NFL Network's Ian Rapoport revealed more information on Titans rookie RB Tyjae Spears' right knee. Spears has torn the ACL in that knee twice, most recently in 2020. A medical check at the Combine revealed "a full thickness cartilage loss and no ACL in his knee. Plus arthritis," Rapoport said. "It is unclear how long he is gonna be able to [play.] Is he gonna be a one-contract guy?" Spears' Round 3 draft capital is a mark in his favor. But the longevity question is especially problematic considering Spears is unlikely to make an immediate fantasy impact behind Derrick Henry this year. He's no better than a Round 2 pick in dynasty rookie drafts.
Seahawks HC Pete Carroll called RB Zach Charbonnet a "complement" to RB Ken Walker and highlighted Charbonnet's ability in the passing game. "He can block and catch the ball out of the backfield," Carroll said. "He's good in the screen game. Makes big plays." Charbonnet caught 61 balls over the past two seasons at UCLA and ranked 13th among 119 qualifying RBs in Pro Football Focus' 2022 receiving grades. Walker totaled just 19 receptions across three college seasons, although he did tally 27 receptions as a rookie last year. We'll keep a close eye on Seattle's backfield this summer, but it sounds like Charbonnet might be slated for passing-down duties. That'd be bad news for Walker's fantasy value.
Raiders GM Dave Ziegler said he tried to trade back into the first round to secure TE Michael Mayer. Vegas ended up landing Mayer with the fourth pick of Round 2. "He was one of the top 15 players on our board," Ziegler said. We were surprised to see Mayer slip into the second round. But he landed in a solid spot for immediate opportunity, with only TEs Austin Hooper and O.J. Howard to conquer.
Steelers TE Darnell Washington dropped in the draft due to medical concerns, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reports. Fowler says teams were concerned with at least one of Washington's knees -- and some teams were concerned with both knees. It's a surprising report considering Washington didn't miss any games in college with knee trouble. (He missed 4 with a foot injury in 2021.) We'll look for more information on Washington's health. He, unfortunately, landed in a tough spot for fantasy value behind TE Pat Freiermuth in Pittsburgh.
Texans WR John Metchie was a full participant in Phase 1 of OTAs, GM Nick Caserio said. Metchie is working his way back from last year's acute promyelocytic leukemia diagnosis and seems to be on track to play this season. The 2022 second-rounder is certainly capable of carving out a significant role in Houston if healthy. He'll battle for snaps with WRs Nico Collins, Robert Woods, Noah Brown, Amari Rodgers, and rookies Tank Dell and Xavier Hutchinson.
RB Sean Tucker has signed with the Buccaneers as an undrafted free agent. We heard earlier this week that Tucker was flagged for a heart issue, which has seemingly been confirmed by him going undrafted. We’ll keep an eye on that situation, but this is at least a decent landing spot with Tampa’s RB corps consisting of Rachaad White, Chase Edmonds, and Ke’Shawn Vaughn. For a guy standing 5’9, and 207 pounds, Tucker plays like a track runner and isn’t afraid to confront potential tacklers in tight running lanes. Tucker’s effectiveness is a bit of a mixed bag, but his sophomore season at Syracuse in 2021 showed fantasy managers what he’s capable of at his best. Tucker led the ACC with 1,496 rushing yards that year, finishing 4th among all NCAA RBs with 44 runs of 10+ yards.
The Jets grabbed TE Zach Kuntz in the 7th round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Kuntz is a rare athlete. He clocked a 4.55-second 40 time with a 40-inch vertical at 6’7 and 255 pounds to earn a perfect 10.0 Relative Athletic Score. Kuntz broke out at Old Dominion with a 73-692-5 line in 2021 before tearing an ACL five games into this past season. He spent his first 3 college years at Penn State, where he did virtually nothing. Kuntz is a project – but that size and athleticism at least makes him worth stashing on deeper dynasty rosters.
