Rams QB Matt Stafford practiced on Tuesday, running the 1st-team offense in the team's 1st padded session of training camp. The thumb injury he suffered on Monday clearly isn't a concern. Consider Stafford's fantasy stock unaffected.
Cowboys WR Amari Cooper (ankle) told reporters on Tuesday that he's "close to 100%." It's still a bit concerning that Cooper isn't all the way back to 100% after January ankle surgery. But the news on his progress has been positive over the past few days. If he gets on the practice field in mid-August, as planned, and avoids a setback, he should be ready to rock come Week 1.
49ers QB Trey Lance got reps with the 1st-team offense in team drills on Tuesday for the 1st time in training camp. The rookie has been out-playing QB Jimmy Garoppolo by all accounts -- and it looks like he's getting rewarded. While HC Kyle Shanahan has still said that Garoppolo is his starter, it might simply become impossible to keep Lance off the field. We'll see how preseason goes, but bet on seeing Lance under center for San Francisco early on this season, if not by Week 1. He's a high-upside fantasy pick.
Bears HC Matt Nagy suggested Tuesday that RB Tarik Cohen is more "weeks away" than "days away" from returning from last September's torn ACL. Nagy added, "I don’t want to put a timeline (on it) ... It’s all going to be day-by-day on how much growth he has or improvement." We're still over 5 weeks away from Chicago's season opener. But it's beginning to look like Cohen will at least be limited to start the season -- if he's out there at all. He's nothing more than a late-round stab in PPR drafts right now. RB David Montgomery would get a boost if Cohen isn't ready come Week 1.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott has “taken a step back” in his return from a right shoulder strain, per HC Mike McCarthy. “We’ve kind of taken a step back," McCarthy said Tuesday. “We still feel the same about the type of injury. Only the timeline has changed. After research and looking at, we just don’t want this to turn into something big. ...We’re just being a little more conservative with the rehab.” While Dallas is being overly cautious, Dak is still taking on more risk as an early-round QB1. Interestingly, McCarthy did note that the team “definitely” hopes to have Prescott get some preseason reps. We’ve altered our QB rankings to reflect today’s news.
X-rays on Rams QB Matt Stafford's right thumb came back clean, The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue reports. "I don’t think anybody is panicking, although I would not be surprised if he were to be held out for a day at least as an extra precaution," Rodrigue added. We'll keep an eye on Stafford, but this doesn't sound like something that'll impact his 2021 season.
Broncos WR KJ Hamler missed practice today due to COVID-19 protocols, per team insider Mike Klis. Hamler told reporters last week that he was fully vaccinated — but not yet 14 days clear of his 2nd shot. Loaded with speed, the former Round 2 pick will likely need an injury to Courtland Sutton or Jerry Jeudy to emerge in fantasy. We'll let you know when he returns to practice.
Update: Hamler said Wednesday that he missed practice due to a false positive. He was back at practice on August 4.
Chiefs WR Tyreek Hill is dealing with knee tendinitis, HC Andy Reid said. Hill was held out of Tuesday's practice. This tends to be more of a discomfort thing than a real injury. We'll keep an eye on it, but consider Hill's fantasy stock unaffected for now.
Colts HC Frank Reich said Tuesday that G Quenton Nelson has the same foot injury as QB Carson Wentz, according to multiple reports. He's having surgery immediately and faces the same return window (5-12 weeks) as Wentz. That's bad news for Jonathan Taylor and everyone else who lines up in the Indy backfield. We'll see exactly how long Nelson (and Wentz) remains out.
Giants WR Kenny Golladay appeared to suffer a hamstring injury at Tuesday’s practice. He grabbed the back of his left leg after a play in 7 on 7s. The 27-year-old walked inside to get checked out by a trainer, and we’ll pass along any updates when they become available.
Surgery on Colts QB Carson Wentz's left foot on Monday was successful, HC Frank Reich said. Doctors did not find any additional damage to the foot. That might put Wentz on the shorter end of his reported 5-12 week timetable for return. He's expected to start rehab in a couple of weeks. We'll continue to keep an eye on him.
