August 2017 4for4 Player News Articles

The Texans have signed star wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins to a lucrative five-year contract extension. ESPN’s Adam Schefter says that his deal will include the most guaranteed for a wide receiver ever.

State of the Texans is reporting that Hopkins’ deal will pay him $81 million over the five years with $50 million guaranteed.

Then the Texans signed starting tight end C.J. Fiedorowicz to a three-year, $21.5 million extension that included $10 million guaranteed, Schefter also reported.

As he enters the final year of his contract with the Miami Dolphins, the NFL is reviewing wide receiver Jarvis Landry for an alleged domestic incident involving his girlfriend.

An NFL spokesman confirmed that Landry is being looked at under the league’s personal conduct policy. That’s the same policy under which Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott was suspended for 6 games back on Aug. 11. Elliott is currently appealing.

“The matter remains under review,” the NFL spokesman said of Landry.

According to sources, the league is in possession of video from the alleged incident.

A Fort Lauderdale police report shows that Landry was allegedly involved in a domestic violence incident with his girlfriend earlier this year.

The case was passed forward to the Broward County State Attorney’s office, who confirmed that they are investigating.

According to sources, Landry’s girlfriend was not cooperating with authorities. She also later released a statement saying she was not physically hurt and called it a false story.

Landry's draft stock has taken a hit with the loss of Ryan Tannehill under the assumption that Jay Cutler would favor DeVante Parker. In 16 preseason pass attempts (two of which were negated by penalty), Cutler has targeted Parker five times and Landry three times, so within this small sample size, there is some reason for concern. The NFL's investigation is another grey cloud hanging over Landry's head. They recently handed Ezekiel Elliott a six-game suspension for an alleged domestic incident, so the league has been taking a harder stance on domestic violence after receiving a lot of criticism for only giving Ray Rice a two-game suspension a few years ago.

Adam Schefter appearing on the Mike and Mike Show: “The more that I have heard, the more I think [Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott] has a real chance to have some games knocked off the suspension.”

Related players: Darren McFadden

Schefter is about as plugged in as they come, so we should listen to what he says. It sounds as if the NFL may be willing to reduce the suspension to avoid a long court process and perhaps Elliott would be on board with that. Elliott's appeal should wrap up today, so hopefully we know more before the weekend. He would become much more appealing if his suspension were reduced to three or four games.

Bears wide receiver Cameron Meredith received about the best news possible regarding his injured left knee.

Doctors told Meredith on Tuesday that while the ACL in the knee is torn and will require replacement, other damage is minimal. The prognosis is for a full return in perhaps only eight months.

The injury was nasty enough to indicate more damage than a torn ACL, so this is relatively good news for Meredith.

Multiple tests confirm Chiefs RB Spencer Ware has a torn PCL & LCL. Surgery is imminent, source said. Done for 2017, intense rehab awaits.

Related players: Kareem Hunt

Against the Bengals, the Chiefs gave Kareem Hunt an extended look with the starters and he impressed, turning 11 touches into 63 yards, including 40 yards on eight carries. Against the Seahawks in the next preseason game, Hunt ran the ball nine times for 39 yards. If HC Andy Reid is to be believed, and he is typically forthcoming about such things, the team will hand the keys to Hunt. He is worthy of a 4th-round pick and more aggressive owners can target him in the 3rd round, where there is a swoon of reliable talent at the receiver and running back positions.

The player who figures to benefit most from Vance McDonald’s trade is veteran Garrett Celek, a sixth-year player who originally signed with the 49ers in 2012 as an undrafted rookie from Michigan State.

Celek has 56 catches for 678 yards and six touchdowns in 55 games. McDonald recorded 64 receptions for 866 yards and seven touchdowns in 48 games with 30 starts.

The 49ers could look to retain undrafted rookie tight end Cole Hikutini on the practice squad, if the team waives him and he goes unclaimed by the other 31 teams. Blake Bell, who enters his third season after being a fourth-round pick in 2015, faces a stiff challenge to make the team.

Related players: Logan Paulsen, George Kittle

We think Kittle could benefit the most from a fantasy standpoint, but maybe in the short term Celek is more productive. We think Kittle is a great athlete, although currently a little light for the position.

Ezekiel Elliott's appeal hearing to challenge his six-game suspension by the NFL isn't done yet.

The Cowboys running back began his fight Tuesday in New York, but the hearing will spill over into Wednesday, a source confirmed.

The hearing, which was held at an undisclosed location so the media couldn't stake out the league's Park Avenue headquarters, includes witness testimony.

Arbitrator Harold Henderson, a former long-time NFL employee, is making the decision whether to uphold, overturn or reduce the punishment issued by NFL commissioner Roger Goodell.

Jordan Matthews still hasn’t been cleared for full contact in practice, but he’s been working behind the scenes to ensure a smooth transition to regular season football in Week 1.

Matthews is limited in practice due to his non-contact status, but during special teams segments of practice he works on the side. After practice he goes an extra half hour putting in work. It all has him 100 percent confident his injured sternum will be fit for play on Sept. 10th against the Jets.

“I’m doing everything. I’m in shape,” Matthews said. “I’ve been going against the defense. I even had a couple of the DBs stay after practice and we just (worked on) releases. I had guys press me to see how I can get off the line. I feel I’m ready to go in those aspects. When it comes to preseason games like last week, if they haven’t seen me go to the ground yet, why risk it? That’s the biggest thing.”

Matthews said the area of pain, which was pretty much his entire upper torso, has been reduced considerably. The story added his catch radius is the same. HC Sean McDermott added he's cautiously optimistic Matthews will play, according to the story.

