The Colts have downgraded WR Michael Pittman (quad) to out for Sunday's game against the Jaguars. With Alec Pierce already out, Parris Campbell, Ashton Dulin and Mike Strachan suddenly look like the top 3 wideouts for Sunday's upside matchup with the Jaguars. The WR situation hurts QB Matt Ryan's fantasy upside but helps the target upside for Colts RBs and TEs. We still wouldn't have an Indy TE in play for most fantasy formats. But Nyheim Hines gets more interesting.
Colts WR Michael Pittman drew 13 targets in Sunday's tie with Houston, 6 more than his nearest teammate. Matt Ryan's 50 pass attempts helped enhance that number, but the 26% target share marked a nice start for Indy's clear lead wideout. He proved efficient, too, racking up a 9-121-1 receiving line. RB Jonathan Taylor and TE Kyle Granson tied for 2nd on the team with 7 targets apiece. RB Nyheim Hines and WR Ashton Dulin followed at 6 apiece. No one else drew more than 4. That made Week 1 disappointing for WRs Parris Campbell and Alec Pierce, who drew targets on just 7.7% and 6.3% of routes, respectively, according to Pro Football Focus. (For context: Pittman finished at 27.1%, Dulin at 46.2%.) Campbell and/or Pierce will need things to change before making sense for fantasy football lineups.
The Athletic's James Boyd expects Alec Pierce to emerge as the Colts' 2nd most targeted WR. Boyd believes Pierce's combination of size and speed will make him a more valuable weapon for QB Matt Ryan than WR Parris Campbell, especially in the red zone. We ultimately like targeting both these guys near the end of fantasy drafts.
Colts HC Frank Reich wants a more balanced offense this season after ranking 28th in pass rate last year. "You don’t see teams that have this ground-and-pound run game win championships,” Reich said. “You just don’t. I’m sure it’s happened with one or two teams, but our best formula is to be balanced." Reich also conceded that it will mean fewer touches for RB Jonathan Taylor. "I’m not saying he won’t lead the league in touches, because you never know how things are going to play out. But I almost don’t want him to," he said of Taylor. “The goal is not to lead the league in rushing. The goal is not to make him the MVP of the league. The goal is to win championships." Taylor easily led the league with 332 carries last year -- 25 more than anyone else. So he can afford to lose some and still be a fantasy stud. More passing, of course, would be good news for QB Matt Ryan, WR Michael Pittman and the rest of the Colts' pass catchers.
Colts QB Matt Ryan threw to WR Parris Campbell multiple times this offseason, and the duo is off to a strong start in training camp. "When I'm lined up in the slot running those crossers, that's Matt's bread and butter," Campbell said. "I think that's my bread and butter, too." Campbell, of course, has been limited to just 15 games by multiple injuries through 3 NFL seasons. But he's still just 25 and is running as Indianapolis' #2 WR at the start of camp. "This is his year for him to show out. We're ready for that," OC Marcus Brady said. "He's been looking great — he had a great offseason, he's had a great few days here. I thought he made some nice catches, run some great routes, you can feel his speed out on the field." Campbell is an intriguing late-round flier in fantasy drafts.
Colts QB Matt Ryan impressed coaches, teammates and the media with his play and leadership this offseason. “Matt was unbelievable,” HC Frank Reich said. “Really, A-Z, he did everything right. Just great leadership, great play. I mean, the whole way he took command … I knew he was good, but his accuracy is insane." OC Marcus Brady said Ryan is "damn near a coach on the field." And rookie WR Alec Pierce said, "He could basically run this offense and this team by himself." We'd expect the 14-year veteran to impress in the intangibles department. But, by all accounts, Ryan's arm strength and accuracy were excellent over the past few months. He's still not an exciting fantasy asset in a run-first offense and without rushing upside. But Ryan's arrival could be a boost for the Colts' skill-position players.
Colts WR Parris Campbell ran "exclusively" with the 1st-team offense and was "featured extensively" in last week's minicamp, The Athletic's Zak Keefer writes. Campbell has been limited to 15 games over the last 3 years by a litany of injuries. But with WR Zach Pascal gone and WR T.Y. Hilton still unsigned, there are 106 targets available in Indianapolis. It sounds like Campbell will have every opportunity to claim a big chunk of them. He's worth a look late in fantasy drafts.