Rams QB Matt Stafford injured his right (throwing) thumb during Monday's practice. He reportedly slammed it into a defender's helmet on his follow-through. “We’ll see,” HC Sean McVay said after practice. “We’ll see what they say and take it one day at a time.” Stafford had surgery to repair a partially torn ligament in that thumb in early March, right after he was traded to the Rams. We'll update his status as soon as we know more.
Texans QB Deshaun Watson was held out of Tuesday's practice with a foot injury. It "isn't regarded as major," according to insider Aaron Wilson. We'll keep an eye on this, but it sounds like the foot is the least of the worries for Watson, who is still facing sexual assault charges and also wants out of Houston.
Rams RB Darrell Henderson is "looking healthy and explosive" early in training camp, according to The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue. It's notable after Henderson was hobbled by an undisclosed injury this spring. Durability has been a problem for Henderson through 2 NFL seasons, which HC Sean McVay pointed out recently. Henderson is set to take on his biggest workload as a pro this year with RB Cam Akers out.
The Giants have activated LB Blake Martinez off the COVID list. We'll watch for any sign that Martinez is feeling after-effects, but he should be good to go for IDP usage. The team also placed LB Todd Davis on the reserve/retired list. The Giants had just signed Davis late last week.
SI's Grant Cohn reports that 49ers TE George Kittle has caught just 2 passes through 5 days of camp. "Instead they're using him as a blocker and a decoy while they call passes for Brandon Aiyuk, Deebo Samuel and Ross Dwelley," Cohn writes. That does seem odd given the financial commitment to Kittle. We'll go ahead and give HC Kyle Shanahan the benefit of the doubt and assume he has not converted Kittle to decoy/blocker. But Kittle's early-round draft position makes this situation worth keeping an eye on -- especially given that San Francisco is bringing along a rookie QB. It's tough to imagine the Niners getting too cute just to try to hide that they like Kittle.
Jets WR Elijah Moore has been "unstoppable" through the first week of camp, according to The New York Daily News' DJ Bien-Aime. The rookie has been playing both outside and in the slot. "At this rate, there’s no way the Jets can keep him out of the starting lineup as he has done nothing but create big plays," Bien-Aime adds. It's a continuation of what was reportedly a dominant spring from Moore. We'll see exactly how New York's WR corps shakes out (Corey Davis is the only guy with a starting spot locked up), but Moore is certainly worth a shot at his 13th-round ADP.
Colts RB Jonathan Taylor has been an "active and able receiver" in training camp so far, catching a team-leading 6 passes in 11-on-11 work, according to The Indy Star's Joel Erickson. Target volume is the biggest question for Taylor heading into 2021. Even during his 6-game hot stretch to close last season, he averaged just 2.7 targets and 2 catches per game. RB Nyheim Hines returns after leading all RBs in Pro Football Focus receiving grade last year, so it's possible that Taylor's role in the passing game doesn't grow. It's at least encouraging to hear that he's been busy as a receiver in camp. We'll see if that carries over into the preseason.
Jaguars RB Travis Etienne has been busy and effective in the passing game early in camp, according to Sports Illustrated's John Shipley. The rookie "has shown terrific hands and burst after the catch," Shipley adds. It's still unclear how carries will be divvied in Jacksonville between Etienne and James Robinson. But Etienne is the clear favorite to lead the way in targets after catching 85 balls over his final 2 seasons at Clemson.
ESPN's Chris Mortensen confirms that Colts QB Carson Wentz (foot) has not been ruled out for Week 1. The short end of the 5-12 week timetable we got for Wentz would put him back on the field about a week before the opener. Mortensen does add, though, that Wentz playing Week 1 is "optimistic." He's set to begin his rehab in 2 weeks, so we should start to get a better idea of his status after that. Fantasy drafters should still be working under the assumption that Wentz will not be available for the start of the season.
Search