Brandon Marshall appeared to be a full participant during Tuesday's session, the final of the preseason, after being out and limited the past few days with a shoulder injury suffered in the Giants' Aug. 20 exhibition loss to the Browns.

The story said Marshall caught a pass during the red zone period but didn't talk to reporters afterward. HC Ben McAdoo didn't commit to Marshall getting any playing time in the team's final preseason game.

The acquisition of former 49er Vance McDonald -- whom HC Mike Tomlin calls an "NFL-caliber tight end" -- puts the team's current tight ends on notice, though that doesn't mean they can't all coexist.

"We're not going to anoint him in any way," Tomlin said of McDonald. "We're going to put him in uniform like the rest of them and continue to allow them to sort themselves out. It's reasonable to expect the guys that are here to respond positively in the right way to his presence and elevate their play."

Related players: Jesse James, Xavier Grimble

McDonald will be jumping into a nuanced offensive system cold. Being ready for Week 1 beyond a few packages is a big ask. James and Grimble can still serve an important role in the passing game, particularly in the red zone. It's clear McDonald can fight for a starting job once up to speed. With seven touchdown catches in the past two years, Ben Roethlisberger will likely utilize him in this area. Tomlin said he liked McDonald as a prospect out of Rice in 2013.

PFT's Mike Florio predicts that Ezekiel Elliott will suit up in Week 1. In a video, Florio said, “It feels like it’s careening towards the court system… which tells me there’s a very good chance that Elliott will be suiting up” in Week 1.

"I think the way that it's going to go, if recent history holds, he will get an injunction preventing the league from suspending him to start the season, suspending him at all until the litigation is over. And the way these cases move, the litigation won't be over until next year. And right now, this is all lining up for Elliott to serve the suspension, if at all, in the 2018 season and to be able to play in 2017…”

If the suspension is upheld, Elliott needs to be granted an injunction by a judge in order to fight the suspension in court. He also must avoid Commissioner Goodell's Exempt List. Even if he were able to get an injunction, Goodell could put him on the Exempt List and hold him out. It's not clear what the chances are that this will happen. If he gets an injunction and stays off the Exempt List, he's likely to play a full seasons since the case will likely more than a few months to come to a conclusion.

Falcons running back Devonta Freeman returned to practice on Monday in one of the final steps he had to take before being cleared from the concussion protocol and no red flags that would have led to a longer stay were triggered once he got back on the field.

Coach Dan Quinn said Tuesday that Freeman is out of the concussion protocol and cleared for full action for the first time since getting hurt on August 13.

Freeman won’t play on Thursday in the preseason finale, but clearing the protocol leaves him on track to play when the Falcons begin the regular season against the Bears on September 10.

It looks like quarterback Joe Flacco isn't the only injured Baltimore Ravens player on track for the season opener.

The Ravens are "very optimistic" wide receiver Breshad Perriman will play Sept. 10 in Cincinnati, coach John Harbaugh said Tuesday.

"That's barring any kind of setback," Harbaugh added.

Related players: Michael Campanaro

Perriman, the team's 2015 first-round pick, hasn't practiced since suffering a significant hamstring injury on Aug. 1. He isn't expected to play in Thursday's preseason finale, which means he has only played in one preseason game in three NFL seasons. The hope is for Perriman to be Baltimore's No. 3 receiver behind Jeremy Maclin and Mike Wallace. In Perriman's absence, Michael Campanaro has been the third receiver.

New England Patriots wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell returned to the practice field on Tuesday after a weeklong absence following the team's second preseason game.

Mitchell, who had a strong rookie season, has been in and out of practice all summer. He was limited early in training camp, but played in the Week 2 preseason game at Houston. During his time on the field in that game, Mitchell kept grabbing at his right knee. He remained in the game, however, and appeared to be moving well.

Related players: Danny Amendola

We had a news story Monday saying the Pats potentially have plans for Mitchell to help replace the loss of Julian Edelman. Danny Amendola is expected to see more snaps, perhaps in the 40-50-percent range, but that position may very well see a split of Amendola and Mitchell, as long as Mitchell can stay healthy.

New Orleans Saints wide receiver Willie Snead was among 11 players to not practice Tuesday as the team prepares for Thursday's preseason finale.

For Snead, it marked the second consecutive day he was not on the field for undisclosed reasons. Snead played in the third preseason game and totaled one catch for 4 yards on 21 offensive snaps.

Related players: Ted Ginn

We just posted a new item from ESPN where the author feels Ted Ginn may have passed Snead on the depth chart as the team's WR2. Obviously Snead missing practice isn't going to help the situation, but on top of that Snead apparently hasn't done a whole lot in camp to this point.

49ers trading TE Vance McDonald and a fifth-round pick to the Steelers for a fourth-round pick, per sources. Steelers upgrade TE.

Related players: Jesse James, George Kittle

The addition of McDonald muddles the tight end situation in Pittsburgh. Jesse James is expected to start, but it's likely that the more athletic McDonald eats into his workload. McDonald certainly has more long-term upside as a fantasy producer, but owners shouldn't expect big (TE2) numbers right away as he will need to settle in, learn the offense and build a rapport with Ben Roethlisberger. Meanwhile, in San Francisco, the trade should open up starter-type snaps for rookie George Kittle, who is a freak of an athlete at the position, even if he's a bit light (20 lbs lighter than McDonald) for a tight end. Kittle can be taken in the final rounds as an upside TE2.

The Titans have created some enthusiasm this preseason, and they’ve done it without their top draft pick.

But apparently they’re confident first-rounder Corey Davis is going to be ready to start the regular season.

According to Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network, the No. 5 overall pick is expected to be ready for the opener against the Raiders.

