Eagles QB Jalen Hurts missed Thursday night's game against the Patriots with what's been diagnosed as a stomach infection, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Hurts was reportedly told to rest at home for 2 days. Beyond that, he should be good to go. We'll pass along any further upsdates.
Lions RB D'Andre Swift has been hampered by a sore groin for the past few weeks. But he "took a heavy load of reps Thursday and said afterward he felt good to be back," according to Tim Twentyman of the team's official website. It sounds like the Lions have simply been playing it cautiously with their lead back. We'll continue to keep an eye on Swift. But, barring a setback, he should be a full-go for the start of the season.
The Eagles announced just before Thursday night's game against the Patriots that they would hold QB Jalen Hurts out because of illness. That gave Joe Flacco the start (and it didn't go well). This doesn't look like a situation that will affect Hurts' availability any further.
Jets DE Carl Lawson confirmed Thursday afternoon that he tore his left Achilles' tendon. That obviously means he'll miss this season, his 1st with the Jets after arriving in free agency. We'll see about Lawson next offseason, heading into his age-27 campaign. Expect Vinny Curry and John Franklin-Myers to run as the top 2 edge players for the Jets now.
Jets DE Carl Lawson left the practice field on a cart Thursday after suffering a left leg injury, according to Connor Hughes of The Athletic. Hughes reports that "the entire field was silent when Lawson went down." That doesn't sound good for the 26-year-old big-money free-agent addition. We'll watch for a diagnosis. For now, don't draft Lawson in your IDP league.
Update: NFL Network is reporting that Lawson is getting an MRI on his left Achilles' tendon and that he felt a "pop" when he went down. We're removing him from the rankings for now, as we await a firm diagnosis.
Bucs RB Gio Bernard will be a "major part of the offense," HC Bruce Arians said Thursday. Arians went on to say that Bernard has been “more than pretty good” since joining the team. Arians is no stranger to hyperbole, so take this with at least a small grain of salt. But Bernard did match RBs Leonard Fournette and Ronald Jones with 2 snaps with the 1st-team offense in the preseason opener. Both of Bernard's snaps came on 3rd down. We're expecting him to play a big role on passing downs -- although we'd still be surprised if he took too many carries from Fournette and Jones.
Ravens TE Mark Andrews needed to be helped off the practice field Thursday morning, but it doesn't sound like it'll be a lingering issue. HC John Harbaugh said afterward that Andrews was dealing with "some pretty serious cramping," thanks to a spike in humidity. Andrews got fluids via IV but should rebound quickly.
Packers HC Matt LaFleur said Thursday that QB Jordan Love is "unlikely" to play in Saturday's preseason game against the Jets, according to Matt Schneidman of The Athletic. That it's not a definite no from the coach at this point indicates Love's shoulder issue is minor, just as the team has said. Kurt Benkert would start in place of Love, with Aaron Rodgers staying out of harm's way.
Bears HC Matt Nagy expects QB Justin Fields (groin) to play in Saturday's preseason game vs. the Bills. So that groin injury obviously isn't serious. Nagy also said that QB Andy Dalton will start and play at least a quarter and a half. The veteran continues to look like the favorite to start Week 1. We'll see if the rookie can make up ground this weekend.
Juwan Johnson "seems headed for a Jared Cook-type of role" for the Saints, The Athletic's Katherine Terrell writes. Johnson went undrafted last year after playing WR in college (3 seasons at Penn State, 1 at Oregon). He went catch-less last year and has now made the switch to TE at 6'4, 230 pounds. Johnson played 4 of 20 snaps with the 1st-team offense in the preseason opener and didn't see a target. We're not ready to consider him a fantasy option yet. But any type of role Johnson plays in the passing game would be bad news for TE Adam Trautman.
Colts HC Frank Reich declined to give a timetable for QB Carson Wentz's return from foot surgery when asked on Wednesday. Wentz is now 16 days removed from that surgery. "He's getting very antsy. Very antsy," Reich said. "He's wanting to push the envelope, as I would expect. But he's gotta be patient and just stay focused on the mental side of it right now and we gotta let things take their course. But at the same time, there's a time to push things and we'll keep doing that as it's appropriate." Reich added that they'll have a better idea of Wentz's status when "we push it" but that they don't want to do that "too soon, too fast."
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott (shoulder) was a limited participant in Wednesday's practice, doing some light throwing. HC Mike McCarthy conceded that Prescott "probably" won't play in the preseason, but he remains on track for Week 1.
The Cowboys have agreed to a deal with free-agent K Lirim Hajrullahu, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. The former CFL kicker went to training camp with the Rams last summer but didn't make the regular-season roster and has yet to kick in a regular-season NFL game. He joined the Panthers this offseason but got cut in March. The addition is significant because Dallas K Greg Zuerlein has yet to come off the PUP list following offseason back surgery. We'll have to keep an eye on Zuerlein as we get into the meat of fantasy football draft season. If you're drafting this week, it's probably best to pass on the veteran kicker.
Panthers WR Robby Anderson is dealing with a hamstring "issue,” per beat writer Steve Reed. That news was passed down from HC Matt Rhule this morning. We’ll keep an eye out for an update on the severity and timetable for return. Anderson, 28, hasn’t missed a game since 2018.
The Seahawks will "roll with" RB Chris Carson this season, RBs coach Chad Morton said. "That's how it goes." It sure doesn't sound like Seattle plans on deploying a committee backfield this season with depth guys like Rashaad Penny, DeeJay Dallas and Travis Homer. Injuries, of course, have been a bugaboo for Carson. But he's averaged over 100 total yards and .76 TDs in healthy games over the last 3 seasons. That's RB1 production. Carson is worth considering in the back half of Round 3 -- and is a steal in the 4th round of fantasy drafts.
Bears QB Justin Fields missed Wednesday's practice with a groin injury. HC Matt Nagy said the team doesn't believe it's a significant injury but that Fields might not be able to play in the 2nd preseason game vs. the Bills on Saturday. That'd hurt the rookie's chances of moving past QB Andy Dalton before Week 1.
Seahawks WR Tyler Lockett is dealing with a groin injury. He’s been held out of team drills over the past 3 days, per beat writer Gregg Bell. HC Pete Carroll said the team is just being “careful” with the veteran WR. There’s no cause for concern right now; the groin is simply something to monitor.
After a rough start to training camp, Bengals QB Joe Burrow has "been stacking one quality practice on top of another over the past 10 days," Sports Illustrated's James Rapien writes. Burrow went 11 of 15 with 3 TDs in team drills on Monday, per Rapien, and also scrambled for a pair of 1st downs. That last note is especially encouraging for a guy returning from a serious knee injury. Burrow isn't going to play this preseason, so these practice reports are all we'll get before Week 1. He's probably not a guy you'll want to trust in that opener vs. the Vikings -- but Burrow could certainly be an every-week QB1 by October.
Seahawks WR D'Wayne Eskridge (toe) was activated from the PUP list and made his training camp debut on Tuesday. The rookie also missed minicamp with this toe injury, so he has a lot of catching up to do. We'll see how much ground he can make up over the next few weeks, but Eskridge won't be an early-season fantasy option.
The Seahawks have agreed to a 4-year extension with S Jamal Adams. The deal holds a maximum value of $72 million, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, with $38 million fully guaranteed. Adams has been in camp but sitting out practices. This deal should return him to full action. We haven't moved Adams down our DB rankings at all.
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