Isaiah Likely or Jaylen Waddle: Who Should You Start?
Preliminary board2026 Week 2 · deterministic head-to-head · Verdicts based on PPR scoring.
Verdicts sharpen as practice reports land.
Start Waddle — the projection and snap share edges are too wide to ignore.
Jaylen Waddle projects 12.8 to Likely's 11.0 and plays a 75% snap share to Likely's 49%. Likely's edge is the consensus rank, TE14 to WR21. The gap is narrow.
Isaiah Likely
6.58.811.0 Projected Points
Jaylen Waddle
8.310.512.8 Projected Points
Isaiah Likely’s market
Jaylen Waddle’s market
Why Isaiah Likely
Start· mediumStarting TE and pass-catching mismatch. Athletic seam-stretcher with red-zone flex ability.
28% target share and a takeover of the slot role (8/8, two TDs in Week 1) outweigh a tough Rams matchup — TE14 at 11.0 projected is a clear starter.
- LAR ranks 7 of 32 against TEs (one of the tougher matchups, 1-game sample).
- Vegas implies 20.0 team points as 8.5-point underdogs.
- Listed TE on the latest depth chart with a 49% snap share.
The call
- Week 1 usage is the story: 8 targets on a 28% target share, all caught for two scores, plus 17 slot snaps inherited from Wan'Dale Robinson — that's a featured role, not a rotational one.
- Rams rank 7 of 32 in DvP (tough end of the scale), but it's a 1-game sample with 0.00 confidence, so it shouldn't override a locked-in target share.
- An 8.5-point spread and 20.0 implied total point to chase mode, which funnels volume to the underneath and slot targets Likely is now absorbing.
- Main risk is the 49% snap share — he's producing on limited snaps, so a game that stays close could cap the ceiling, but the floor at TE14 is still better than replacement.
Latest on Likely
Likely led the Giants' Week 1 pass-catchers with an 82.8 PFF grade, catching all eight targets for two touchdowns and taking over much of the slot receiver role (17 slot snaps) previously held by Wan'Dale Robinson.
Yahoo Sports (PFF) · Sep 14, 2026Reported by the sources listed — not independently verified.
Why Jaylen Waddle
Start· mediumStarting WR2 with elite separation speed. Twitchy route runner and vertical threat working opposite the X.
WR21 consensus with a 12.8-point projection and a 78% snap share — every-week starter territory in 12-team PPR despite a mid-tier JAX matchup.
- JAX ranks 10 of 32 against WRs (one of the tougher matchups, 1-game sample).
- Vegas implies 23.0 team points as 2.5-point favorites.
- Listed WR on the latest depth chart with a 75% snap share.
The call
- Consensus WR21 at 12.8 projected PPR points is comfortably above replacement level at the position in a 12-team league.
- Role is locked in: 78% snap share over 16 games in 2025 means he's on the field for essentially the full route tree, and he carries no injury designation.
- The Jacksonville matchup grades 10 of 32 (tougher half) but that composite comes off a single game with 0.00 confidence — not enough signal to bench a starting-caliber WR.
- Only real flag is the 11% target share, but that's a one-game 2026 sample; if it holds for another week or two, his weekly ceiling deserves a re-look.
Latest on Waddle
Jeff Legwold explains how Jaylen Waddle's presence could create more opportunities for the Broncos' other receivers.
Reported by the sources listed — not independently verified.
Head-to-head stats
| Metric | Isaiah Likely | Jaylen Waddle |
|---|---|---|
| Projected points | 6.58.811.0 | 8.310.512.8 |
| Consensus rank | TE14 | WR21 |
| Opponent vs position | LAR · 7 of 321-game sample | JAX · 10 of 321-game sample |
| Receptions | 9 of 32 | 4 of 32 |
| Receiving Yards | 9 of 32 | 16 of 32 |
| Receiving TDs | 1 of 32 | 13 of 32 |
| Targets | 15 of 32 | 4 of 32 |
| Anytime TD | 1 of 32 | 13 of 32 |
| Target share | 28% | 11% |
| Reception share | 35% | 6% |
| Implied total · spread | 20.0+8.5 | 23.0-2.5 |
| Depth chart | TE1 | WR1 |
| Snap share | 49% | 75% |
| Start/Sit record | 1–0 | — |
Recent form
Isaiah Likely — last 1 week
| Week 1 | vs DAL | 19.823.827.8 |
Jaylen Waddle — last 1 week
| Week 1 | vs KC | 0.20.71.2 |
Signal breakdown
- 11.0 vs 12.8 projected PPR pointsJaylen Waddle +
- Rank 14 vs 21Isaiah Likely +
- Opponent DvP rank 7 vs 10 (32 = softest)even
- Implied 20.0 vs 23.0 team pointsJaylen Waddle +
- No injury designationseven
- 49% vs 75% snap shareJaylen Waddle +
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