Davis has been brought along slowly with his hamstring. He's missed a lot of time so he may not jump into a full workload even if he plays Week 1. The story said the hope is he's the team's long term WR1.

I pretty much expected Willie Snead to settle in as the New Orleans Saints' No. 2 receiver after they traded Brandin Cooks this offseason.

But as this summer has gone on, it's starting to look like veteran newcomer Ted Ginn Jr. might push him for that unofficial title -- or, better yet, that the Saints might not have anyone who is considered a No. 2 receiver behind Michael Thomas.

The story went on to say the Saints love to spread the ball around. Snead has had a very quiet summer, with just three catches for 18 yards in a total of three preseason games. There are other hints - like Ginn being listed ahead of Snead on the Saints' unofficial depth chart and Snead playing deep into the fourth quarter of New Orleans' second preseason game.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh guaranteed that quarterback Joe Flacco would be ready to go in time for the season opener on September 10 and the quarterback has taken a step toward fulfilling that promise.

Harbaugh said Tuesday that Flacco has resumed throwing after an extended layoff due to a back issue that cropped up earlier this summer. Flacco initially said he hoped to be out of action for a week, but he has not practiced or played in any preseason games while waiting for the go-ahead to resume work.

Related players: Ryan Mallet

Flacco is not practicing with the team yet, the story said, but that should be the next step in getting ready for the Week 1 game against the Bengals. Mallett has filled in for Flacco as the starter during training camp and the preseason but has not looked great.

Just three days removed from sustaining concussions in the game against Baltimore, there wasn’t much of an update on Buffalo’s two injured quarterbacks, Tyrod Taylor and T.J. Yates.

“They’re in concussion protocol,” said head coach Sean McDermott. “Very little information flows out of that. That’s part of the situation. We just respect what’s going on there and they’re in the protocol and that’s basically the information I get every day.”

Neither quarterback will be available for Thursday’s preseason finale against Detroit. That leaves Buffalo with rookie Nate Peterman and Keith Wenning, who signed Monday as the only healthy quarterbacks for the Lions game.

The story said the hope is for both Taylor and Yates to be ready for opening day. The team is rushing to get Wenning up to speed so as not to have to expose Peterman to a lot of time in preseason Week 4, knowing he's the only healthy QB right now.

Matthew Stafford has made a home in the Motor City, leading the Detroit Lions on the field and becoming a first-time father with twin girls earlier this year.

“Aggressive start,” Stafford recently cracked.

The Lions, likewise, made an aggressive move to keep their franchise quarterback around for many more years with the richest contract in NFL history.

Stafford agreed to a $135 million extension, according to a person familiar with the deal. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because financial terms of the contract were not disclosed. The team announced the five-year deal keeps Stafford under contract through the 2022 season.

The Patriots are obviously going to have to adjust after the injury to wide receiver Julian Edelman, but newcomer Brandin Cooks already figured to be a big part of their offensive plan.

Acquired in a trade with the Saints this offseason, Cooks said the job got tougher without Edelman (who suffered a torn ACL in their most recent preseason game), but he knew he was walking into an environment where adaptability was key.

“Very unfortunate, a guy like that; a warrior who works so hard,” Cooks said of Edelman, via Mike Reiss of ESPN.com. “At the same time, we know we have to get ready, to keep the wheels turning and do what we have to do to make up for that.”

Cooks says he feels fresh but is still learning the demands of the Pats offense. We have Cooks ranked 12th on our list of WRs.

Yes, Mike McCarthy said he wants the ball in Randall Cobb’s hands more often. And during training camp, the Green Bay Packers' seventh-year receiver has looked as good as ever.

The addition of tight ends Martellus Bennett and Lance Kendricks may mean the Packers employ fewer formations that include receiver Randall Cobb (above). Isaiah J. Downing/USA TODAY Sports
But this isn’t the offense of the last few years, where McCarthy sends out three receivers, a tight end and a running back for snap after snap. Since 2013, only four teams have run more plays with three receivers on the field than the Packers, according to ESPN Stats & Information. In that same stretch, no team has run fewer plays with multiple tight ends on the field than the Packers.

That all could change this season with the addition of veteran tight ends Martellus Bennett and Lance Kendricks, and it could impact Cobb more than any individual on the roster.

Related players: Martellus Bennett, Lance Kendricks

The story pointed to an example where the Pack went with a two-TE package along with Jordy Nelson and Davante Adams at WR on first and second down before eventually having Cobb replace Kendricks on third down. Granted it's only preseason, but Cobb seems to be the WR who will get less time if there are two TEs on the field.

When asked about a specific player, Patriots coach Bill Belichick will often describe the player's preparedness ("works hard") and list several noticeable attributes ("smart, fast, instinctive").

Rarely does Belichick drop any line that reflects a superlative or ranking.

Keep that in mind when reading Belichick's response to a question about Chris Hogan during Monday's WEEI interview.

"Chris has done a good job for us," Belichick said. "I thought he did a good job last year. He's built on that with a year of experience. He's one of our best players, (and) again, another hard working guy that's tough. He's been very dependable for us."

Hogan had a career season in 2016 and seems poised to take another step this year, especially with Julian Edelman lost for the year. He has established an obvious rapport with Tom Brady. He starred in joint practices against the Texans and was terrific in Friday's preseason win over the Lions (four receptions, 70 yards, two touchdowns).

He’s back, and Leonard Fournette feels good about that.

He’s confident, too – and when discussing the Jaguars’ 2017 first-round selection Monday afternoon, confidence was the norm.

Fournette is back practicing, and he’s increasing repetitions.

Fournette returned to practice Saturday and has been a full go since, the story said. HC Doug Marrone said Fournette has looked good and he's like what he's seen from him.

Wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. remains absent from New York Giants practice but is "improving," according to coach Ben McAdoo. The team is hopeful Beckham will be available for the season opener on Sept. 10 against the Dallas Cowboys as he recovers from an ankle injury.

He hasn't been outside at practice since, not even to work on the side with a trainer. He's in a race against time to be ready for the opener, the story said. While McAdoo is hopeful, the story says it's more like wishful thinking and Beckham hasn't even jogged to this point.

Jets head coach Todd Bowles has named veteran Josh McCown the team’s starting quarterback.

“It’s a lot overall," Bowles said. "He gives us the best chance to win right now.”

Related players: Christian Hackenberg

As long as the Jets can stay in the playoff race, McCown's job should be pretty safe. But once that's no longer the case, there could be a push to get Hackenberg on the field to see what the former second round pick can do.

Maybe the nine-day competition was good for quarterback Blake Bortles.

Jacksonville Jaguars coach Doug Marrone said Bortles has been very good in practice during the three-day stretch since being renamed the starter on Saturday morning. So good, in fact, that Marrone said he has never seen Bortles better.

"I think he's doing a nice job," Marrone said Monday afternoon. "I really do. For me, personally, it's the best I've seen him."

Related players: Chad Henne

Marrone added that Bortles seems more relaxed and his footwork is better than it was before Marrone opened up the competition, the story said.

After strong performances from both Scott Tolzien and Stephen Morris in Saturday’s preseason contest against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts head coach Chuck Pagano said he’d need to review the film before determining which quarterback would work with the first team moving forward.

And on Monday, after the Colts players returned after a day off to prepare for Thursday’s 2017 preseason finale against the Cincinnati Bengals, Pagano said Tolzien remained as the team’s No. 1 quarterback for the day’s practice session.

Related players: Andrew Luck

Morris also played well for the Colts against the Steelers. Luck's timetable to return from shoulder surgery remains up in the air and he's still on the PUP list.

Lions tight end Eric Ebron finally returned to practice. He suffered a hamstring injury on the first day of camp, and besides about 15 minutes of work during one of the joint practices against Indianapolis, he hadn't been seen since.

The story went on to say coaches expected Ebron to return a couple weeks ago, but he continued to miss time. Ebron has repeatedly refused to answer questions about his status or why his return was delayed, but it looks like he'll be good to go Week 1.

Bears wide receiver Cameron Meredith hurt his knee early in Sunday’s game against the Titans and word out of the locker room at halftime was that the team’s doctors thought Meredith tore his ACL.

Meredith had further tests done to confirm that diagnosis and the news didn’t get any better after the results came in. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that Meredith does have a torn ACL and that he also suffered “other damage” to his knee that will require other tests.

Related players: Kevin White, Markus Wheaton, Kendall Wright

This is an injury that looked bad from the beginning so it's not a shocking turn of events. Meredith was the team's leading WR last year. The hope for the Bears is White steps up and lives up to his first-round potential. As we said in an earlier story from today, Wheaton and Wright look to be next up on the Bears depth chart after White.

The Giants got one of their two injured wide receivers back at practice on Monday.

Brandon Marshall has been out of practice since leaving last Monday night’s game against the Browns to get X-rays on his shoulder. Giants coach Ben McAdoo provided little information about Marshall’s status, confirming only that Marshall has “a shoulder” and that the team would see how he responded to treatment.

Related players: Odell Beckham

Meanwhile, other reports stated McAdoo said Beckham's ankle is "improving" but he wasn't at practice on Monday.

The good news is Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch won’t need surgery.

The bad news is, he’s still going to miss some time, which means they may have to make a short-term roster move.

Related players: Trevor Siemian, Kyle Sloter

He's expected to miss a few weeks according to the story. Sloter is the only other active QB on the roster and the team is expected to bring in another arm to play in preseason Week 4.

Kevin White has to take over for Cameron Meredith, plain and simple. The Bears invested the seventh overall pick of the draft in White back in 2015, but up to this point, the team has almost nothing to show for it. White has played in just four regular season games because of two separate fractures in his leg, but he’s practiced virtually every day this summer. It’s now or never. At 6-foot-3, 216 pounds, White is built like a Pro Bowler. Now it’s time to play like one.

Related players: Markus Wheaton, Kendall Wright, Deonte Thompson, Tanner Gentry

The story listed Wheaton, Wright, Thompson and Gentry as the 2-5 receivers. Victor Cruz is also in the mix but the story said Cruz just hasn't made an impact. Wheaton is guaranteed to make $6 million so the story said he's making the team, however he's been injury. Wright, meanwhile, has had a good camp and is expected to make the 53-man roster as well.

New England Patriots running back Rex Burkhead returned to practice Monday after missing all of last week.

Burkhead, who starred in the Patriots' second preseason game, did not play in Friday's win over the Lions.

Burkhead really stood out the last time he played leaving some who cover the team wondering if he's the next Danny Woodhead. This is certainly a situation to monitor. Burkhead may be worth a late-round flier just in case he does take on that role. But it's a crowded backfield in New England and it's possible we may have no better idea of the workload even after a few games.

It was notable to me that Tom Brady mentioned veteran receiver Danny Amendola first when assessing where the Patriots go from here, without Julian Edelman. Brady has a similar level of trust with Amendola, as was evidenced in Super Bowl LI.

The Patriots have managed Amendola's playing time carefully in recent years -- hoping to keep him healthy for the long haul -- with the 2016 season a good example of it.

Through the first 12 games of 2016, Amendola had averaged 22.1 offensive snaps per game. That ranked behind Edelman (57.2 percent), Chris Hogan (49.3) and Malcolm Mitchell (29.9).

