The Buccaneers have ruled WR Chris Godwin out for the rest of the game with a hamstring injury. Godwin limped off the field in the 1st half, and it certainly makes sense to hold him out, regardless of the severity. Godwin entered the game questionable thanks to his return from last December's torn knee ligaments. We'll see about the return timeline for this issue.
Saints WR Jarvis Landry racked up the most targets (9), receptions (7) and receiving yards (114) on the team in Sunday's dramatic victory over the Falcons. He edged Michael Thomas by a target and watched Thomas snag both of the team's receiving TDs. But each vet finished well ahead of rookie WR Chris Olave's 3 targets. TE Juwan Johnson ranked 3rd on the team with 5 looks.
Falcons rookie WR Drake London led the team in catches (5) and receiving yards (74) in Sunday's narrow loss to the Saints, despite entering the weekend questionable with a knee issue. London matched TE Kyle Pitts for the team target lead at 7. That accounted for 21.2% of the team's 33 pass attempts in the game, which would be a good level for both players. They'll need better QB efficiency than Sunday's 6.5 yards per attempt (and 0 TD passes) to capitalize, though.
In a refreshing turn of events, Washington RB Antonio Gibson snagged a career-high 7 passes (on 8 targets) for 72 yards. Compare that to the 3 grabs (on 3 targets) for receiving back J.D. McKissic. Gibson added 14 carries for 58 yards. His main highlight came in the passing game, as he beat the defense vertically for a 26-yard gain out of the backfield. Critically, he also managed to avoid fumbling. Following a tumultuous offseason, Week 1 was clearly a huge win for the young RB. Next up is a Lions defense that just allowed 4 rushing TDs to the Eagles.
Falcons QB Marcus Mariota was Atlanta's 2nd-leading rusher in Sunday's narrow loss to the Saints, taking 12 rushing attempts for 72 yards. That trailed Cordarrelle Patterson's 22-120-1 rushing line, but no other Atlanta player carried more than twice. Mariota even scored from 2 yards out in the 3rd quarter. That strong rushing line accompanied just 215 passing yards with no TDs. So Mariota will need to do more on the passing side to make him truly fantasy viable. But the rushing will be key if he is to work his way to starter consideration.
Falcons Swiss Army knife Cordarrelle Patterson racked up 22-120-1 on the ground in Sunday's narrow loss to the Saints, adding 3-16 receiving on 5 targets. Damien Williams' rib injury certainly didn't hurt. Rookie Tyler Allgeier was a healthy scratch, and Avery Williams claimed the only 2 other RB carries (beyond the 2 for Damien Williams). Atlanta would probably like to limit Patterson's touches more than that going forward -- especially on the ground. But the team might not have a choice until someone else in the backfield steps up.
Jags RB Travis Etienne rushed only 4 times for 47 yards in Sunday’s loss to Washington. He added 2 catches on 4 targets but missed out on a potential TD when he dropped a pass near the goal line. The 2nd-year back was also overthrown by Trevor Lawrence in the end zone. Beyond the tough-luck result, it’s certainly concerning that James Robinson out-carried Etienne 11-4. And shockingly, Robinson (Achilles') already looked back to pre-injury form. Next up is a home date with Indianapolis.
Steelers RB Najee Harris suffered an ankle injury in the 4th quarter of Sunday’s game vs. the Bengals and did not return. He was in a walking boot afterward, but NFL Network’s Mike Giardi hears that the injury “is not considered a big deal.” Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio also said on the Sunday Night Football pregame show that Harris’ injury isn’t believed to be serious. We should learn more tomorrow.
Dolphins TE Mike Gesicki managed 1 catch for 1 yard on 1 target in Sunday's win over New England. Everything reported and witnessed through camp and preseason pointed to alarming change in his role under new HC Mike McDaniel, and this game seemed like confirmation. Gesicki shouldn't be near fantasy football lineups until something changes. He even trailed TE Durham Smythe in targets (2) and yards (14).
Tua Tagovailoa's lone TD pass went to WR Jaylen Waddle in Sunday's season-opening win over the Patriots. But that's about all that went against Tyreek Hill. The former Chief claimed 36.4% of Miami's targets and turned those 12 targets into an 8-94 receiving line. We wouldn't bet on Hill staying at that level, but it sure looks like target volume won't be a problem in his new home. Waddle, meanwhile, tallied a 4-69-1 line on just 5 targets, with most of that coming via his 42-yard catch-and-run TD. It's too early to panic on Waddle, but he'll certainly need the gap between his target share and Hill's to close some.
Dolphins RB Chase Edmonds claimed 12 carries and 4 targets in Sunday's win over the Patriots, easily leading Mostert's 5 carries and 1 target. Neither guy offered impressive production, averaging 2.1 and 3.2 yards per carry, respectively. Edmonds did put up 4-40 receiving. Miami visits the Ravens next.
Patriots RBs Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson each got carries on the 1st offensive possession of Sunday's loss to the Dolphins. They finished nearly even -- Harris 9, Stevenson 8 -- but Harris ran more efficiently. He averaged 5.3 yards per rush to Stevenson's 3.1 and added 10 receiving yards on 2 catches among 3 targets. (Stevenson caught both of his targets for just 2 yards.) Ty Montgomery played through his questionable tag and led the backfield with 4 targets but managed just 15 yards on 3 catches and lost 2 yards on his 2 carries. Expect this backfield to remain frustrating for lineup-setting.
Raiders RB Brandon Bolden was knocked out of Sunday's game vs. the Chargers with a hamstring injury. He was operating as the #2 back before exiting, carrying 3 times for 7 yards and catching both of his targets for 21 yards and a TD. We'll update Bolden's status when we know more.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Commanders DE Chase Young will have his repaired knee re-evaluated by Dr. James Andrews "soon" and is expected to be cleared to return from the PUP "by mid-season." We'll see as the time draws closer just how soon that actually is. It's still tough to expect a big IDP impact from Young this season, but he'll be worth rostering in most formats to see what's there.
Cowboys WR Jalen Tolbert is a healthy scratch for tonight's game vs. the Bucs. The rookie had a rough August and is now behind WRs Noah Brown, Simi Fehoko and Dennis Houston -- along with, of course, CeeDee Lamb.
Bucs RB Ke'Shawn Vaughn is a healthy scratch for tonight's game vs. the Cowboys. Tampa is rolling with RBs Leonard Fournette, Rachaad White and Gio Bernard.
Bucs TE Kyle Rudolph is a healthy scratch for tonight's game vs. the Cowboys. TEs Cameron Brate, Cade Otton and Ko Kieft are active.
Bucs WR Russell Gage (hamstring) is active for tonight's opener vs. the Cowboys. He remained limited in practice all week after injuring his hamstring on August 10, so Gage comes with elevated risk in Week 1 fantasy lineups.
Bucs WR Chris Godwin (knee) is active for tonight's game vs. the Cowboys. It’s a surprisingly quick return from last December’s ACL tear. ESPN’s Adam Schefter said this morning, though, that Godwin “could be on a pitch count.” We’d be surprised if he was anything close to a full go.
Less than 9 months removed from an Achilles tear, Jags RB James Robinson scored twice against Washington. He scored once through the air and once on the ground in a great display of vision and tackle-breaking ability. On the day, he out-carried Travis Etienne 11-4. Robinson’s pass catching role figures to remain minor going forward, but the real takeaway here is that he looks 100% healthy.
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