Pat Freiermuth or Woody Marks: Who Should You Start?
Preliminary board2026 Week 3 · deterministic head-to-head · Verdicts based on PPR scoring.
Verdicts sharpen as practice reports land.
Freiermuth's steadier role wins a narrow TE/RB choice
Start Pat Freiermuth: his established TE1 receiving role and stronger snap presence give him the cleaner path to usable volume. Woody Marks has the slightly better scoring environment and a friendlier RB matchup, but his near-even committee split makes that advantage fragile (CBS Sports 2026-09-21). The projections are nearly level, so this is a narrow call; Freiermuth's risk is that a modest target share leaves him dependent on a red-zone or chain-moving play.
What flips it: A confirmed move ahead of Montgomery in Houston's backfield.
Sources: CBS Sports · Sep 21, 2026 · houstontexans.com · Sep 10, 2026
AI editor
Pat Freiermuth
4.66.58.3 Projected Points
Woody Marks
6.77.68.6 Projected Points
Pat Freiermuth’s market
Woody Marks’s market
Why Pat Freiermuth
StartTE1 in pass-catching role. Reliable chain-mover with red-zone size and dependable hands.
Start — TE24 consensus, projects TE20 this week: 14% target share, 8.3 PPR projected vs CIN.
- His TE1 pass-catching role is more dependable than Marks' committee workload.
- Freiermuth's reliable hands and red-zone size give his limited volume better touchdown access.
Latest on Freiermuth
Reported by the sources listed — not independently verified.
Why Woody Marks
SitRB2 behind David Montgomery. Between-the-tackles committee back who carried 196 times for 703 yards as a rookie with light pass-game usage.
Sit — bench-tier RB at consensus RB44: IND is the 5th-softest matchup vs RBs, 8% target share.
- Marks benefits from a favorable Colts matchup and a slightly stronger team scoring outlook.
- His backfield role could grow after Houston made him better positioned behind Montgomery (houstontexans.com 2026-09-10).
Latest on Marks
Woody Marks and David Montgomery split snaps almost evenly for a second straight week in Week 2, with Montgomery playing 42 snaps to Marks' 38 against the Bengals; Marks projects as an RB3/4 for Week 3 vs. the Colts.
CBS Sports · Sep 21, 2026Houston traded for a veteran back and John Harris explains how it'll make their second-year rusher even stronger.
Reported by the sources listed — not independently verified.
Head-to-head stats
| Metric | Pat Freiermuth | Woody Marks |
|---|---|---|
| Projected points | 4.66.58.3 | 6.77.68.6 |
| Consensus rank | TE24 | RB44 |
| Opponent vs position | CIN · 19 of 322-game sample | IND · 28 of 322-game sample |
| Receptions | 32 of 32 | 20 of 32 |
| Receiving Yards | 32 of 32 | 31 of 32 |
| Receiving TDs | 1 of 32 | — |
| Targets | 30 of 32 | — |
| Anytime TD | 1 of 32 | 25 of 32 |
| Rushing Yards | — | 31 of 32 |
| Rushing TDs | — | 29 of 32 |
| Rushing Attempts | — | 31 of 32 |
| Target share | 14% | 8% |
| Reception share | 19% | 11% |
| Implied total · spread | 22.5+1.5 | 23.5-1.5 |
| Depth chart | TE1 | RB2 |
| Snap share | 70% | 50% |
Recent form
Pat Freiermuth — last 2 weeks
| Week 2 | vs NE | 3.45.47.4 |
| Week 1 | vs ATL | 10.613.115.6 |
Woody Marks — last 2 weeks
| Week 2 | vs CIN | 3.56.08.5 |
| Week 1 | vs BUF | 4.04.55.0 |
Signal breakdown
- 8.3 vs 8.6 projected PPR pointsWoody Marks +
- Rank 24 vs 44Pat Freiermuth +
- Opponent DvP rank 19 vs 28 (32 = softest)even
- Implied 22.5 vs 23.5 team pointsWoody Marks +
- No injury designationseven
- 70% vs 50% snap sharePat Freiermuth +
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