The Pats are still going to monitor Amendola's workload. This writer feels 40-50 percent of the snaps are a realistic range. The story added in 2015, Amendola played 51.5 percent of the snaps and totaled a line of 65-648-3. The writer went on to say getting Mitchell healthy to fill some of the void is the team's best-case scenario at this point.

Despite the quick turnaround, Jay Cutler is confident in his progression heading into the regular season.

“Mentally I feel really good; physically I feel good,” Cutler said. “I think these next couple of days, just getting some more reps (will be important). Then just getting into game week, where we’re really game planning and honing things, getting a game plan exactly where we need to be. That’d be good.”

The story said Cutler had just six series and 19 plays worth of in-game work this summer. He's expected to sit for the team's final preseason game. Cutler's in a pretty good spot with all the talent around him and did a pretty good job of spreading the ball around against the Eagles last week, but he's only ranked 24th on our QB list. There could be some QB2 and streaming value there.

Rookie Mitchell Trubisky had another good day for the Bears, and they like his progress.

But they’re still confident that Mike Glennon is their starting quarterback.

Via Dan Wiederer of the Chicago Tribune, the Bears were encouraged by another sharp outing from the veteran free agent, and have no intention of making any changes from their previous plan.

Trubinsky has looked pretty good after the Bears gave up a ton to move up and draft him. For now at least, it looks like Glennon is the guy. That could change once the season starts if Glennon stars to struggle, especially if the Bears start to lose games.

With his offseason work scuttled by a wrist injury and his training camp and preseason scrapped due to a hamstring problem, Rams receiver Tavon Austin is moving closer to finally making his return to action.

“We’re not going to play him against Green Bay,” coach Sean McVay told reporters on Sunday regarding Austin. “If it was a normal game week, I think he would be able to play. He’s made huge progress . . . over the last week where he’s running, reaching some higher speeds on the treadmill and stuff where it’s 100 percent of the weight that he’s supporting. So those have been some good things and you’ll start to figure out – we’re going to have to start brainstorming some ways with how we’re going to utilize Tavon in that [Week 1] game, which will be fun.”

Related players: Sammy Watkins, Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp

McVay wouldn't say how Austin would be used. But as the story pointed out, he could see a lot less attention because of the other WRs, which could actually increase his production. Still, he's not a highly sought after fantasy player at this point, as he's only ranked 90th on our WR list.

For unexplained reasons, Bengals starting tight end Tyler Eifert isn’t expected to play against the Redskins. He was at all of last week’s practices, but Tyler Kroft gets the start.

Eifert, plagued by injuries all last season when he played just eight games, had back surgery after the season and missed all of the spring but has been full go since training camp. We'll continue to monitor the situation.

Coach Sean McDermott announced on Sunday that T.J. Yates also suffered a concussion during the game in Baltimore. Yates followed Nathan Peterman into the game in the second half and McDermott said Yates “took some licks later in the game” while discussing when he might have been injured.

Related players: Tyrod Taylor, Nathan Peterman

Of course, Taylor was injury last week with a concussion leaving Peterman as the team's only healthy QB. The Bills will likely have to sign another signal caller but this is an interesting situation to monitor as we draw closer to the start of the season.

Giovani Bernard saw game action for the first time since last November when he tore the anterior crucicate ligament in his left knee.

His first carry came on the final play of the first quarter Sunday against Washington. Bernard gained 2 yards. He finished the first half with four carries for 25 yards in 15 offensive snaps.

Related players: Joe Mixon, Jeremy Hill

Bernard spent almost the entire offseason in Cincinnati, rehabbing to get back after undergoing major knee surgery in November. The Bengals cleared him to practice the first day of training camp July 28, a remarkable recovery. Right now, it's a crowded back field in Cincy with Hill and Mixon also in the mix for carries.

Falcons running back Devonta Freeman will return to practice on Monday as a final stage of his concussion protocol.

Freeman did not play in Atlanta’s 24-14 preseason loss to Arizona on Saturday night and likely will be held out of Thursday night’s final preseason game against Jacksonville.

Freeman has missed two games while in the concussion protocol since agreeing to terms on a five-year, $41.25 million extension. Freeman should be good to go for Week 1.

Bears wide receiver Cameron Meredith left Sunday’s game against the Titans in the first quarter with a left knee injury and it looks like that will be the last time he sees the field this year.

Pam Oliver of FOX Sports reported early in the third quarter of the game that the Bears believe Meredith suffered a torn ACL.

Related players: Kevin White

Meredith’s leg bent the wrong way when he was brought down at the end of a play and it was quickly immobilized before Meredith rode a cart to the locker room. Meredith was Chicago’s leading receiver last year and his injury will increase the need for 2015 first-round pick White to make good on his potential after two years that were all but wiped out due to injury.

Jets quarterback Bryce Petty left Saturday night’s game against the Giants late in the fourth quarter after injuring his knee and said after the game that the knee didn’t feel stable, which means tests to see how severe the injury is and how long he’ll be out of action.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the initial belief is that Petty avoided an ACL injury, but that he suffered a “considerable” injury to his MCL. A fuller picture of his outlook will come after all tests have been completed, but it’s a good bet that Petty is going to miss a considerable amount of time if the first diagnosis is confirmed.

Related players: Josh McCown, Christian Hackenberg

Petty could go on IR with the possibility of returning later this season. Petty was likely behind McCown and Hackenberg on the depth chart.

Bears WR Cam Meredith is about to get carted off. Just awful. Last thing you want to see. His left knee was bent in a bad way.

Related players: Kevin White, Kendall Wright, Deonte Thompson, Markus Wheaton, Victor Cruz

The hits just keep on coming. Meredith was shaping up as an excellent middle-round value but now his Week 1 (and season) status are in serious question. Kevin White and Kendall Wright will probably be the two most fantasy relevant receivers on the Bears' roster if Meredith misses time.

