Isaiah Likely vs Mason Taylor: Who Should You Start?
Isaiah Likely and Mason Taylor are both viable fantasy tight ends heading into 2026, but their 2025 production tells two different stories. Isaiah Likely averaged 3.4 PPG across 14 games with the New York Giants, while Mason Taylor posted 5.1 PPG in 13 appearances for the New York Jets.
A 1.7-PPG gap gives Mason Taylor the edge on paper, but paper does not account for Thursday night matchups, weather games, or a star defender returning from injury. The real question is not who was better in 2025, but who is the better start this specific week.
Mason Taylor is the volume tight end in this matchup with 44 receptions for 369 yards, while Isaiah Likely profiles as a more touchdown-dependent spike play (1 scores on 27 catches). In weeks where Isaiah Likely finds the end zone he out-scores Mason Taylor, but the floor gap is real.
Isaiah Likely has his bye in Week 11, and Mason Taylor rests in Week 12. 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.
