Rams WR DeSean Jackson has had a "fantastic" camp, insider Cameron DaSilva writes. "Seemingly every day he’s making catches deep down the field for touchdowns, proving he still has that top-end speed and can threaten defenses," DaSilva adds. "Expect him to play a big role on offense this season, assuming he’s able to stay healthy." That last part is key. Jackson has enjoyed a healthy offseason so far. As long as that continues, he could be a sneaky fantasy option in what should be a strong Rams passing attack.
Ravens HC John Harbaugh confirmed on Wednesday that "it's going to be weeks" before WR Rashod Bateman can return from his groin injury. Harbaugh added that he's "still hopeful" the rookie will be ready for Week 1. Translation: Bateman is iffy for the start of the season. And considering the training camp and preseason reps he's going to miss, he probably won't be a guy that we can trust in fantasy lineups until October at the earliest.
Mark Kaboly of The Athletic writes that RB Anthony McFarland has “shown the most promise” among Pittsburgh backups. Kaboly notes McFarland’s scheme fit while calling his rushing ability “notably better than a year ago.” While the 2020 4th-round pick goes just 5’8, he's well built at 208 pounds. Kaboly also called Kalen Ballage a “pleasant surprise” but noted his similarities — at least stylistically — to Najee Harris. A Harris injury would almost certainly lead to a timeshare.
Jets WR Denzel Mims had a rough spring, working mostly with the 2nd and even 3rd-team offenses. But Pro Football Network's Tony Pauline hears that Mims has been much better lately, showing a better understanding of the new offense and producing on the field. He's "been the best receiver at camp in the past four days alongside Elijah Moore," Pauline writes, adding that Mims got reps with QB Zach Wilson and the 1st-team offense at a recent scrimmage. Pauline also reports that Mims dealt with food poisoning in June and lost 15 pounds -- which certainly explains some of his earlier struggles. This Jets WR corps remains fluid, so we'll monitor Mims and the rest of them in preseason action.
ESPN's Chris Mortensen reports that Colts QB Carson Wentz (foot) is "trending" toward being ready for the start of the season. That jibes with recent positive reports on Wentz's recovery from August 2 surgery. We're still 32 days away from the Colts' season opener, so we'll continue to monitor Wentz's progress. Mortensen adds that G Quenton Nelson (foot) is also on track to be ready for Week 1. Excellent news for the entire Colts offense.
Per Bills HC Sean McDermott, RB Zack Moss won’t practice on Wednesday due to a hamstring injury suffered in Tuesday’s practice. The team will approach Moss’ injury “one day at a time.” The missed time will give more first-time reps to Devin Singletary and Matt Breida. We’ll let you know when Moss returns to the practice field.
The Lions signed K Zane Gonzalez. He'll duke it out for the starting job with K Randy Bullock over the next few weeks. Avoid the situation in fantasy drafts.
The Broncos listed QBs Drew Lock and Teddy Bridgewater as co-starters on the first unofficial depth chart. Per HC Vic Fangio, Lock will start Week 1 of the preseason vs. Minnesota; Bridgewater will start Week 2 against Seattle. Fangio said Lock is getting the first crack at starting because he’s the returning veteran — not because he’s outplayed Bridgewater. We ultimately expect both passers to make starts in 2021.
Ravens WR Rashod Bateman "at the very least will be considered week-to-week" with the groin injury suffered in Tuesday's practice, NFL Network's Mike Garafolo reports. "Evaluations are ongoing and it’s too early to know whether he’ll be sidelined to start the regular season," Garafolo adds. So the 1st-round rookie will, at minimum, miss a bunch of valuable training-camp reps and likely the entire preseason. And it sounds like there's a chance that he's not ready for Week 1. We'll keep an eye on Bateman's rehab, but you should only consider him a late-round flier in fantasy drafts now. WR Sammy Watkins might enter the season with a big role in this passing game.
Bears WR Darnell Mooney drew praise from HC Matt Nagy for his training camp performance. “Mooney is on fire with his route-running,” Nagy said via ESPN. “He’s running some routes right now that I really hadn’t seen him running. He’s putting his own spin and stamp on more routes.” Mooney’s already a speedster — he blazed a 4.38-forty in the 2020 pre-draft process. So improved route-running only adds to his 2021 breakout case. We love Mooney’s big-play potential, especially once Chicago makes the move to Justin Fields.