Chiefs running back Spencer Ware’s season is likely over.

On Sunday, Chiefs head athletic trainer Rick Burkholder said Ware sustained a torn posterior cruciate ligament and damaged the posterior lateral corner of his right knee, which likely will require surgery.

“He damaged those and at this point in time, our medical staff believes that he needs season-ending surgery to correct that problem,” Burkholder said. “But like with all these significant injuries, we’ll exhaust all of our options and look at second opinions and then do what’s best for Spencer’s knee and his career.”

Despite the sliver of optimism Burkholder left regarding Ware’s chances of returning — he will have second opinions — Ware will miss several games. That means the starter for now is third-round rookie Kareem Hunt, coach Andy Reid said.

“I think we’re going to be OK there,” Reid said. “Now, are we going to replace Spence? No. I mean, he’s a good football player. But the young kid (Kareem Hunt), he’ll step in and he’ll do a nice job for us.”

Related players: Charcandrick West, C.J. Spiller

As the story mentions, there's a "sliver of optimism" but owners can confidently draft Kareem Hunt as the Chiefs' starter. The team gave Hunt an extended look with the starters against the Bengals, and he looked the part. Charcandrick West and C.J. Spiller will get some snaps, but all indications are that it's Hunt's job to lose. He can be drafted comfortably in the 4th round of 12-team drafts and more aggressive owners can target him in the 3rd round, where there's a swoon in reliable talent at running back and receiver. Remember, in 17 games where Ware saw at least 10 carries – 13 of those games occurred in 2016 – he averaged 17.9 touches for 99 yards and 0.59 touchdowns, or 15.5 fantasy points per game in PPR formats. Those numbers would have extrapolated to No. 8 running back numbers in 2016. This is the sort of upside that Hunt has as the lead back.

DeShone Kizer appeared to do enough to win the Browns’ starting quarterback job on Saturday night, and Browns coach Hue Jackson is set to make it official on Sunday.

Mary Kay Cabot of cleveland.com reports that Jackson has chosen Kizer over Brock Osweiler and Cody Kessler, and Kizer will start the season against the Steelers on September 10. Jackson will inform the team today and then announce the decision publicly, according to the report.

The rest of the Browns’ quarterback depth chart remains unclear. Cabot reports that fourth-stringer Kevin Hogan, who played well on Saturday night, may not only make the roster but even leapfrog Kessler on the depth chart.

We currently have Kizer 25th on our chart. Obviously you can expect some growing pains with the rookie QB, but should have more upside than Brock Osweiler would have provided. Kizer could help owners on his feet, as we project him to run 62 times this year and could end up stealing a few rushing TDs. He has low-end QB2 and streaming value.

Odell Beckham was at the game but wasn’t on the sideline with his teammates. He did not even make it out for the early pregame warmups.

“We thought it was best for Odell to get treatment and not be standing out there,” HC Ben McAdoo said.

There were reports that Beckham was going to have laser cell treatments on Friday. McAdoo noted Beckham was with the team Saturday, and if this was something being done, the coach was unaware.

Beckham is in a race to be ready for the season opener on Sept. 10, the story said.

Demaryius Thomas left the game on the Broncos' second possession with a groin injury. He is done for the night.

More details as they become available.

Thomas did not have a trainer around him on the sideline. Hopefully, it's not too severe. We'll monitor and update as more information becomes available.

Cardinals WR John Brown scored twice in the second quarter of Arizona's third preseason game, once from starting QB Carson Palmer and another from back-up Drew Stanton.

Related players: Larry Fitzgerald, David Johnson, Carson Palmer

Heading into last season, Brown was one of the best up-and-coming receivers in the league. He was 25 years old and coming off of a 65-catch, 1003-yard, 7-touchdown sophomore year. Last year, he struggled with his sickle cell trait and also discovered that he had a cyst in his back. The cyst has been removed and he is reportedly feeling like his old self again. Carson Palmer has taken notice: "He doesn't look like he looked last year. He just has a different energy about him. He's heavier. He's stronger. He looks more explosive than he did last year, I think, with all the health issues he had last year.” Beat writer Josh Weinfuss said that Brown, who has added 12 pounds of muscle this offseason, looks like a “game-changing receiver.” Michael Floyd is out of the way, so outside of Fitzgerald, Brown’s main competition for targets is J.J. Nelson and Jaron Brown. If John Brown is fully healthy again, and it appears that he is, he’s going to be a great value in the middle rounds.

From Ian Rapoport: "#Chiefs RB Spencer Ware suffered damage to his LCL & PCL, sources say & will miss time. Tests inconclusive. More coming to learn timeframe."

Related players: Kareem Hunt

This is not good news for Ware, though his recovery will depend on the severity of the ligament damage, anywhere from 10 days to eight weeks. We'll have more details as they come. Head coach Andy Reid said Saturday Kareem Hunt will be the "featured" back with Charcandrick West likely serving as his primary backup. Owners can expect fantasy RB2 numbers out of Hunt as long as Ware is out, and even if Ware only misses a few games, Hunt may not relinquish the starting job upon his return.

Tyrod Taylor went to the locker room with trainers and is in the concussion protocol.

Taylor's head bounced off the turf upon falling hard after being sacked in the BIlls preseason game against Baltimore.

Related players: Jordan Matthews, Zay Jones

Taylor was a 4for4 favorite in 2016 until Sammy Watkins’ injury and he still produced top 8 numbers with Watkins in and out of the lineup. He was a top 10 quarterback on a per game basis in 2015, so he has now produced starter-caliber numbers in two straight seasons. However, with the Bills trading Sammy Watkins, his ceiling is lower now, and if he is in the concussion protocol, his status for Week 1 will now need to be monitored.

