According to Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic, "It seems like Marquise Goodwin and Damiere Byrd are set as the third and fourth receivers for the offense." Goodwin has generated some camp highlights with his downfield speed, and the (inevitable?) switch to Justin Fields at QB could unlock that area of strength for both players. Neither WR is likely to make a big fantasy impact this season, but they're names worth keeping in mind as end-of-draft best-ball options.
Chris Burke of The Athletic believes that Lions MLB Alex Anzalone "almost certainly" will be wearing the green-dot helmet and calling defensive plays come the regular season. "Anzalone could be out there for close to 100 percent of the snaps (health willing)," Burke adds. Anzalone has history with HC Dan Campbell and DC Aaron Glenn from their shared time in New Orleans. Injuries limited Anzalone's playing time there. The 2 (of 4) seasons in which he played all 16 games found Anzalone staying on the field for just 47.2% and 50.2% of snaps. It sounds like he's headed for a lot more with these Lions, which makes Anzalone an intriguing pick at the end of IDP fantasy football drafts.
Bengals rookie WR Ja’Marr Chase endured a rough outing Friday night in the team’s 2nd preseason contest. The 1st-round pick dropped all 3 of his targets vs. Washington. Drops weren’t a problem for Chase in college. Pro Football Focus charted him with just 5 among 118 targets in 2019, his final campaign at LSU. And we’re not generally too concerned with a WR’s drops in the NFL. But Chase’s lackluster performance stands as another signal we should be cautious about trusting the rookie for big fantasy football production right away. We’ll see whether the latest display knocks his ADP down, though.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire's sprain is on the inside of his ankle, according to The Kansas City's Star's Sam McDowell. With the disclaimer that we're not doctors, that sounds similar to the injury that's plagued Saints WR Michael Thomas. “They got to check it (today), do what they do there,” HC Andy Reid said. “It’s tender now. It doesn’t look like a high-ankle sprain. That’s always a good thing. They’ll double-check it." We'll update CEH's status as soon as we know more.
Chiefs WR Mecole Hardman finished with a 4-39-1 line in Friday night's preseason game vs. the Cardinals. But 2 of those catches and the TD came from QB Chad Henne. Hardman caught just 2 of 6 targets from QB Patrick Mahomes. Hardman played 29 of 32 snaps (91%) with Mahomes -- but note that Tyreek Hill was out. We know the Chiefs view Hardman as a Hill handcuff. But it remains unclear just how much playing time he’ll get alongside Hill. Hardman played only in 3-WR sets in the 1st preseason game.
Chiefs WR Tyreek Hill was held out of Friday night's preseason game after his hamstring "tightened up" in warmups, HC Andy Reid said. This doesn't sound serious -- but hamstrings are notoriously tricky. We'll keep a close eye on this 1st-round fantasy pick.
Chiefs RB Darrel Williams is in concussion protocol, HC Andy Reid said after Friday night's preseason game. We're still 3 weeks away from the start of the season, so Williams should get cleared in time for the opener. We'll monitor his progress.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire suffered a “slight” ankle sprain in Week 2 of the preseason, per HC Andy Reid. Edwards-Helaire will undergo further examination today (Saturday). We’re about 3 weeks away from the opener, so there’s time for the 2nd-year back to avoid missing games if the injury is indeed minor. We’ll keep you posted.
Niners WR Deebo Samuel left Friday's practice early and is getting an MRI. "He had a tight glute today, so he pulled himself out of practice," HC Kyle Shanahan said afterward, per 49erswebzone.com. We'll see whether there's anything to worry about here.
Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy expects QB Dak Prescott (shoulder) to ramp up in practice next week. "He’ll definitely be involved in some form of practice more than this week," McCarthy said. "But to stand here and tell you he'd be full go and take all the reps, I’m not there yet.” We'll continue to keep a close eye on Prescott, with the season opener now 3 weeks away. All indications are that Dak will be good to go for Week 1.
Patriots WR N'Keal Harry is considered "week to week" with the shoulder injury suffered in Thursday night's preseason game, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. Tests on the shoulder showed "no structural damage to his shoulder and he simply will need rest," per Schefter. Harry remains off the redraft radar.
