Irv Smith (MIN) vs. Chicago
Smith as a plug-and-play Week 15 option hinges somewhat on Kyle Rudolph’s availability after he missed last week with a foot injury. Smith didn’t play a full complement of snaps against the Bucs, but he came down with four of four targets for 63 yards and a touchdown against Tampa.
Before Smith was sidelined with a groin injury for much of late November and early December, he was running more pass routes and seeing more targets than Rudolph. That probably means Rudolph being active this week against Chicago doesn’t sink Smith’s prospects.
Tight ends have seen 24.83 percent of the targets against the Bears this season, the second highest rate in the league behind only the Bengals (Eric Ebron is again a top play this week against Cincinnati). The Panthers and Bills are the only teams that have allowed more tight end receptions than the Bears in 2020, and only the Jets have given up more tight end touchdowns.
Even in a down week for tight ends against Chicago, Jordan Akins and Darren Fells in Week 14 combined for seven targets. Akins dropped an easy touchdown too. The week prior, Detroit tight ends -- led by T.J. Hockensen -- combined for eight catches on 13 targets against the Bears. In Week 13, Green Bay tight ends saw ten targets, catching eight for 88 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Rudolph and Tyler Conklin caught six balls for 74 yards in Week 10 against the Bears, with Smith sidelined. You get the idea: Chicago is being gouged by enemy tight ends.
The hope here is that Smith -- another week recovered from that nagging groin issue -- runs more than the 17 routes he ran in Week 14 against Tampa. That should put him in an ideal spot to exploit a matchup against a Bears Defensethat’s been torched by tight ends for much of the season’s second half.