“We were able to get Mike (Gillislee) a few carries and a few plays in the game,” Patriots coach Bill Belichick said. “I think he still has quite a ways to go. He has missed some practices this (summer) and missed some practices last spring. He’s worked hard to stay on top of things and to stay caught up, and we’ve worked hard to catch up, but we still have some ground to make up.”

Related players: James White, Rex Burkhead, Dion Lewis

This after Gillislee did have a 1-yard touchdown rush and a 27-yard burst against the Lions in New England's third preseason game, but in his other seven carries he only generated 11 yards. One savvy draft tactic is to target talented free agent backups when they land in good situations with new teams. It has worked in the past with Michael Turner, Darren Sproles, LaMont Jordan and Chester Taylor – remember those last two names? – and Gillislee jumps out as a good of a bet as any this year. Over the past two seasons, he has gained 844 yards on 148 carries (5.70 yards per carry) and found the end zone 12 times. In fact, among running backs with at least eight rush attempts inside the opponent's 5-yard line over the past two seasons, Gillislee is tied with Le’Veon Bell for the highest touchdown conversion rate (70.0 percent) in the league. With LeGarrette Blount off to Philadelphia, the Patriots are looking for a runner who can handle the power running game along with those short-yardage duties and Gillislee certainly fits the bill. As 4for4’s Chris Raybon mentioned in his in-depth examination of the New England backfield, the Patriots consistently rank in the top four in the number of plays run inside the opponent’s 10-yard line, so double-digit touchdowns are a distinct possibility for Gillislee. He’s also better equipped than Blount to stay on the field in some passing situations, and if he starts getting third-down/hurry-up work, watch out. The main concern right now is that Gillislee has missed a good chunk of camp with a hamstring injury.

Kareem Hunt will be the regular featured back for the Chiefs in Spencer Ware's absence, coach Andy Reid confirmed. "He'd be the next man up," Reid said. The other two backs, Charcandrick West and C.J. Spiller, may also get some work.

The Chiefs have not given a timetable for Ware's return; however, if he avoids surgery on his PCL, it would likely be in the 4-6 week range, reportedly. For drafts this weekend though, we have moved Kareem Hunt up significantly. It's hard to estimate where his ADP will land now, but we'd guess Hunt doesn't escape the 5th round. That would be appropriate as he's solidly an RB2 now with plus ability in the passing game too.

Blake Bortles is again what he was 10 days ago:

The Jaguars’ starting quarterback.

Bortles, who started the Jaguars’ last 45 regular-season games before Head Coach Doug Marrone opened up the position following an August 17 preseason loss to Tampa Bay, will start the team’s 2017 regular-season opener at Houston on September 10.

The team announced the decision early Saturday morning.

Chad Henne started the Jaguars’ preseason loss to Carolina Thursday, playing five first-half series with the first-team offense. Bortles played five second-half series behind the first-team offensive line with many second-team skill-position players in the game.

Henne completed eight of 14 passes for 73 yards and no touchdowns with no interceptions. Bortles completed 12 of 16 passes for 125 yards and a touchdown with an interception.

Henne didn't play particularly well in his audition to be the starter, so the Jaguars are going to go with Bortles in Week 1. Despite back-to-back top 10 finishes, he's a very dicey draft pick given the uncertainty.

Fears confirmed via MRI, Patriots WR Julian Edelman has a complete ACL tear in his right knee, per source.

Related players: Brandin Cooks, Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell, Danny Amendola

Hogan likely steps in and replaces most of his production in the offense. To this point, he's been more of a late-round flier thanks to the addition of Brandin Cooks, but he has the receiving chops to play in the slot or outside. In 18 games last season (including the postseason) he played at a 49-catch, 900-yard, 5.3-touchdown pace, which equates to fantasy WR4 numbers in PPR formats and low-end WR3 numbers in standard (thanks to his 18.4 yards per catch). Hogan will likely run more shorter routes causing his receptions to increase while the yardage and touchdowns stay about the same. He's our No. 42 receiver in PPR scoring, which would make him an 8th-round value on draft day. Most owners will probably be able to get him in the 10th or later.

Chiefs RB Spencer Ware is now being carted off the field after suffering a leg injury.

Update from Adam Schefter: "Chiefs think Spencer Ware suffered PCL injury, but he will undergo an MRI on Saturday to determine extent of injury. ACL thought to be fine."

Related players: Kareem Hunt, Charcandrick West

This is relatively good news for Ware, though his recovery will depend on the severity of the sprain, anywhere from 10 days to eight weeks. We'll have more details as they come. If Ware were to miss extended time, Kareem Hunt is the obvious beneficiary with Charcandrick West likely serving as his primary backup. Owners can expect fantasy RB2 numbers out of Hunt as long as Ware is out, and even if Ware only misses a few games, Hunt may not relinquish the starting job upon his return.

The first few camp practices, Jets WR Robbie Anderson didn't look like a guy who made much progress at all. He wasn't creating separation, kept dropping wide-open passes, and got in two skirmishes when frustration boiled over. Poor quarterback play didn't help, but few could deny Anderson looked lost.

Then Quincy Enunwa went down, an opportunity presented itself, and the 24-year-old took it and ran.

Anderson, who gained roughly 10 pounds this offseason, had a practice where he burnt cornerback Juston Burris for a would-be 70-yard touchdown. In another, he made a stunning one-handed grab for a long score up the right sideline. It was one of three touchdowns for him that day.

In the Jets' preseason opener, he beat another team's defensive back -- Tennessee's Logan Ryan -- for a 53-yard catch to setup the Jets' only touchdown in exhibition play.