The Texans selected Iowa State WR Xavier Hutchinson in Round 6 of the 2023 NFL Draft. Hutchinson opened his college career at Blinn (JUCO) before transferring to Iowa State. He led the Cyclones in receiving yards each of the past 3 seasons, capped by a 107-catch, 1,171-yard 2022 campaign. Hutchinson drew 34.1% of his team’s targets last year, accounting for 37.3% of the receiving yards and 31.6% of the TDs. He has decent size at 6’2, 203 pounds but tested as an average athlete at the Combine. Hutchinson projects as a short-range target at the next level and will likely need big volume to be a real fantasy asset. He joins a relatively wide-open WR corps in Houston alongside Nico Collins, Robert Woods, Noah Brown, Amari Rodgers, and fellow rookie Tank Dell.
The Saints selected Wake Forest WR A.T. Perry in Round 6 of the 2023 NFL Draft. Perry spent five years in college and did very little until his fourth season. But he was ultra-productive the past 2 years, totaling 2,389 yards and 26 TDs. Perry is a long 6’4, 198-pounder with a big catch radius (6’10 wingspan) and a 4.47-second 40 time. He’ll need to hit the weight room to hold up against more physical NFL CBs. But his combination of size, speed, and ball skills is intriguing.
The Colts selected RB Evan Hull in Round 5 of the 2023 NFL Draft. Hull is intriguing for 2 reasons. First, he's excellent in the passing game, racking up 88 receptions over the last 2 years at Northwestern. Second, he's a plus athlete, registering a 93rd percentile Relative Athletic Score, highlighted by a 4.47-second 40 time and elite 6.90-second 3-cone at 5'10, 209 pounds. Hull joins a Colts backfield controlled by RB Jonathan Taylor. But the rookie could at least push Zack Moss and Deon Jackson for the #2 spot on the depth chart.
The Bengals grabbed RB Chase Brown in the 5th round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Brown spent one year at Western Michigan before transferring to Illinois for the past four. He served as the Fighting Illini's lead back each of the last three seasons, culminating with a big 328-carry, 1,643-yard 2022 campaign. Brown added another 240 yards and three scores on 27 catches. The 5'10, 209-pounder blew up the Combine with a 4.43-second 40 time and 40-inch vertical to earn a 98th percentile Relative Athletic Score. Brown joins a Bengals backfield currently led by RB Joe Mixon. Mixon has been a rumored cut candidate, although Cincinnati's moves at RB so far this offseason make that seem unlikely. We'll keep an eye on the Mixon situation, but Brown at least has a chance to emerge as the Bengals' #2 RB this year. His competition for that spot: Chris Evans and Trayveon Williams.
The Rams traded up to grab Ole Miss RB Zach Evans late in Round 6 of the NFL Draft. Our guy C.H. Herms is a big fan of Evans' film and has liked Evans' dynasty value all along. And he's far from the only Evans film fan. Evans bounced from TCU to Ole Miss and dealt with multiple injuries. He finished with just 290 carries and 30 catches through three seasons. But he also averaged 6.9 yards per rush and 10.8 per catch for his career. That included 6.5 yards per carry and 9.9 per reception in his lone SEC campaign. Going to the Rams likely puts him in competition with 2022 rookie Kyren Williams for the No. 2 spot behind Cam Akers. The situation presents opportunity, with neither Akers nor Williams having proved much as a pro to date. We'll be watching this backfield competition through training camp. He's worth a look late in your dynasty rookie draft. See where he lands in our dynasty RB rankings.
Colts owner Jim Irsay told NFL.com's Judy Battista that QB Anthony Richardson will start games this season. It's fair to wonder how much knowledge or input Irsay actually has on this. As the team owner, he shouldn't really be involved with on-field decisions. And he certainly doesn't tend to hold back with his public comments. But QBs chosen early in Round 1 historically are likely to take over the starting job at some point in Year 1 -- most commonly before mid-season. Many evaluators think Richardson will need more development time than Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud. But there are others who believe he's much closer to ready. Indy signed QB Gardner Minshew for just $3.5 million on a one-year deal in free agency. That's light even for a backup at this point. So they clearly didn't sign Minshew intending to have him start for a year. We already have Richardson projected to start more than half his rookie season in our 2023 fantasy football QB rankings. And we'll be watching his offseason closely. His rushing ability makes the upside enormous.