Patriots WR Jakobi Meyers has been on the field for 93% of Cam Newton's snaps through 2 games (27 of 29). His 67 receiving yards rank 2nd on the team in preseason, trailing only reserve WR candidate Kristian Wilkerson (who has just 8 more yards on 5 more receptions). Meyers' top highlight has been a 28-yard catch-and-run TD against the Eagles in Week 2. Nelson Agholor sat out the preseason opener but returned for Thursday night's game. He played just 1 fewer snap than Meyers (15-14) but drew nary a target compared with 3 for Meyers. The 2nd-year wideout looks like a high-upside late-round pick for your fantasy football draft.
Plenty has been made of Patriots RB performances this preseason, especially after 3 of them combined to rush for 4 TDs Thursday night against the Eagles. Rhamondre Stevenson contributed 2 of those, marking his 2nd straight 2-TD outing. But it's been Damien Harris dominating the work with QB Cam Newton. Among 29 snaps that Newton has played through 2 games, Harris has been on the field for 16. James White has played 9 of them, with Sony Michel in for 4. So all of Stevenson's work has come with reserves. According to Establish The Run's Adam Levitan, White has been on the field for the only 3 third-down snaps with Newton. Stevenson will bear watching, but Harris' role doesn't appear to be under seige. And keep White in mind as a late PPR option in fantasy football drafts.
On Friday, WR Larry Fitzgerald spoke about his NFL future on SiriusXM Mad Dog Sports Radio. “I just don’t have the urge to play right now,” Fitz said. “I don’t know how I’ll feel in September, October, November moving forward, but as of today I just don’t have the urge.” Currently a free agent, the 38-year-old was always believed to be leaning toward retirement. If that holds up, he'll retire with 1,432 career catches — 2nd most all-time.
The Jaguars started rookie QB Trevor Lawrence in the preseason opener and plan to do so again Monday against the Saints, but OC Darrell Bevell says that doesn't mean they've decided on their regular-season starter. “We’re still going to handle it that way until we end up making the final decision,” Bevell said, via the Florida Times-Union. “Right now, they are still status quo. We’re trying to make everybody better. We want competition at each and every position. Both guys are getting better because of it.” It's still hard to imagine Jacksonville actually going with Minshew in the regular-season opener. But we have to consider it a possibility. We'll all be watching this situation over the next few weeks.
Per Packers beat writer Zach Kruse, TE Jace Sternberger “isn’t a lock” to make the team. Kruse writes that the team “clearly wants more consistency” from the 25-year-old. Just last summer, Sternberger looked like a fantasy sleeper at TE. But injuries and the rise of Robert Tonyan now has Sternberger’s roster spot in jeopardy. Oh, and he’s also suspended for the first 2 games of the regular season after violating the league’s substance abuse policy. We'll be curious to see how Sternberger fares if given a fresh start elsewhere, but for now, he's off the fantasy radar.
Katherine Terrell of The Athletic writes that it “feels like” Saints RB Latavius Murray will avoid getting cut. Terrell adds, however, that Murray’s status on the team “doesn’t seem as clear cut as it might have weeks ago.” Murray, 31, fumbled in the preseason opener and carries a cap hit of nearly $4.2 million. Still, with depth options like Devonta Freeman and Tony Jones, we’d be surprised if the Saints dumped Murray. It's at least a storyline to watch over the coming weeks.
Patriots QB Cam Newton got the start for the 2nd straight preseason game on Thursday night vs. the Eagles. He was sharp, finishing 8 of 9 for 103 yards and a TD to WR Jakobi Meyers in 3 series. QB Mac Jones played the next 4 possessions, completing 13 of 19 passes for 146 yards, 0 TDs and 0 INTs. The rookie earned a strong 93.2 passing grade from Pro Football Focus. Newton finished with a solid 85.5 grade. Newton remains the slight favorite to get the Week 1 starting nod, but there's still time for Jones to change that.
Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson stuffed the stat sheet for the 2nd straight game on Thursday night, carrying 15 times for 66 yards and 2 scores vs. the Eagles. But he once again got 0 snaps with the starters, playing behind RBs Damien Harris, Sony Michel and James White. Stevenson also lost a fumble. The rookie still has work to do to be a fantasy factor this year. For now, he's just a late-round flier.
Patriots WR N'Keal Harry appeared to suffer a shoulder injury in the 2nd quarter of Thursday night's preseason game vs. the Eagles. He was in a sling afterward, according to The Boston Herald. Harry has reportedly had a nice August and seemed in line to open the season as New England's #4 receiver. We'll see how long this injury keeps him sidelined. He remains off the fantasy radar for now.
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