SF	STL
8	Martellus Bennett	CHI	MIN
9	Jordan Reed	WAS	NYG
10	Coby Fleener	IND	TEN
11	Tony Gonzalez	ATL	BUF
12	Delanie Walker	TEN	IND
13	Tim Wright	TAM	CAR
14	Antonio Gates	SD	CIN
15	Heath Miller	PIT	BAL
16	Garrett Graham	HOU	NE
17	Charles Clay	MIA	NYJ
18	Brent Celek	PHI	ARI
19	John Carlson	MIN	GB
20	Rob Housler	ARI	PHI
21	Brandon Pettigrew	DET	GB
22	Jared Cook	STL	SF
23	Anthony Fasano	KC	DEN
24	Jeff Cumberland	NYJ	MIA
25	Tyler Eifert	CIN	SD