The Steelers released RB Anthony McFarland. The 2020 4th-rounder never seemed to make a push for the #2 RB job this offseason. Pittsburgh is rolling with RBs Jaylen Warren and Benny Snell behind RB Najee Harris.
ESPN's Mike Reiss says RB Ty Montgomery is "likely" headed to short-term IR with the ankle injury he suffered in the preseason finale. That'd cost Montgomery at least the first 4 games of the season and leave RB Rhamondre Stevenson as the favorite for pass-catching work. We'll let you know if Montgomery ends up on IR.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that free-agent RB Sony Michel is visiting the Chargers today. That points to L.A. being unsatisfied with the RB depth chart behind Austin Ekeler. Rookie Isaiah Spiller has so far failed to separate from Joshua Kelley and Larry Rountree, neither of whom made significant impacts in last year's backfield. We'll watch for what happens here, but take it as another signal to not bother with Spiller in current redraft.
The Commanders kept RB Brian Robinson on their 53-man roster Tuesday. It's not yet clear when Robinson will be ready to play, and he could still be a candidate for short-term IR. Washington cut RBs Jaret Patterson and Reggie Bonnafon on Tuesday. The team kept Jonathan Williams as the 4th RB with Antonio Gibson, J.D. McKissic and Robinson. We'll see how Robinson's situation develops. At the least, Gibson and McKissic should be in for early-season touch boosts.
Seahawks HC Pete Carroll confirmed Tuesday that Geno Smith is more the leader in the QB competition than the winner, because it's ongoing. "Yeah, I think that they understand that, that it's always on," Carroll told The News Tribune. The team planned to start Drew Lock in the 2nd preseason game before COVID knocked him out for it. He then tossed 3 INTs in the finale. "He's disappointed," Carroll said of Lock. "But I know he knows how we think of him, and how we trust he's got a big future." Carroll has sounded at multiple points as though he wants Lock to emerge and expected it to happen. We'll see where this goes in season, for a team that's tied for the 3rd-lowest Vegas projected win total.
Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker (hernia) "feels way better," HC Pete Carroll said Tuesday. "He’s moving around," Carroll added. "It’s just going to be one day at a time.” We still don't have the details on Walker's surgery -- Carroll called it "uncharted territory" -- but it at least sounds like he's trending in the right direction. Walker's status for the season opener is still in doubt, though.
Seahawks RB Rashaad Penny (COVID) returned to practice on Tuesday. He missed the required 5 days but remains on track to open the season as Seattle's lead back.
Chargers RB Isaiah Spiller (ankle) returned to practice on Tuesday. He ended up missing 9 days with the ankle injury. Spiller was still sitting 4th on the depth chart when he went down, so he's unlikely to be an early-season factor. But the rookie still has a shot to eventually emerge as the Chargers' #2 RB.
Chiefs HC Andy Reid commented on the progress of RB Ronald Jones. The former Buc managed to make the 53-man roster following cutdowns on Tuesday. “I thought RoJo did a nice job down the stretch, and we know what he's capable of. It's a matter of him being comfortable in the offense,” Reid said. [We] throw a lot at the running backs, and it looked like he was starting to get it down the stretch there. Good football player.” Jones’ Week 1 role remains a mystery, but he’s at least trending in the right direction.
The Raiders released WR Keelan Cole. They're rolling with WRs Mack Hollins, Tyron Johnson and D.J. Turner behind Davante Adams and Hunter Renfrow.
The Texans released WR Chris Conley. That leaves them with just 4 WRs on the roster: Brandin Cooks, Nico Collins, Chris Moore and Phillip Dorsett. Houston figures to add to the position over the next few days, but Cooks and Collins are the only fantasy-relevant players here.
The Broncos placed TE Greg Dulcich (hamstring) on IR, knocking him out for at least the first 4 games of the season. It's not a surprise after the rookie missed most of the offseason with core and hamstring injuries. GM George Paton said Dulcich will "100%" be available come Week 5, but he's not worth stashing on standard redraft benches. TE Albert Okwuegbunam will have a chance to lay claim to the lead role in September.
The Titans are releasing QB Logan Woodside. That leaves rookie Malik Willis as the only other QB on the roster besides Ryan Tannehill. We'll see about any other moves, but it looks like the rookie will hit the season as Tannehill's backup. That puts him 1 injury away from being interesting for fantasy.
The 49ers kept 5 RBs on their initial 53-man roster: Elijah Mitchell, Jeff Wilson, Trey Sermon, Ty Davis-Price and Jordan Mason. Mitchell is the clear lead back heading into Week 1, but keeping 5 RB is another sign that San Francisco is worried about Mitchell holding up. Unfortunately, there's no clear-cut handcuff to Mitchell at this point.
The Jets are releasing veteran RB Tevin Coleman. You might have forgotten he was still on the team, with all backfield talk focusing on Breece Hall and Michael Carter, but Coleman ranked 2nd on the team last year in both total carries and carries per game.
The Cowboys are releasing K Brett Maher, but Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News reports that the expect to re-sign him pretty quickly. The move is reportedly being made to allow for other roster moves in setting the initial 53-man roster. So Maher still looks like Dallas' Week 1 kicker.
The Colts are taking LB Shaquille Leonard of the PUP list, according to multiple reports. We'll see what the team says about just when we should expect Leonard to return to the field, but this is obviously good news. It means Indy at least expects its defensive stud to be ready inside the 1st 4 games. Leonard has missed all of training camp and the preseason while recovering from June back surgery.
The Buccaneers are releasing S Logan Ryan, but multiple reports say they expect to re-sign him. Tampa needs a spot on the regular-season roster for C Ryan Jensen so they can put him on IR but with eligibility to return during the year. Because Ryan is a veteran, he's not subject to waivers and can thus choose to wait and re-sign with the team. We'll watch to confirm, but we're expecting Ryan to return and start for the Bucs.
Giants TE Daniel Bellinger practiced on Tuesday, according to insider Art Stapleton. Bellinger left the preseason finale to get checked for a concussion, but he was either cleared then or passed through the protocol already. The rookie remains in line to open the season as New York's lead TE.
The Texans released RB Marlon Mack. If you needed confirmation that Dameon Pierce will open the season as Houston's lead back, here you go. Mack simply hasn't been the same player since tearing his Achilles in September of 2020. We'll see if the 26-year-old gets a shot elsewhere, but he's well off the fantasy radar for now.
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