Darren Waller · Tyler Higbee · 2026 week 5

Darren Waller or Tyler Higbee?

Wondering who you should start this week — Darren Waller or Tyler Higbee? The start/sit call and the numbers behind it are below, plus who wins a straight-up trade. Rebuilt nightly.

Start Tyler Higbee — barelyThis one is a coin flip — the projections are within 0.8 points. The matchup leans Tyler Higbee (BUF allow the 16th-most TE points), but you can defend either call.

Player	Wk 5	Proj (PPR)	Matchup	Form L3	Trade value	Status
Darren Waller	@ PHI	8.3	28th · tough	11.7	125	healthy
Tyler Higbee START	vs BUF	9.1	16th	11	109	healthy

TEs vs PHI recently: Gunnar Helm 1.3 pts (W2) · Colston Loveland 3.1 pts (W3) · Tyler Higbee 6.7 pts (W4).

TEs vs BUF recently: Dalton Schultz 3.5 pts (W1) · Sam LaPorta 11.2 pts (W2) · Hunter Henry 6.2 pts (W4).

🎓 The coach's read

Projections are 0.8 apart — too close to call on projection alone.
Darren Waller faces PHI, 28th most generous to TEs.
Tyler Higbee faces BUF, 16th most generous to TEs.

Who wins a straight-up trade?

Darren Waller carries the higher trade value — 125 against 109 (a 13% gap). In a one-for-one, the side receiving Darren Waller gets the most. Momentum: Darren Waller +89 and Tyler Higbee +109 over the last 30 days.

Open in Start/Sit (any scoring) Open in the Trade Analyzer

More TE decisions

Darren Waller or Mike Gesicki?Darren Waller or Dalton Schultz?Darren Waller or Brenton Strange?Tyler Higbee or Dalton Schultz?Tyler Higbee or Brenton Strange?

All numbers are the 2026 season, refreshed nightly.