New Eagles RB Rashaad Penny told reporters that he's been medically cleared from the fractured fibula that ended his 2022 season in October. Injuries, of course, have been a major issue for Penny through 5 NFL seasons. He's missed 40 of 82 games. But he's also been awesome when healthy, averaging a huge 5.7 yards per carry. Penny is currently the favorite to assume the old Miles Sanders, early-down role in Philadelphia. Sanders finished 22nd among RBs in PPR points per game last year -- a level Penny is certainly capable of reaching in 2023.
Bills GM Brandon Beane said that the team envisions WR Deonte Harty filling the “four role." Harty got a surprisingly lucrative two-year, $9.5 million deal from Buffalo, but it doesn't sound like he's slated for an every-down job on offense. (Not surprising considering he's just 5'6 and 170 lbs.) With WR Isaiah McKenzie likely on the outs, Stefon Diggs, Gabriel Davis, and Khalil Shakir currently project as the Bills' top three WRs. We'll see if they add another WR in the draft.
New Falcons QB Taylor Heinicke told reporters on Thursday that his goal is to be "the best backup I can be to Desmond [Ridder]." "They drafted (Ridder) high for a reason," Heinicke added. So that puts to bed any notion of a true QB competition in Atlanta. Of course, there's a chance that Ridder falters and gives way to Heinicke at some point in 2023. But Ridder is the Falcons QB to consider late in fantasy football drafts.
WR Darius Slayton re-signed with the Giants on a 2-year, $12 million deal. Slayton has been pretty consistent through 4 NFL seasons, finishing with 46-50 catches and 724-751 receiving yards in 3 of them. That, of course, isn't enough to really get the fantasy juices flowing. Slayton is still just 26 and a candidate to take a step forward in his 2nd season under HC Brian Daboll. But don't consider him more than a WR4 in early best-ball drafts. The Giants' WR corps now reads: Slayton, Isaiah Hodgins, Wan'Dale Robinson, Parris Campbell, Sterling Shepard.
The Colts signed QB Gardner Minshew to a 1-year, $3.5 million deal. It's backup money, which is what Minshew figures to be for at least most of 2023 behind whichever QB the Colts nab in next month's draft. It's worth noting that Minshew spent the past 2 seasons in Philadelphia with new Colts HC Shane Steichen, so he'll be familiar with the offense.
The Bears signed TE Robert Tonyan to a 1-year deal. Tonyan spiked for an 11-TD season in 2020 but tore an ACL midway through the 2021 campaign. He made it back for the start of this past season but was barely fantasy relevant, finishing with 53 catches, 470 yards and 2 TDs. Tonyan ranked 29th among 32 qualifying TEs in Pro Football Focus' receiving grades. Perhaps he bounces back in 2023, another year removed from that knee injury. But Tonyan figures to slot in as Chicago's #2 TE as long as Cole Kmet is healthy. Consider Tonyan no more than a TE3 in early fantasy drafts.
The Bears signed RB D'Onta Foreman to a 1-year, $3 million deal. Foreman is coming off a nice season in Carolina, posting a career-high 914 rushing yards on 4.5 yards per carry. He ranked 26th among 42 qualifiers in Pro Football Focus' rushing grades and 21st in Elusive Rating. New backfield mate Khalil Herbert beat Foreman in both metrics, finishing 25th and 6th. We'll consider Herbert the favorite to lead Chicago's David Montgomery-less backfield in carries for now but will keep a close eye on the backfield all offseason. It's worth noting that neither Herbert nor Foreman have much pass-catching production on their resumes. The Bears also have change-of-pace types Travis Homer and Trestan Ebner on the RB depth chart. There's a chance this is a 3-man committee backfield in 2023.
The Patriots are signing TE Mike Gesicki to a one-year deal worth "up to" $9 million, according to multiple reports. Gesicki was a forgotten man in HC Mike McDaniels' Dolphins offense last year, mustering just 32 catches for 362 yards and 5 TDs on a 45% snap rate. He's still just 27, though, and topped 700 receiving yards in both 2020 and 2021. He finished both of those seasons as a top-9 TE in PPR points, while ranking 6th and then 13th in Pro Football Focus receiving grade. Gesicki joins Hunter Henry in New England's TE room, but the two have played different roles to date. Henry played a career-low 26.5% of his pass snaps inline (according to Pro Football Focus) and a career-high 61.6% in the slot in 2021, his first year with the Patriots. Last season, though, he spent exactly the same amount of time (43.3% of pass snaps) in each role -- with a career-low 10.3% out wide. Gesicki has spent just 19.5% of his career snaps inline -- the traditional TE spot -- 58.9% in the slot and 21.1% out wide. Considering the current state of the New England WR corps (JuJu Smith-Schuster, Tyquan Thornton, DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne), there's room for both TEs to be relevant. We'll look for clues on how the targets will be divvied. For now, don't consider Gesicki more than a low-TE2 in fantasy football drafts. And there's no reason to downgrade Henry's fantasy outlook. He has already been going in mid-TE3 range of best ball drafts. His career-long penchant for end-zone targets makes him well worth mixing in at that level.
