TE · WAS · GWTTKB

John Bates — fantasy football 2026

Every game, every stat category, and what the board says. 2.73 points per game in 2025, usage worth 2.9.

28 years old · 5 seasons of experience · 2021 draft class

Updated 2026-08-16 · free, no account, no paywall
Every figure below comes from our database. Where a stat is not held, the row is absent rather than zero.

The offense he plays in, 2026

Washington Commanders returns 4 of 6 continuity slots, replacing te1, oc. Jayden Daniels at quarterback, Dan Quinn as head coach, David Blough calling it. The offense projects to 30.1 pass attempts a game at medium confidence and 27.7 rushes.

In: Antonio Williams (wr2), Brandon Aiyuk (wr3), Dyami Brown (wr5), Rachaad White (rb2), Kaytron Allen (rb4), Chig Okonkwo (te1). Out: Deebo Samuel (wr2), Austin Ekeler (rb2), Chris Rodriguez Jr (rb3), Zach Ertz (te1).

The projected target split across the offense:

Brandon Aiyuk21.8%
Terry McLaurin18.6%
Chig Okonkwo10.2%
Antonio Williams9%
Jaylin Lane7.7%
Rachaad White6.2%

Our written view on this offense in 2026

What the offense looks like: Terry McLaurin has been struggling with injuries & is aging. The Commanders have young WR talent that can step up, but they are going to need it quickly. Chig Okonkwo could provide immediate help to Jayden Daniels. But Jayden has to play at a high level. I believe Jayden can be a top 5 QB in the NFL & he has not historically struggled with injuries throughout his career. There is a risk in this offense if Jayden gets hurt again, but when healthy, this is an offense that the top RB will be highly relevant, should have a productive TE, and can support fantasy relevance out of multiple WR.

Key additions: Signed RB Rachaad White from Tampa in free agency (Jayden Daniels college teammate). Signed WR Ryami Brown in free agency from Jacksonville. Signed TE Chig Okonkwo from Tennessee in free agency to 3 year deal (starter). Drafted RB Kaytron Allen in the 6th roud. Expected to sign WR Brandon Aiyuk in free agency.

Key departures: OC Kluff Kingsbury is gone afer disaster 2025 season (promoted David Blough to OC). Lost WR Deebo Samuel in free agency. Lost TE Zach Ertz due to ACL injury because Marcus Mariota got his knee exploded on a hospital ball across the middle of the field.

Notes: Williams round 3 WR could connect early with Daniels. Terry McLaurin is aging, but if he can stay healthy, he will produce over next few years. Signed TE Chig Okonkwo who could 100% produce well with Jayden Daniels but hadn't provded it with Titans yet. Jacory Croskey-Merritt is set to be 1A RB while they sign Bucs RB Rachaad White in free agency. Could function as 1B and recieving back. Very curious to see how this dynamic turns out. Brandon Aiyuk WILL SIGN with Commanders or be traded to them. Unsure if he will be good following knee surgery, but he will be in Washington next Season. Daniels top 5 SF dynasty QB. Buy him. Rookie WR Williams, WR Dyami Brown, & Treylon Burks all have a chance to operate as WR2 or 3. Only 1 can win the full time job though.

How the volume number was reached: Same QB Jayden Daniels returning — anchor to 2025 actuals (27.6 att/g); Regressed 42% toward league mean 33.5, floored at 30 → 30.1 att/g; New OC David Blough — pass rate and tempo may shift.

Offensive environment: WAS rates 23 against a league average of 23, exactly at it on opponent-adjusted least squares (multi-capture merge).

2026 schedule

Opponent-adjusted pass defense faced, against 2025 ratings. Positive is an easier slate.

Full season-0.2 · neutral
Weeks 1–6+3.6 · easier
Weeks 12–17-3 · harder
Fantasy playoffs (15–17)-7.5 · harder

Read this narrowly. Our own testing found that season-long strength of schedule does not survive as a draft input — defensive quality is among the least stable team properties year to year, and a preseason slate is built on last year's identities. The playoff-weeks column is the only one we would let break a tie, and even then it is a tiebreaker rather than a reason. The finding.

