Darnell Washington vs Tucker Kraft: Who Should You Start?
Tucker Kraft and Darnell Washington are at different tiers heading into 2026. The Green Bay Packers tight end averaged 12.6 PPG in 2025, a full 9.0 points per game ahead of Darnell Washington's 3.6 with the Pittsburgh Steelers. That kind of gap doesn't close on matchup alone.
Tucker Kraft carries a 9.0-point PPG advantage from the 2025 season. That baseline matters, but it is one input among several. Matchup difficulty, scoring trends, and injury reports move the needle week to week, which is why the best answer changes depending on when you are asking.
Both see steady target volume for the tight end position. Darnell Washington had 31 catches for 364 yards; Tucker Kraft posted 32 for 489. At a position where most starters barely clear 7 PPG, this class of tight end is where the fantasy advantage lives week to week.
Darnell Washington has his bye in Week 9, and Tucker Kraft rests in Week 10. Managers rostering both need waiver wire depth at tight end for those two weeks, and that is exactly the kind of planning DraftCall's matchup engine surfaces automatically so you are not scrambling on a Sunday morning.
