Titans WR Treylon Burks (knee) returned to practice on Monday. He'd been sidelined since suffering what was reported as a sprained LCL on August 16. He now has a little less than two weeks to gear up for the season opener. Burks would be a risky fantasy play in that one, but he remains a high-upside fantasy stash.
The Texans are releasing LB Christian Kirksey, who played a full-time role and served as a captain for last year's team. In his place, LB Denzel Perryman has been working with Christian Harris as the top two LBs. Perryman has also worn the green dot on his helmet in preseason games, which means he's conveying play calls from the coordinator to the huddle. That points to a full-time -- or at least nearly -- role and big tackle upside for Perryman. We've moved Perryman up our IDP rankings (and removed Kirksey).
Seahawks WR Jaxon Smith-Njigba (wrist surgery) is expected to open the season on the active roster, per insider Ian Rapoport. JSN remains highly questionable to play in the opener. But he’s clearly expected back within the first few games. Head to the WR rankings, and you’ll see the rookie projected for 15 games.
The trade of K Dustin Hopkins to Cleveland leaves Cameron Dicker as the Chargers' K. He drilled 21 of 22 FG tries as a rookie last year (19 for the Chargers, two for the Eagles) and is a strong fantasy option on a high-scoring offense.
The Browns acquired K Dustin Hopkins from the Chargers and promptly released K Cade York. York missed eight FGs and two XPs last year and struggled this preseason, so the move doesn't come as a big surprise. Hopkins sports a career 84.8% FG conversion rate and is squarely on the fantasy radar kicking for what should be a strong Cleveland offense.
The Cardinals will keep QB Kyler Murray on the physically unable to perform list to open the regular season, according to multiple reports. That's no surprise, as Murray continues to work back from a November ACL tear. He'll miss at least the first four games. We've had Murray projected to miss five games all along in your fantasy football rankings. The Cardinals are also releasing QB Colt McCoy. That'll mean it's either rookie Clayton Tune or newly acquired Josh Dobbs starting for Arizona over the first month. We'll see who wins that post between now and Week 1.
The Jets are releasing RB Zonovan "Bam" Knight, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL Network. Rapoport adds that Knight "received some interest on the trade front," which could mean he'll catch on quickly elsewhere. We'll see whether Knight will be worth keeping track of heading into the season. His departure from New York should solidify RB Michael Carter's roster status.
Texans TE Dalton Schultz ranked third at the position in first-team snaps in Sunday night's preseason finale. He played just four of the nine snaps that QB C.J. Stroud played, running two routes and drawing one target. Schultz did lead Houston TEs in those latter two categories. But he trailed Teagan Quitoriano (six snaps) and Dalton Keene (five) in playing time. It's just one game, and Stroud attempted only four passes total. Schultz's three targets in the previous outing tied for second on the team. So Sunday night's usage shouldn't leave you panicking if you've already drafted Schultz. But it's enough to confirm that he belongs in TE2 territory of upcoming fantasy football drafts. And if you have already drafted Schultz, you might want to check our TE rankings for an early pickup off waivers as insurance.
Giants WR Wan'Dale Robinson is expected to be activated from the PUP list before Tuesday's deadline, The Athletic's Dan Duggan reports. Robinson has spent the offseason working back from November's torn ACL. It's unclear whether he'll play in the season opener, but the Giants at least expect Robinson to be ready by Week 4. He'll begin in a reserve role behind Darius Slayton, Isaiah Hodgins, and Parris Campbell. But Robinson could certainly work his way into a starting job over the course of the season.
Update: Robinson has officially be activated from the PUP list.
The Texans have officially named QB C.J. Stroud their regular-season starter. It's the move we've all expected basically since he was drafted. But it's nice to get official word ahead of the regular season. Stroud sits low in our QB rankings, though, and shouldn't be in your sights outside of superflex or 2-QB leagues, or late in best ball tournament drafts.
The Bears released QB P.J. Walker on Sunday. The veteran inked a two-year, $4.15 million with the team this offseason, though his performance in the preseason was spotty. Walker concluded with 11 completions on 23 attempts for 96 passing yards with one TD, one interception, and a 55.7 passer rating. With Walker gone, the Bears' QB2 job looks to be in the hands of rookie Tyson Bagent, a UDFA from D-II Shepherd University. Dynasty managers in superflex leagues now have an idea of who will take over should injury befall starter Justin Fields at any point. Consider Bagent worthy of a speculative add in deep dynasty superflex leagues.