What happened when he missed time

From the absence record rather than a depth chart — who actually gained when he was out.

SeasonGames missedMain beneficiaryTheir PPR gain
20252Colson Yankoff+-0.5

Dynasty context not redraft

Everything in this section is about his dynasty trade value — what he is worth as a long-term asset in the trade market. It is not a forecast of his 2026 fantasy scoring. A player can be a fine redraft pick while his dynasty value falls, and the reverse. The redraft read is above; this is a different question with a different answer.

Where he sits in the dynasty value cycle

His dynasty value has moved 0% over the last twelve months. The market cycle classifies him as stable.

For context on how long this lasts at the position: the average career at his position produces 1.3 elite seasons and 2.3 startable seasons.

The five most similar seasons, and what their dynasty value did next

Matched on production profile — production-driven (pedigree ignored). The last column is how that player’s dynasty value moved the following year — a market outcome, not a scoring one.

PlayerSeasonTheir PPGSimilarityNext year
Foster Moreau20233.679%+61.9%
Ian Thomas20223.177%+12.7%
Adam Trautman20243.476%+2.9%
Harrison Bryant20242.975%+48.9%
Brock Wright20243.274%+40.9%

Of the 5 with a following season on record, 5 gained value, 0 lost it and 0 held roughly flat.

Four years of dynasty value

020222023202420252026
Monthly superflex value, 2021-04 to 2026-07. From 0 to 275, peaking at 551.

The player

Draft capital and athletic profile

Drafted2021, round 4, pick 124 by WAS
CollegeBoise St.
Age at draft23
Height6′5″
Weight250 lb
40-yard dash4.84s
Vertical31.5″
Broad jump120″
3-cone6.85s
Shuttle4.35s

Availability and volatility

Career PPR per game3
Week-to-week variation1
Boom rate4.5%
Bust rate40.9%
Games missed per season0.4
Injury historyGroin

Injury type matters more than games missed. Measured across our injury database, knee and foot returns stay below a player’s pre-injury baseline for all three of the first games back, while hamstring returns over-recover by the third.

The record, season by season

2025 · WAS · 10 games

His best game was Week 18 against PHI — 9.3 PPR on 2 targets and a 10.5% target share, in a game that finished 24-17. His worst was Week 16 against PHI at 0, on 1 targets, final score 18-29. Across 10 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 9 times. In the 3 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 5; in the 7 decided by more, 1.7. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 2.9 points per game. He scored 2.73, 6.2% below it. The engine classified the season as neutral.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
5LAC27-101.911904.3%51%
7DAL22-441.512506.5%43%
8KC7-283.2112203.3%55%
9SEA14-3842420019%49%
10DET22-441.612609.1%70%
13DEN26-272.922904.4%51%
14MIN0-31000000%62%
15NYG29-212.9111906.3%69%
16PHI18-29001005%50%
18PHI24-179.32213110.5%59%

Production

Receptions11
Targets16
Receiving yards103
Touchdowns1
Points per game2.73
Yards per target6.44
Catch rate68.75%

Role

Snap share55.9%
Target share6.84%
Air-yards share2.93%
WOPR0.125
RACR1.851

Efficiency

Average depth of target3
Yards after catch per reception6.2
Yards before catch per reception3.2
Total YAC68
Broken tackles0
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted107
Receiving EPA per game0.78

Scoring position

Red-zone targets2
Red-zone target share4.3%
End-zone target share4.3%
Expected receiving TDs1.01
Actual receiving TDs1
Receiving TD luck-0.01

Who else ate

The offense threw it 469 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Deebo Samuel22.92%
Zach Ertz16.67%
Terry McLaurin13.89%
Jaylin Lane7.41%
Jeremy McNichols7.18%
Chris Moore5.32%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 3 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Marcus Mariota572.1285.62%
Jayden Daniels471.854.867.45%
Josh Johnson129.36.510.5%

Blowouts against close games

6 of his 10 games were blowouts, 44.7% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 2.03 in those and 5.03 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2024 · WAS · 13 games