The Cowboys chose RB Deuce Vaughn in Round 6 of the NFL Draft. Vaughn, of course, is best known for standing just 5'5 and 179 pounds. He got workhorse usage at Kansas State the past two years, though, with 528 carries and 91 receptions over that span. Vaughn might need return duties to help him make the active roster, but we'll be watching eagerly to see if he can work into an offensive role. There's room to climb a depth chart that currently includes Tony Pollard, Malik Davis, Ronald Jones, and Rico Dowdle. Vaughn will be just a late-round target for dynasty rookie drafts.
Washington spent a sixth-round pick on Kentucky RB Chris Rodriguez Jr. He averaged a strong 6.2 yards per carry for his career but caught only 20 passes. Rodriguez also spent five years in college and will turn 23 in September. It took him until 2021 to take over the Wildcats backfield. We're not betting on Rodriguez overtaking Antonio Gibson or Brian Robinson Jr. on the 2023 depth chart. But he'll be interesting to watch if injuries occur ahead of him.
The Buccaneers grabbed Nebraska WR Trey Palmer in Round 6 of the NFL Draft. Palmer took a while to get going, breaking out as a 21-year-old fourth-year player after transferring from LSU. Last season, though, found him drawing 33% of Nebraska's targets, 35% of receptions, 39% of yardage, and 53% of TDs. He set school records for single-season and single-game receiving yards and was a productive returner at LSU. Palmer ran the fastest 40 time among WRs at the Scouting Combine (4.33 seconds) and was a state sprinting champ in high school. He hits the NFL raw as a route runner but will have time to develop behind Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, and Russell Gage. There's intriguing upside here, but the sixth-round draft capital makes Palmer only a late-round rookie-draft consideration.
The Patriots selected WR Kayshon Boutte with the 10th pick of Round 6 in the NFL Draft. It's a discouraging spot for Boutte, who opened his LSU career looking like a future star. A sophomore-year ankle injury derailed him and continued to impact Boutte through his final season. He followed that with disappointing testing at the Scouting Combine. We like the potential of a fully healthy Boutte -- check his dynasty value report -- but the draft fall suggests the league doesn't believe there's a ton of upside. Don't expect an exciting spot in our dynasty WR rankings.
The Jaguars chose Penn State WR Parker Washington in Round 6 of the NFL Draft. Washington sported one of the class' youngest breakout ages (18.5) and was an early declare. He's yet another short prospect in a class full of them, though. Washington also missed out on pre-draft testing because of the left ankle injury that ended his season early. Washington faces an uphill battle after landing in Round 6. We'll see whether he can climb the Jacksonville depth chart.
The Saints traded TE Adam Trautman plus a seventh-round NFL Draft pick to the Broncos for a sixth-rounder, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. It's noteworthy that HC Sean Payton's new team is acquiring a TE he drafted in New Orleans in 2020. Trautman's arrival crowds a TE room that already included Greg Dulcich, Albert Okwuegbunam, and journeyman Chris Manhertz. There's some potential for targets to get dispersed to the point that no Denver TE presents worthwhile fantasy value. But let's keep in mind that Trautman averaged just 20 receptions per season through three years after arriving in Round 3. That included just 18 catches for 207 yards last year. And then the team that drafted him sent him away for just a move up from Round 7 to Round 6 in the draft. Don't adjust your outlook for Broncos TEs just yet. You can check our numbers on the group now in our 2023 fantasy football TE rankings.
The Bills nabbed WR Justin Shorter in the 5th round of the 2023 NFL Draft. Shorter was the #1 WR in the 2018 recruiting class, ahead of Ja'Marr Chase and Jaylen Waddle. He goes 6'4, 229 pounds with a 4.55-second 40 time and 35.5-inch vertical. Shorter did nothing in 2 seasons at Penn State, though, and then totaled just 1,395 yards and 8 TDs across 3 years at Florida. He's not a great bet at the next level, but landing with the Bills adds some upside to his dynasty profile.
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