The Athletic's Joe Rexrode recently wrote that Titans rookie RB Tyjae Spears "is going to matter" to the offense in 2023. Rexrode shares that Spears "will start the season as the third-down back" and perhaps eventually "warrant some carries and pop up in some creative looks" as part of a tandem with starter Derrick Henry. This is a notable read on the Titans' backfield, considering a second RB has yet to make a strong impression in the Henry era. Since becoming a full-time starter in 2018, Henry has led all NFL RBs in carries (1,464) and stayed above a 77.6% share of Titans RB carries in the last four seasons. Fantasy managers should still treat Spears as a handcuff for now, but there's some late-round intrigue should he emerge with a small pass-catching role. Dynasty managers must also remember Henry is set to reach free agency in 2024. See where the Titans' backs appear in our current RB rankings.
Jaguars RB Tank Bigsby mixed in liberally with the first-team offense in Saturday's preseason finale. The rookie played nine of 25 snaps (36%), carrying 6 times for 37 yards (6.2 YPC). The bad news: He lost a fumble near the goal line. The good news: He got a carry near the goal line, and he continued working with the starters on the next series. Bigsby might see enough volume to be a RB3 or flex option in larger fantasy leagues this season. And, at minimum, he's a high-end handcuff to RB Travis Etienne.
Less than one week after signing him, the Titans have released K Michael Badgley. We'll keep an eye on Tennessee's next move at kicker.
Browns WR Marquise Goodwin has been activated from the non-football-injury list. Doctors found blood clots in his legs and lungs earlier this summer, but he's been cleared to return. Goodwin figures to serve as a situational deep threat for Cleveland but isn't a realistic fantasy option.
The Giants have released RB James Robinson, making them the second team to do so this offseason. This likely signals the end of an NFL career for Robinson, who did nothing with the Jets last year after arriving in trade from the Jaguars.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that the Patriots have traded RB Pierre Strong to the Browns for OT Tyrone Wheatley Jr. Cleveland has spent August thin at RB behind Nick Chubb, with Jerome Ford out nursing a hamstring injury. ESPN's Jake Trotter projected Demetric Felton as the third RB behind Chubb and Ford before this move. The trade doesn't guarantee that Strong makes the regular-season roster. But he should be a good bet to do so. Given that Ford has just eight career NFL touches on offense, it's an upside landing spot for Strong. His departure from a Patriots roster he was expected to make leaves room for at least one among Kevin Harris, Ty Montgomery, and J.J. Taylor behind Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliott.
The Colts have released RB Kenyan Drake. With RB Jonathan Taylor's status still unresolved, this just signals that Drake failed to beat out RBs Deon Jackson or Evan Hull. Zack Moss remains out with a wrist injury. We should know more about Taylor's status this week and will certainly keep watching the whole situation.
ESPN's DJ Bien-Aime says in his final roster projection that WR Noah Brown has been running as a starter alongside Robert Woods and Nico Collins "throughout camp." He adds that "there's a chance midway through the season [Tank Dell] becomes a starter." As for second-year WR John Metchie, Bien-Aime calls him only one of the "remaining receivers." The article even mentions sixth-round rookie WR Xavier Hutchinson "sometimes" running with the starters. Metchie's comeback from leukemia is a great story no matter what. But he looks like a fantasy afterthought. Brown's name will be worth keeping in mind for DFS and the final rounds of best ball tournament drafts. But we're not expecting this offense to support multiple fantasy-starter pass catchers. Collins remains the top Texans WR in our fantasy football rankings. Woods has been a PPR value throughout draft season because he stays on the board until the very end (and often beyond). Dell is intriguing as a late-draft stash in deeper leagues.
Packers QB Jordan Love completed a nice preseason Saturday against the Seahawks. He went 9-of-15 passing for 63 yards and a TD vs. Seattle. That makes him 21 of 33 (63.6%) for 193 yards, 3 TDs, and 0 INTs across three preseason contests. Love notched a 109.8 passer rating. The new starter added 21 yards on the ground against the Seahawks, giving him 32 yards on five rushes for the preseason. SI.com's Bill Huber says Love "didn't scramble much during training camp," so we probably shouldn't expect big rushing numbers. But he has the speed and athleticism to add at least some fantasy value there. Most importantly, Love remains low in QB2 territory in ADP. That leaves basically nothing but upside to drafting him in leagues where a second QB makes sense.
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