His best game was Week 11 against PHI — 3.7 PPR on 3 targets and a 9.4% target share, in a game that finished 18-26. His worst was Week 18 against DAL at 0, on 1 targets, final score 23-19. Across 13 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 13 times. In the 10 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 1.3; in the 3 decided by more, 0.6. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 2.5 points per game. He scored 1.11, 35.7% below it. The engine classified the season as very_unlucky. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 0 against 1.11 expected, a gap of -1.1.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1TB20-37001004.2%47%
2NYG21-181.511503.4%35%
4ARI42-141.911903.3%56%
6BAL23-30000000%36%
7CAR40-7000000%42%
8CHI18-153122005.9%34%
10PIT27-28000000%36%
11PHI18-263.7231709.4%30%
12DAL26-340.3111302.9%41%
15NO20-191.611603.2%54%
16PHI36-33001002.8%35%
17ATL30-242.4111402.9%52%
18DAL23-19001003.3%26%

Production

Receptions8
Targets13
Receiving yards84
Touchdowns0
Points per game1.11
Yards per target6.46
Catch rate61.54%

Role

Snap share40.31%
Target share3.18%
Air-yards share1.75%
WOPR0.06
RACR1.615

Efficiency

Average depth of target4.8
Yards after catch per reception6.1
Yards before catch per reception4.4
Total YAC49
Broken tackles1
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted80.3
Receiving EPA per game-0.05

Scoring position

Red-zone targets3
Red-zone target share3.3%
End-zone target share0%
Expected receiving TDs1.11
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-1.11

Who else ate

The offense threw it 525 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Terry McLaurin23.26%
Zach Ertz18.09%
Olamide Zaccheaus12.72%
Noah Brown11.13%
Austin Ekeler8.15%
Dyami Brown7.95%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Jayden Daniels11121.3173.45%
Marcus Mariota21001.65%

Blowouts against close games

3 of his 13 games were blowouts, 13.2% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 0.63 in those and 1.25 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2023 · WAS · 15 games

His best game was Week 2 against DEN — 7.6 PPR on 5 targets and a 14.7% target share, in a game that finished 35-33. His worst was Week 18 against DAL at 0, on 1 targets, final score 10-38. Across 15 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 15 times. In the 9 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 2.4; in the 6 decided by more, 2. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 3.5 points per game. He scored 2.27, 29.5% below it. The engine classified the season as very_unlucky. On receiving touchdowns specifically he finished 0 against 1.4 expected, a gap of -1.4.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1ARI20-16000000%37%
2DEN35-337.63546014.7%52%
3BUF3-373.2221206.9%57%
4PHI31-341.611602.6%35%
5CHI20-403.9221904.2%20%
7NYG7-14001002.8%59%
8PHI31-382.7111702%47%
9NE20-170.512-504.5%47%
10SEA26-295.1332107.1%41%
11NYG19-313.5221504.8%58%
13MIA15-45001004.5%45%
15LA20-28001002.9%40%
16NYJ28-304.43514015.6%43%
17SF10-271.611603.8%54%
18DAL10-38001003.6%61%

Production

Receptions19
Targets28
Receiving yards151
Touchdowns0
Points per game2.27
Yards per target5.39
Catch rate67.86%

Role

Snap share46.4%
Target share5.33%
Air-yards share4.65%
WOPR0.113
RACR0.965

Efficiency

Average depth of target6.3
Yards after catch per reception3.4
Yards before catch per reception4.5
Total YAC65
Broken tackles1
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted81.1
Receiving EPA per game-0.37

Scoring position

Red-zone targets3
Red-zone target share4.3%
End-zone target share3%
Expected receiving TDs1.4
Actual receiving TDs0
Receiving TD luck-1.4

Who else ate

The offense threw it 636 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Terry McLaurin22%
Curtis Samuel15.17%
Jahan Dotson13.83%
Logan Thomas13%
Antonio Gibson9.83%
Brian Robinson7.17%

Blowouts against close games

5 of his 15 games were blowouts, 25.5% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 1.74 in those and 2.43 in close games — his scoring did not depend on garbage time.

