Colston Loveland or Trey McBride: Who Should You Start?
2026 Week 1 · deterministic head-to-head · Verdicts based on PPR scoring.
Start McBride — the projection and snap share edges are too wide to ignore.
Trey McBride projects 14.4 to Loveland's 12.0 and plays a 91% snap share to Loveland's 65%. Loveland's edge is the game script, 23.5 implied points to 17.0. The gap is narrow.
In standard and half-PPR scoring this is a coin flip.
Colston Loveland
7.39.712.0 Projected Points
Trey McBride
7.911.114.4 Projected Points
Why Colston Loveland
StartTE1 and pass-catching mismatch. Seam-stretching move tight end with flex alignment and rising target volume.
Start — every-week TE start at consensus TE3: 16% target share in 2025, 12.0 PPR projected vs CAR.
- CAR ranks 12 of 32 against TEs (a middle-of-the-road matchup, 0-game sample).
- Vegas implies 23.5 team points as 2.5-point favorites.
- Listed TE on the latest depth chart with a 65% snap share in 2025.
Latest on Loveland
In advance of the biggest draft weekend, Liz Loza reveals her strongest thoughts to help you have a successful draft.
ESPN · Sep 3, 2026
Reported by the sources listed — not independently verified.
Why Trey McBride
StartTE1 and offensive focal point. Elite target-volume receiving tight end with YAC power and All-Pro caliber production.
Start — every-week TE start at consensus TE1: LAC is the 5th-toughest matchup vs TEs, 17.0 implied team total caps the ceiling.
- LAC ranks 5 of 32 against TEs (one of the tougher matchups, 0-game sample).
- Vegas implies 17.0 team points as 11.5-point underdogs.
- Listed TE on the latest depth chart with a 91% snap share in 2025.
Head-to-head stats
| Metric | Colston Loveland | Trey McBride |
|---|---|---|
| Projected points | 7.39.712.0 | 7.911.114.4 |
| Consensus rank | TE3 | TE1 |
| Opponent vs position | CAR · 12 of 320-game sample | LAC · 5 of 320-game sample |
| Receptions | 11 of 32 | 3 of 32 |
| Receiving Yards | 24 of 32 | 4 of 32 |
| Receiving TDs | 9 of 32 | 9 of 32 |
| Targets | 9 of 32 | 2 of 32 |
| Anytime TD | 9 of 32 | 9 of 32 |
| Target share | 16%(2025) | 27%(2025) |
| Reception share | 19%(2025) | 30%(2025) |
| Implied total · spread | 23.5-2.5 | 17.0+11.5 |
| Depth chart | TE1 | TE1 |
| Snap share | 65%(2025) | 91%(2025) |
Signal breakdown
- 12.0 vs 14.4 projected PPR pointsTrey McBride +
- Rank 3 vs 1Trey McBride +
- Opponent DvP rank 12 vs 5 (32 = softest)even
- Implied 23.5 vs 17.0 team pointsColston Loveland +
- No injury designationseven
- 65% vs 91% snap shareTrey McBride +
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