The Giants are signing WR Parris Campbell, according to The Score's Jordan Schultz. Finally healthy last year, Campbell set career highs across the board with 63 catches, 623 yards and 3 TDs. That was still only good for a 64th-place finish among WRs in PPR points per game. Campbell finds plenty of opportunity in the Giants' WR corps -- but we'll see how he fits alongside WR Wan'Dale Robinson. Both of those guys do their best work from the slot. Robinson, of course, is rehabbing a November ACL tear.
Update: Campbell got a 1-year deal, $3 million deal that can be worth up to $6.7 million via incentives.
The Bucs signed RB Chase Edmonds to a one-year deal. It's for the veteran minimum, according to Fox Sports' Greg Auman, which means Edmonds will make about $1.1 million in 2023. The soon-to-be 27-year-old has a pair of 40+ catch seasons on his resume but has yet to top 116 carries or 592 rushing yards in a season. He split his 2022 between Miami and Denver, averaging just 3.6 yards per carry and ranking 59th among 67 qualifying RBs in Pro Football Focus' rushing grades. Edmonds looks like just an insurance policy on RB Rachaad White, who figures to get first crack at Tampa's lead job this season.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that the Vikings have agreed to a two-year deal with RB Alexander Mattison. The deal will pay him $7 million, with a max value of $8 million and $6.35 million guaranteed. Mattison's return will get more interesting if/when the Dalvin Cook trade rumors come true. Even in that case, Mattison's presence won't preclude Minnesota from adding someone else -- either via the NFL Draft or free agency. Don't go nuts over Mattison in best ball drafts. But he's OK to mix in as a RB4 or later RB3.
The Patriots have agreed to a two-year deal with RB James Robinson. According to multiple reports, it's worth "up to" $8 million. We'll be curious to see what the real value of this contract is. That could signal how big a role the team is planning. The Jaguars traded Robinson for just a sixth-round pick last year, and then he touched the ball just 31 times with the Jets. We're not betting on big stuff from him this year. This move might actually be good news for RB Rhamondre Stevenson. We figured New England would bring in at least one new RB, with Damien Harris hitting the open market. If Robinson winds up the biggest addition, then Stevenson will be well set up for RB1 upside. He finished last season 11th among RBs in PPR points per game.
The Saints have agreed to a three-year, $12 million deal with RB Jamaal Williams, according to multiple reports. The first thing you need to do here is ignore that Williams led the NFL in rushing TDs last year. That won't happen again. Williams logged eight more carries inside the 5-yard line than anyone else in the league -- 12 more than any other RB. He scored on half of those carries. Williams also led the league in red-zone carries and TDs, even while ranking just fifth in team share of red-zone attempts (60%). Williams benefited from a stellar Lions O-line, a run-friendly offense and D'Andre Swift injuries. He does, however, find another upside path in New Orleans. Alvin Kamara is widely expected to get some suspension this year for his pending assault case. Whether it will come this year and how long it will be, though, remains unknown. The Saints clearly imported Williams to at least complement Kamara, as we've seen Latavius Murray and Mark Ingram do before. Bet on Kamara ceding a larger share of carries than he did last year, as he hits his seventh NFL season. That's enough to make Williams a fine pick in his current low-RB3 ADP range. And if Kamara misses significant time, Williams could easily reach high-end RB2 production.
According to multiple reports, RB Miles Sanders has agreed to a contract with the Panthers. This move makes a ton of sense for many reasons. New Panthers HC Frank Reich is likely to operate a similar offense to the one Sanders played in with the Eagles, given that their HC Nick Sirianni served as Reich's OC with the Colts from 2018 to 2020. Though Sanders set career-high marks in touches (279), rushing yards (1,269), and TDs (11) in 2022, he failed to play more than 40% of the Eagles' offensive snaps in every game after Week 16 through the Super Bowl. In an offense devoid of major talent, Sanders will have an opportunity to thrive in what should be a comparable scheme to the one in Philadelphia. Plus, without a major rushing threat at QB like Jalen Hurts as of now, we may see Sanders return to form as a pass-catcher. He totaled 78 receptions across his first pair of seasons in the NFL, but only 46 between 2021 and 2022. We're looking at a solid opportunity for a quality RB2-type season from Sanders if the Panthers don't add too much more around him.
UPDATE: Sanders' contract is reportedly a four-year deal, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. Certainly no small investment here.
QB Jacoby Brissett is reportedly expected to sign a deal with the Commanders. The terms of the deal are unknown as of this writing. The journeyman signal-caller adds some veteran competition into the mix to battle with incumbent QB Sam Howell. Newly-minted OC Eric Bienemy will have an effective bridge option in place should Howell not win the starting QB job outright in training camp. Brissett spent last season as the Browns' starter in the absence of suspended QB Deshaun Watson, tallying 2,608 passing yards with 12 TDs and six interceptions. Though he doesn't offer a ton of fantasy appeal, Brissett exceeded 15 fantasy points in five of his 11 starts in four-point per passing TD scoring last season. We'll have to keep an eye on how this potential training camp battle shakes out over the summer to get a good idea of how much Brissett will matter for fantasy purposes. He maintains modest superflex league appeal in dynasty leagues if nothing else.