The Cowboys have activated WR Amari Cooper from the PUP list after he passed his physical Tuesday. That should clear the veteran WR to return to practice. We'll see about his participation level in the coming days.
The Athletic's Matt Schneidman notes that Packers WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling's hands look much improved in training camp so far. Drops have been a problem for MVS through 3 NFL seasons. "Valdes-Scantling’s hands have been noticeably better so far in camp," Schneidman writes. "Not just on blatantly catchable balls, some of which he has dropped in the past, but on passes he has no business catching, too. If he keeps this up, he’s the clear-cut No. 2 wideout behind Davante Adams. Valdes-Scantling isn’t just a deep-ball threat anymore, and that’s scary for defenses that have largely been able to game plan for a one-dimensional receiver in the past." MVS built some momentum last year with 8 catches, 148 yards and a score in Green Bay's 2 playoff games and has seemingly carried that into 2021. He's a nice target late in drafts -- especially best balls.
Ravens WR Rashod Bateman left Tuesday morning's practice with an apparent leg injury. According to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic: "Bateman pulled up while running a slant against [CB Marcus] Peters and then fell immediately to ground. Walked to building with pronounced limp." We'll definitely keep watch for more on this developing situation.
Update: Bateman is dealing with a "soft-tissue injury," according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. "He’ll have tests and the severity isn’t known," Rapoport adds. We'll pass along an update on the rookie when we get one.
Giants HC Joe Judge described RB Saquon Barkley's return to practice on Monday as "very encouraging." Judge added that Barkley's work is an "extension of his rehab" right now. The team continues to take it slow with its star RB coming off a multi-ligament knee injury. But it sure seems like Barkley is trending in the right direction.
Chiefs RB Darrel Williams (knee) returned to practice on Tuesday. He ended up missing just 1 practice with what was evidently just a minor knee issue. Williams remains the favorite to back up Clyde Edwards-Helaire in Kansas City.
The Dolphins have activated TE Mike Gesicki from the reserve/COVID-19 list. He ended up missing over a week of practice. The Fins are traveling north for a joint practice with the Bears on Wednesday, and Gesicki is expected to participate, per beat writer Armando Salguero. The 25-year-old remains a low-end TE1.
Eagles insider Eliot Shorr-Parks calls Quez Watkins the team's best WR since DeVonta Smith went down with his knee injury a little over a week ago. Philly would surely like former 1st-rounder Jalen Reagor to join Smith in the starting lineup -- but Reagor has reportedly been inconsistent in camp. We'll see if Watkins can carry his momentum into preseason action. For now, he's still more of a "watch list guy" than a target in fantasy drafts.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Patriots TE Hunter Henry is expected to miss "a couple of weeks" with his shoulder injury. Schefter adds, though, that it's "not serious." We'll see whether any more info comes out on the injury itself. But it's the Patriots, so don't hold your breath. Henry's absence can only help the opportunity for TE Jonnu Smith.
Cowboys WR Michael Gallup is spending more time on the inside of the formation so far in training camp, Pro Football Talk reports. “Everybody labels me as a deep-ball threat, but I know I can do a whole lot more,” Gallup said Monday. “So, me being able to come up on the inside and run some routes from there, short and intermediate game, can certainly show I’m more versatile than folks think.” The WR ran a career-low 6.3% of his routes from the slot last season, according to Pro Football Focus. At the same time, then-rookie CeeDee Lamb spent nearly all of his time (93.2%) inside. We've heard about Lamb spending more time on the edges heading into Year 2, so this shift for Gallup makes sense. We've always believed in Gallup the player. An increase in shorter-range work could help his fantasy-scoring consistency. It could also showcase some versatility as he heads toward unrestricted free agency in March. Gallup is going 6 to 6.5 rounds behind Lamb and Amari Cooper in ADP.
Lions WR Tyrell Williams missed some practice time in recent days with a dislocated pinky and "groin tightness," according to Benjamin Raven of MLive.com. Williams said he thought he had broken the finger when he sustained that injury last Tuesday, but he returned to practice the next day. As for the groin issue, HC Dan Campbell indicated the Lions were playing it safe. The veteran's return to Monday practice points to no real concern on this front. Of course, Williams' end-of-draft ADP leaves basically no risk for drafters.
Search
