Steelers WR Diontae Johnson (shoulder) told reporters that he was a full participant in Friday's practice and will play against the Bengals this weekend. He called the shoulder a pain-tolerance issue. Johnson carries a bit more risk than usual this week but is still fine to get in fantasy lineups.
Falcons HC Arthur Smith said the team will make a decision on WR Drake London's Week 1 status on Saturday. The rookie has been limited in practice so far this week after injuring his knee in the preseason opener. Even if London plays vs. the Saints this weekend, there's a chance that he's limited after missing so much time. We'd keep him on fantasy benches.
Rams RB Kyren Williams suffered a high-ankle sprain in Thursday night's opener vs. the Bills, ESPN's Field Yates reports. Williams is expected to miss "up to 6 weeks," which is a standard timetable for this injury. Williams isn't worth stashing in redraft leagues.
Update: HC Sean McVay said Williams will have surgery on his high-ankle sprain and be sidelined 6-8 weeks.
Cardinals WR Rondale Moore injured his hamstring running a route in Thursday's practice, Pro Football Network's Aaron Wilson reports. Moore is scheduled for an MRI to determine the severity. We'll pass along an update when we get one, but Moore now looks unlikely to play vs. the Chiefs on Sunday. Arizona, of course, is also without WR DeAndre Hopkins, leaving Marquise Brown, A.J. Green, Andy Isabella and Greg Dortch as the top 4 WRs. It's a concern for QB Kyler Murray.
Ravens OC Greg Roman said he'll go with the "hot hand" at RB in Sunday's opener vs. the Jets. Assuming RB J.K. Dobbins (knee) doesn't play, it'll be Mike Davis, Kenyan Drake and Justice Hill in the backfield. It's a plus matchup against last year's worst RB defense, but the murky backfield split makes it a tough situation to bank on in fantasy lineups.
Bills WRs Isaiah McKenzie and Jamison Crowder split slot duties in Thursday night's opener vs. the Rams. McKenzie ran a route on 55% of pass plays vs. Crowder's 32%, but Crowder out-targeted McKenzie 4 to 3. We'll continue to monitor this situation, but neither guy will be a reliable Week 2 fantasy play.
As expected, Devin Singletary led the Bills backfield in Thursday night's opener vs. the Rams. He played 59% of the offensive snaps and handled 8 carries and 2 targets. RB Zack Moss played a bigger role than we expected, registering a 38% snap rate, 6 carries and 6 targets. Rookie RB James Cook lost a fumble on his 1st touch of the night and ended up playing just 2 more snaps the rest of the way. This is shaping up as an ugly situation for fantasy football. Singletary is the best bet for now but is no more than a RB3 or flex. Moss is worth a bench spot in leagues of 12+ teams. Ditto for Cook, whose role still figures to grow throughout the season.
Mixed results for Rams TE Tyler Higbee in Thursday night's opener vs. the Bills. He didn't deliver much for fantasy owners, catching 5 balls for just 39 yards with a couple of drops. But the usage was strong. Higbee ran a route on 92% of pass plays and saw 11 targets (26.8% share). If he continues to get anywhere close to that kind of playing time and volume, he'll be a strong bet to finish the season as a top-12 fantasy TE.
Rams RB Darrell Henderson got the start and operated as the clear lead back in Thursday night's opener vs. the Bills. He ended up out-snapping RB Cam Akers 55 to 12. It didn't result in big fantasy production (13 carries for 47 yards, 5 catches for 26 yards). But if this level of usage continues for Henderson, he'll be at least a RB2 in fantasy lineups. Akers finished the game with 3 carries for 0 yards and was not targeted. At this point, he looks like just a handcuff to Henderson.
WR Allen Robinson caught just 1 of 2 targets for 12 yards in his Rams debut vs. the Bills on Thursday night. The 2 targets were just 4.9% of the team total -- and notably 4 fewer than WR Ben Skowronek. (WR Van Jefferson didn't play after August knee surgery.) The good news is that Robinson played 97% of the Rams' offensive snaps and ran a route on 96% of pass plays. But this was a very worrisome performance after Robinson's ugly 2021 season.
Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker (hernia) did not practice on Thursday. The rookie is a long shot to play in Monday night's opener vs. the Broncos. That'll leave RB Rashaad Penny as Seattle's clear lead runner.
Bucs WR Russell Gage (hamstring) remained limited in Thursday's practice. We'll see what he's able to do tomorrow and how he's listed on the final injury report for Sunday night's opener vs. the Cowboys.
Packers WR Allen Lazard (ankle) missed his 2nd straight practice on Thursday. At this point, fantasy owners can't bank on having him in Week 1 lineups. We'll see how Lazard is listed on Green Bay's final injury report tomorrow.
Cardinals WR Rondale Moore was added to Thursday's injury report and limited with a hamstring. He missed some practice time last week with an undisclosed injury, but we're now assuming it was this hamstring. Check back tomorrow for another update on Moore's status for Sunday's opener vs. the Chiefs.
Cardinals TE Zach Ertz (calf) did not practice on Thursday. That followed a limited workout on Wednesday. This was either a planned day off -- or Ertz suffered a setback. We'll have a better idea of his status when we get Arizona's final injury report tomorrow, but fantasy owners need to be lining up an alternative for Week 1.
Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins (knee) remained limited in Thursday's practice. We're not expecting him to play vs. the Jets this weekend, but we'll see how he's listed on the final injury report tomorrow.
Steelers WR Diontae Johnson (shoulder) put in his 2nd straight limited practice on Thursday. We're tentatively expecting him to play vs. the Bengals this weekend, but check back tomorrow for another update on his status.
Falcons WR Drake London (knee) remained limited in Thursday's practice. We'll see what he's able to do tomorrow and how he's listed on the final injury report for this weekend's opener vs. the Saints.
Saints WR Michael Thomas (hamstring) put in another limited practice on Thursday. It's good news that he was able to work again after a limited practice on Wednesday, but his status for this weekend's opener vs. the Falcons remains uncertain. We'll get another update tomorrow.
Pro Football Network's Aaron Wilson hears that 49ers TE George Kittle's groin injury is "serious enough" that he's "unlikely" to play against the Bears this weekend. A source tells Wilson that Kittle is dealing with a Grade 2 strain and that "it would be optimal for him to rest and rehab for a week or two." It certainly makes sense for the 49ers to hold Kittle out of a game vs. Chicago that they can likely win without him. We've removed Kittle from the Week 1 Rankings for now and will continue to keep you updated on his status. Kittle's absence would be good news for the targets outlooks of WRs Deebo Samuel and Brandon Aiyuk.
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