2022 · WAS · 9 games

His best game was Week 12 against ATL — 11.4 PPR on 4 targets and a 18.2% target share, in a game that finished 19-13. His worst was Week 11 against HOU at 0, on 1 targets, final score 23-10. Across 9 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 8 times. In the 5 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 4.3; in the 4 decided by more, 2.4. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 4.3 points per game. He scored 3.42, 20% below it. The engine classified the season as unlucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
1JAX28-22001002.4%55%
2DET27-363.5231506.8%32%
3PHI8-24001002.4%26%
4DAL10-255.94619015%41%
5TEN17-216.9333908.1%59%
8IND17-161.611603.3%33%
9MIN17-201.512507.7%39%
11HOU23-10001004.3%51%
12ATL19-1311.43424118.2%58%

Production

Receptions14
Targets22
Receiving yards108
Touchdowns1
Points per game3.42
Yards per target4.91
Catch rate63.64%

Role

Snap share43.78%
Target share7.58%
Air-yards share5.54%
WOPR0.152
RACR1.362

Efficiency

Average depth of target5.2
Yards after catch per reception3.9
Yards before catch per reception3.9
Total YAC54
Broken tackles1
Drop rate0.1%
Passer rating when targeted90.7
Receiving EPA per game-0.32

Scoring position

Red-zone targets2
Red-zone target share3.2%
End-zone target share9.1%
Expected receiving TDs0.26
Actual receiving TDs1
Receiving TD luck0.74

Who else ate

The offense threw it 554 times. 2 team-mates cleared the competing-target threshold.

Terry McLaurin22.6%
Curtis Samuel17.33%
Logan Thomas11.49%
Jahan Dotson11.49%
Antonio Gibson10.92%
J.D. McKissic7.53%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Carson Wentz5143.265.216.94%
Taylor Heinicke483.634.388.38%

2021 · WAS · 12 games

His best game was Week 16 against DAL — 12.5 PPR on 3 targets and a 10% target share, in a game that finished 14-56. His worst was Week 3 against BUF at 0, on 0 targets, final score 21-43. Across 12 games he cleared 20 points 0 times and came in under 8 points 11 times. In the 6 games decided by 8 points or fewer he averaged 4.3; in the 6 decided by more, 4.2. He scored more when the game was live.

Earned against scored

His usage that season was worth 4 points per game. He scored 4.24, 16.7% above it. The engine classified the season as lucky.

WkOppScorePPRRecTgtYdsTDTgt%Snap%
3BUF21-43000000%2%
6KC13-311.711702.6%22%
8DEN10-171.411402.7%21%
10TB29-195.5332509.4%64%
11CAR27-215.33323015%99%
12SEA17-152.5111502.9%57%
13LV17-157.23442013.3%57%
14DAL20-272.9121906.1%71%
15PHI17-273.9112903.3%62%
16DAL14-5612.52345110%75%
17PHI16-206.53435011.8%92%
18NYG22-71.5125011.8%100%

Production

Receptions20
Targets25
Receiving yards249
Touchdowns1
Points per game4.24
Yards per target9.96
Catch rate80%

Role

Snap share60.17%
Target share7.41%
Air-yards share6.32%
WOPR0.155
RACR1.687

Efficiency

Average depth of target6
Yards after catch per reception7
Yards before catch per reception5.5
Total YAC139
Broken tackles2
Drop rate0%
Passer rating when targeted104.8
Receiving EPA per game1.31

Scoring position

Red-zone targets3
Red-zone target share5.1%
End-zone target share7.1%
Expected receiving TDs0.43
Actual receiving TDs1
Receiving TD luck0.57

Who else ate

The offense threw it 550 times. 1 team-mate cleared the competing-target threshold.

Terry McLaurin24.39%
Adam Humphries11.63%
J.D. McKissic9.94%
Antonio Gibson9.76%
Ricky Seals-Jones9.19%
DeAndre Carter8.26%

By quarterback

He caught passes from 2 quarterbacks that season, and the splits are not close.

QBGamesTargetsPPGY/TTgt%
Taylor Heinicke11244.279.177.78%
Garrett Gilbert113.9293.3%

Blowouts against close games

3 of his 12 games were blowouts, 27.9% of his snaps coming in them. He averaged 4.73 in those and 4.3 in close games — a meaningful share of his scoring came with the game already decided.

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