Start Hunter Henry over Terrance Ferguson — Week 1 Start/Sit Verdict

Start Henry — the availability and snap share edges are too wide to ignore.

Hunter Henry is the healthier side of this call (Ferguson carries a Q tag) and plays a 79% snap share to Ferguson's 44%. Ferguson's edge is the game script, 25.8 implied points to 20.5. The gap is comfortable.

Hunter Henry

TE20NEvs SEA

5.06.68.3 Projected Points

Toss-Up· medium

Terrance Ferguson

TE22LARvs SF

5.36.78.1 Projected Points

Sit

Why Hunter Henry

Toss-Up· medium

TE1 and volume pass-catcher. Dependable seam and red-zone target with in-line blocking chops.

18% target share keeps Henry involved, but a 20.5 implied total vs Seattle caps him at the TE18 line — a matchup-based dart, not a set-and-forget play.

SEA ranks 20 of 32 against TEs (a middle-of-the-road matchup, 0-game sample).
Vegas implies 20.5 team points as 3.5-point underdogs.
Listed TE on the latest depth chart with a 79% snap share in 2025.

The call

Role is not the issue: 79% snap share and an 18% target share make Henry a genuine every-down piece of this passing game, which is why he's usable at all in 12-team PPR.
The environment is the problem — a 20.5 implied team total and a 3.5-point spread point to a compressed, low-volume script, and the consensus 8.3 projection reflects that ceiling.
TE18 on the board means he's outside the standard 12-team starter tier; he's a touchdown-or-bust play whose floor depends on red-zone looks rather than yardage.
Tip it toward starting if your alternative is a sub-15% target share backup TE; sit him if you have any TE attached to a higher-scoring game environment.

Why Terrance Ferguson

Sit

Rotational TE in pass-catching role. Movement-Y receiver with developing target share.

Sit — TE22 by consensus and projection: SF is the 8th-softest matchup vs TEs, 25.8 implied team total.

Carries a Questionable tag — usually plays, but monitor the final report.
SF ranks 25 of 32 against TEs (one of the softer matchups, 0-game sample).
Vegas implies 25.8 team points as 3.0-point favorites.
Listed TE on the latest depth chart with a 44% snap share in 2025.

Latest on Ferguson

Terrance Ferguson wants to expand want he can do in Year 2: 'I just want to be involved in all aspects of the game'

Feeling more comfortable in the Rams' offense, second-year tight end Terrance Ferguson hoping to show more of what he's capable of in 2026.

therams.com · Sep 6, 2026

Injury Updates: Aaron Donald not practicing Monday "part of the plan all along," Myles Garrett "making really good progress," and updates on Terrance Ferguson, Grant Stuard, Keagen Trost and Justin Dedich

Rams head coach Sean McVay addressed why Aaron Donald wasn't practicing Monday, as well as injury updates on Myles Garrett, Terrance Ferguson, Grant Stuard, Keagen Trost and Justin Dedich.

therams.com · Aug 31, 2026

Reported by the sources listed — not independently verified.

Head-to-head stats

Metric	Hunter Henry	Terrance Ferguson
Projected points	5.06.68.3	5.36.78.1
Consensus rank	TE20	TE22
Opponent vs position	SEA · 20 of 320-game sample	SF · 25 of 320-game sample
Receptions	26 of 32	22 of 32
Receiving Yards	27 of 32	21 of 32
Receiving TDs	9 of 32	26 of 32
Targets	28 of 32	30 of 32
Anytime TD	9 of 32	26 of 32
Target share	18%(2025)	7%(2025)
Reception share	17%(2025)	4%(2025)
Implied total · spread	20.5+3.5	25.8-3.0
Depth chart	TE1	TE3
Snap share	79%(2025)	44%(2025)
Injury designation	—	Q
Start/Sit record	0–0+1 toss-up	—