UPDATE: Brissett's contract is a one-year deal worth up to $10 million (with $8 million guaranteed).
The Cowboys have decided to release long-time former Pro Bowl RB Ezekiel Elliott after seven seasons spent with the franchise. This move will save the Cowboys $10.9 million in cap space. Elliott entered the league in 2016 and immediately led the league in rushing yards (1,631) as a rookie. For as good as the affectionately nicknamed Zeke has been as a pro, his production has seen a precipitous dropoff over time. 2022 saw Zeke post career lows in rushing yards per game (58.4), total touches (248), and PPR fantasy PPG (12.4). It's certainly feasible that Elliott can latch on somewhere as the hammer in a committee, but it's tough to imagine he'll have much of a market entering his age-28 season. This move does, however, free up RB Tony Pollard to take on the lead role in the Cowboys' backfield. The soon-to-be fifth-year back averaged 15.6 PPG en route to an RB8 overall finish in PPR in 2022. Whispers of the Cowboys' interest in Texas RB Bijan Robinson might put a damper on the prospective upside of Pollard. However, if the franchise opts to pair Pollard with another RB of lesser acclaim, he should have a highly productive season in 2023 and find himself well within the RB1 conversation. The absence of Elliott is now one hurdle cleared for Pollard, the RB16 in our dynasty rankings.
The Patriots have agreed to terms on a three-year deal worth up to $33 million with WR JuJu Smith-Schuster. The former Chief and Steeler is set to earn $22.5 million in guaranteed money over the first two years of the contract, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. Smith-Schuster immediately steps into the mix with an offense that lost WR Jakobi Meyers (a recent signee with the Raiders) and has a lot of work cut out for them. It's tough to say how much fantasy value Smith-Schuster, or any pass-catcher in the Patriots' offense, will have under new OC Bill O'Brien as of now. Even so, there's only room for QB Mac Jones and company to move upward and improve upon their 23rd-ranked aerial attack in Football Outsiders' passing offense DVOA last season. Smith-Schuster logged an impressive 78 receptions and 933 receiving yards as a member of the Super Bowl-winning Chiefs in 2022. The Patriots have a long way to go in righting the ship, but this is a solid step in the right direction.
QB Aaron Rodgers announced on the Pat McAfee Show on Wednesday that he's agreed to a trade to the Jets. The enigmatic former NFL MVP immediately presents an upgrade over QB Zach Wilson and should make fantasy managers excited for what’s to come. Though Rodgers slipped in production last season, he finished 2020 and 2021 with a fantasy PPG average over 20. Much of his lack of success can be attributed to the departure of weapons like WR Davante Adams, but now Rodgers won’t have to worry about a lack of weapons in his supporting cast. WR Garrett Wilson is already considered a high-end dynasty asset, and his value is only further solidified by the presence of a stellar QB. The player this affects the most is WR Elijah Moore, who saw a great deal of controversy last season deriving from his frustrations with his role and poor play from Zach Wilson under center. We may see him look more like the WR3 overall in PPR scoring from Week 7 through Week 12 of his rookie season in 2021 if he can stave off new teammate WR Allen Lazard.
The Bills are expected to sign WR Deonte Harty to a two-year deal, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. The contract will reportedly include $9.5 million total, with $5 million of that fully guaranteed. Incentives could push it to a $13.5 million max value. Those numbers don't guarantee a significant offensive role for Harty, who has done his best work as a return man. Harty collected 64 total receptions and 15 rushing attempts across four years with the Saints, compared with 152 total returns. He figures to push RB Nyheim Hines out of the primary return role. We'll see if Buffalo plans to let Harty compete with Isaiah McKenzie and Khalil Shakir for more on offense. If it does, Harty's speed would make him an intriguing late-round flier. You can consider him near the end of best ball drafts now for that reason.
The Panthers have agreed to a three-year deal with TE Hayden Hurst. The terms of the deal have not yet been disclosed. Hurst, a former NFL first-round pick, will be joining his fourth team since entering the league in 2018. At best, he's been a streaming TE consideration throughout his career. It's tough to say he'll have as much fantasy appeal going from a high-powered Bengals offense in 2022 to the Panthers with a rookie QB likely to be under center, though. This transition only hurts the value of Hurst even with diminished target competition. Dynasty managers are probably further ahead looking elsewhere to the 2023 rookie class or beyond if TE is a position of need. He may prove to be reasonably effective for redraft purposes if the Panthers don't add a ton of talent around him, though.
UPDATE: Hurst's contract is reportedly a three-year deal worth $21.75 million (with $13 million guaranteed).
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