Colts WR Parris Campbell has generated a bit of buzz in OTAs this week, with HC Frank Reich saying they still believe in Campbell as both a slot and outside WR. Reich had more to say about Campbell on Thursday, according to The Athletic: “I think we’re all pulling for Parris, but there’s no sentimental favorites here. You have to earn every rep you get on that field. We all love Parris and we all have a lot of belief in Parris and the upside, this is like I said, there’s no sentimental favorites. Every guy is going to get a fair shot to earn a spot to be on the field.” Perhaps the coaching staff isn't giving Campbell extra reps just because they like him. But it seems pretty clear that Reich is hoping we finally get to see Campbell's ceiling. For fantasy football purposes, Campbell is going late enough in best-ball drafts that there's only upside to selecting him. Beyond that, we'll see how the summer goes.
Speaking at OTAs, Colts WR Parris Campbell said he’s fully participating in team drills. It’s noteworthy, as Campbell missed most of last season with a foot injury. In fact, through 3 seasons, Campbell’s appeared in only 15 games. If healthy, he could supply some spot-start value for an offense that’s unproven at WR beyond Michael Pittman.
Colts beat writer Zak Keefer believes rookie WR Alec Pierce’s athleticism makes him a “candidate for the Colts #2 WR job.” The competition isn’t exactly fierce, as the Colts have Parris Campbell, Dezmon Patmon, Ashton Dulin, Keke Coutee and Mike Strachan as depth. “He’s got really good size, has really good vertical speed,” GM Chris Ballard said. “He’s got work to do, like any rookie receiver that comes into the league, but we think he’s got a chance to really ascend.” This summer, the 22-year-old could certainly enter the mix as a late-round flier in deep formats. Indy lost 69 targets with the loss of Zach Pascal — and potentially 37 more from free agent T.Y. Hilton, if he moves on.
The Colts on Saturday activated WR Parris Campbell from IR. He had been there since Oct. 19 after suffering a foot injury in the Week 6 win over Houston. HC Frank Reich reportedly said the coaching staff will decide whether to play Campbell in the regular-season finale against Jacksonville. We wouldn't bet on a big role if Campbell does get into that game. We'll see about his role for the playoffs (assuming the Colts get there).
Colts WR Parris Campbell had surgery on his injured foot, he announced via Twitter. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport says it "potentially" ends Campbell's season. We'll see if he's able to make it back, but he's not worth stashing in any redraft leagues.
Colts HC Frank Reich told reporters Monday that WR Parris Campbell's foot injury is "significant" and that "he is going to miss some time," according to Stephen Holder of The Athletic. The coach reportedly didn't give any more specifics, but that's enough to knock Campbell out of fantasy consideration in the few leagues where he still mattered. Campbell has drawn just 17 targets over 5 games so far this season.
Colts WR Parris Campbell suffered a foot injury in the 1st half of Sunday's game vs. the Texans and is questionable to return. He caught a 51-yard TD before exiting. We'll update Campbell's status when we know more.
Colts WR Parris Campbell (abdomen) practiced all week and isn’t listed on the final injury report. He’ll return as Indy’s #3 WR for Sunday’s game vs. the Titans but isn’t a viable fantasy play.
Colts WR Michael Pittman (ankle) is active for today’s game against the Rams. He’s a shaky fantasy play vs. a defense that allowed the fewest fantasy points to WRs last year and limited the Bears WRs in this year’s opener. WR Parris Campbell (abdomen) is inactive.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that the Colts are "confident" WRs Michael PIttman (ankle) and Parris Campbell (abdomen) will play today against the Rams. Each will be tested in pre-game warm-ups to confirm his readiness, though. Neither ranks high among our Week 2 fantasy plays at the position.
Colts WRs Michael Pittman (ankle) and Parris Campbell (abdomen) are questionable for this weekend's game vs. the Rams. Both guys were added to the injury report and limited in Friday's practice. Campbell wasn't a fantasy option anyway after running a route on just 65% of pass plays in the opener. Pittman is also better off on fantasy benches this week at less than 100% and in a tough matchup.
Colts WR Parris Campbell (Achilles) graduated to a full practice on Thursday. It's confirmation that he'll play in Sunday's opener vs. the Seahawks. The Achilles issue is worth monitoring, though.
Colts WR Parris Campbell was limited in Wednesday's practice with what NFL Network's Ian Rapoport calls a "lingering" Achilles issue. It's reportedly not something that will keep Campbell out of Sunday's opener vs. the Seahawks, but it's certainly a situation to keep tabs on.
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