Mendenhall to return in Week 5

Oct 01, 2012

Rashard Mendenhall is expected to make his debut Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles at Heinz Field.

Mendenhall, who posted two 1,000-yard rushing seasons in the past three years, missed the first three games of the regular season while recovering from mid-January ACL surgery, and, without him, the Steelers running game has struggled.

Fantasy Impact:

It appears Mendy will be the feature guy with Isaac Redman as the backup and Jonathan Dwyder getting "squeezed out" of the mix, according to the story. We thought Adrian Peterson would be eased back into touches, but that wasn't the case and it could be the same for Mendenhall. But, he's still a risk to give up some work - at least this week - until he's back into game shape. The one thing going for owners is that the Steelers really need his services, although the matchup could be a tough one against a decent Eagles defense. He'll likely be at least a flex option when rankings come out this week, but continue to monitor his progress leading up to the game.

yesterday

Chargers to sign RB J.K. Dobbins on one-year deal

Tom Pelissero

yesterday · 7:45 PM EDT

Former Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins is planning to sign with the #Chargers on a one-year deal. Electric when healthy, Dobbins — who averages 5.8 yards per carry in his career — reunites with OC Greg Roman and can hit the market again in March.

Related Players: Gus Edwards

Fantasy Impact:

Dobbins has had poor injury luck in his career, but has only managed 234 total rushes since being drafted in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft. This is a low-risk, high-reward move by the Chargers and might give them a runway to wait a little longer in the '24 Draft before they address the position.

Apr 16

Cowboys sign RB Royce Freeman

Todd Archer

Apr 16 · 8:15 PM EDT

The Cowboys have signed running back Royce Freeman to a one-year deal. Freeman had 319 yards on 77 carries with 2 touchdowns last year for the Los Angeles Rams. He was 3rd round pick of Denver in '18.

Related Players: Rico Dowdle, Deuce Vaughn

Fantasy Impact:

Freeman hasn't rushed for 500 yards since 2018, his rookie season. This shouldn't have any impact on the team drafting at the position and/or bringing back Ezekiel Elliott.

Apr 15

Eagles sign WR DeVonta Smith to three-year extension

Ian Rapoport

Apr 15 · 10:45 AM EDT

The Eagles have paid another big-time, rising player. This time, WR DeVonta Smith gets a 3-year, $75M contract extension that includes $51M guaranteed.

Related Players: A.J. Brown, DeVante Parker, Parris Campbell

Fantasy Impact:

Great news for Jalen Hurts and the Eagles offense as a whole. Smith will continue his 1b role in which he finished the 2023 season as fantasy's WR22.