Bench this Chicago Bears skill player in the fantasy football playoffs

Cole Kmet is having the best year of his career. He is the second-best receiving option behind D.J. Moore, and he has proven to be a reliable player in that role. Kmet is averaging 42.2 yards per game, which is up from 30.9 for his career. It also beats his career-high of 36 yards per game. 

The Chicago Bears need Cole Kmet at his best against the Cleveland Browns

He is up to 1.54 yards per route run, which is better than his career average of 1.26 and his career high of 1.27. Kmet currently ranks sixth amongst all tight ends in expected points added when he is targeted in the passing game. However, Sunday will be the biggest test of his season, and we will see just how good he is. 

The Cleveland Browns come into the game the best in the NFL at surrendering production to tight ends. They have allowed 38 catches all season, with the next closest being 46. They also allowed 357 yards, with the next closest being 456. It is a gap between them and the next best defense against tight ends. 

The Browns are not untested, either. They have faced George Kittle and Mark Andrews twice. Kittle was held to one yard, but to be fair, Andrews recorded seven catches for 124 yards and two touchdowns in his two games against them. 

Still, aside from Andrews, the Browns are allowing 2.8 catches and 21.2 yards per game against the other tight ends. That is elite stuff. 

The Browns' defense features Grant Delpit and Jeremiah Owusu-Koromoah in the middle of their unit. They are both excellent at coverage, especially in this area. Delpit will be out this week, but they may be getting safety Juan Thornhill back. Cole Kmet has a chance to prove that he can take that step into being an elite tight end. If he has success against this defense, it will be very telling about how good he can be. The expectation for now is that he gets held in check.