Start Jake Tonges over Hunter Long — Week 1 Start/Sit Verdict

Start Tonges — the matchup and game script edges are too wide to ignore.

Jake Tonges draws the softer matchup (LAR ranks 17 of 32 against TEs; LAC ranks 5) and plays in the better game script (22.8 implied team points to 17.0). No signal favors Long this week. The gap is wide.

Hunter Long

TEARIvs LAC

0.30.40.5 Projected Points

Sit

Jake Tonges

TE26SFvs LAR

1.21.62.1 Projected Points

Sit· high

Why Hunter Long

Sit

Sit — projects TE92 this week: 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, 17-game sample).
Vegas implies 17.0 team points as 11.5-point underdogs.
Listed TE on the latest depth chart with a 47% snap share in 2025.

Latest on Long

Cardinals Add Tight End With Trade For Hunter Long

Veteran played with Mike LaFleur for two seasons in L.A.

azcardinals.com · Aug 30, 2026

Reported by the sources listed — not independently verified.

Why Jake Tonges

Sit· high

TE2 with red-zone productivity. Reliable inline blocker who converted heavy snaps into scoring targets.

TE26 with a 2.1-point projection — a 52% snap share and 14% target share haven't turned into usable TE production against a middling LAR matchup.

LAR ranks 17 of 32 against TEs (a middle-of-the-road matchup, 17-game sample).
Vegas implies 22.8 team points as 3.0-point underdogs.
Listed TE on the latest depth chart with a 52% snap share in 2025.

The call

The projection is the story: 2.1 PPR points and a TE26 consensus rank put him well below any startable tight end in a 12-team league.
He's on the field for just 52% of snaps with a 14% target share — a rotational role that produces touchdown-or-bust weeks, not a floor you can trust.
The LAR matchup grades middle of the pack (17 of 32) and the 0-game sample carries zero confidence, so there's no matchup edge to bet on here.
At a 22.8 implied total with a 3.0 spread, this isn't a shootout script that would force volume his way.

Head-to-head stats

Metric	Hunter Long	Jake Tonges
Projected points	0.30.40.5	1.21.62.1
Consensus rank	—	TE26
Opponent vs position	LAC · 5 of 3217-game sample	LAR · 17 of 3217-game sample
Receptions	3 of 32	22 of 32
Receiving Yards	4 of 32	12 of 32
Receiving TDs	9 of 32	9 of 32
Targets	2 of 32	22 of 32
Anytime TD	9 of 32	20 of 32
Target share	8%(2025)	14%(2025)
Reception share	9%(2025)	15%(2025)
Implied total · spread	17.0+11.5	22.8+3.0
Depth chart	TE3	TE2
Snap share	47%(2025)	52%(2025)