Each day, Anderson seems to do something else. His coaches are taking notice.

"Robby's definitely improving," receivers coach Karl Dorrell said. "He's understanding the mindset it takes to be a professional going into his second year in terms of how hard you work at practice, and prepare off the field ... I think in his mind, he sees himself trying to build off what he did last year.

Anderson is the de facto WR1 now that Quincy Enunwa is on the shelf for the year. From Week 10 on, he averaged 3.3 catches for 55 yards and 0.29 touchdowns, so he's a fantasy WR5 with upside, given his likely role.

Patriots WR Julian Edelman with what looked like a non-contact knee injury. Limping to the bench now.

Update from Ian Rapoport: "Patriots WR Julian Edelman has suffered what is believed to be a torn ACL, per sources. MRI tomorrow to confirm."

Related players: Brandin Cooks, Chris Hogan, Malcolm Mitchell and Danny Amendola.

We'll update as more information becomes available, but the injury appeared to be non-contact, which usually isn't good. We should know tomorrow if there's ligament damage. If he were to miss time, it would boost the other Patriot receivers, but Chris Hogan is the best of the rest and should benefit the most.

There’s no denying how well Peterson has played in practice during the last couple of weeks. He’s hit holes with force. He’s made defenders miss with nifty footwork. He even hauled in a 30-yard touchdown reception on a wheel route from Brees against Houston in Thursday’s practice.

After a 1,485-yard season in 2015, Peterson gained just 72 yards on 37 carries (1.9 YPC) in 2016 while his season was interrupted by meniscus surgery. He’s 32 years old and doesn’t run well out of the shotgun, which has become the norm in today’s NFL. He should take over the role of Tim Hightower (8.3 carries per game), working primarily as Mark Ingram’s backup. He is Adrian Peterson, so he has some upside from there, but this is one of the most crowded backfields in the league.

Via Gregg Bell of the Tacoma News Tribune, Seahawks coach Pete Carroll said he’s encouraged by the Tyler Lockett's return from last December’s broken leg, and may hold him out of the last two preseason games just to be on the safe side.

“He has competed in practice throughout this week,” Carroll said. “He has looked very confident. He has looked fast. I am still watching him, though. I still want to make sure we are taking all the time we have available.

“There is no reason to rush him. He is a fantastic competitor. He knows what we are doing. He is well-schooled on everything we are asking him to do. We love the player that he is. So we are just going to make sure we continue to maximize his security and safety for his return. So that’s what we are doing.”

Carroll is one of the best hype men in the NFL coaching ranks, but it is good to hear that Lockett is working his way back. He's a high-upside pick in the 13th round after being drafted in the 7th round last year. Fundamentally, not much has changed in the Seattle passing game since then.

According to Gil Brandt of SiriusXM NFL Radio, Beckham is going to be in Phoenix today for the first in a series of Thera-Lase treatments, similar to a process Jared Allen underwent before playing in Super Bowl 50, after Allen missed the NFC Championship Game with a broken foot.

While the results of the treatment are yet to be seen, there is a concern among Giants officials that Beckham could miss the regular season opener, according to Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.

But that could depend on the laser. According to Phoenix Thera-Lase’s website, the treatment is done from a “portable laser bio-stimulation device,” and “delivers concentrated laser-light energy to the cellular level of the body” to reduce inflammation and help heal soft-tissue injuries.

The news is notable since the treatment is not typical for a sprained ankle, but the receiver appears to be doing everything to be able to play in Week 1.

Tuesday I asked assistant head coach and line coach Tom Cable, whose duties include being Seattle’s run-game coordinator, if he is getting concerned with C.J. Prosise’s dependability after his injury-filled rookie season of 2016.

“I think we all are,” Cable said.

Message sent: Prosise (groin) is indeed gaining the label of fragile, not just outside team headquarters but inside the minds of Seahawks’ decision makers.

Prosise is in line for third-down/passing back duties if he can get healthy.

Rookie quarterback DeShone Kizer will get the start over Brock Osweiler in the Cleveland Browns' third preseason game, coach Hue Jackson said Wednesday.

Sources told ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter that Osweiler is not even expected to play in Saturday's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Jackson said he informed the team Wednesday of his decision to start Kizer against the Bucs.

"[Kizer] has made a lot of progress by investing the time necessary to learn our offense, working hard to improve on his fundamentals while also effectively moving the offense in preseason games," Jackson said in a statement released by the team. "Development is so important for a young quarterback, this is the next step he needs to take and he deserves this opportunity.

"We are very excited about seeing DeShone in the role of starter for this week, as he is certainly positioning himself well to earn the starting job heading into the regular season."

It appears that Kizer is going to win the starting job heading into Week 1 provided that he doesn't fall on his face in the third preseason game. He could work his way into the QB2/streaming conversation.

Odell Beckham Jr.'s ankle injury could potentially keep the New York Giants wide receiver out of the season opener, sources told ESPN's Jordan Raanan and Dan Graziano.

The Giants open their season on the road on Sept. 10 against the Dallas Cowboys.

It's "not out of the question he could miss a week or two of the regular season," according to one source.

We have adjusted Beckham's projections to assume one missed game. This has put him in a virtual tie with A.J. Green in PPR formats, though he remains the No. 3 receiver in standard leagues. Owners who draft Beckham could nab Sterling Shepard in the later rounds as a Plan B. The ankle injury doesn't sound serious, but the regular season is fast approaching.

Making his preseason debut Saturday night, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers wasted no time connecting in the red zone with tight end Martellus Bennett on the opening series of Green Bay’s 21-17 win over Washington at FedExField.

Rodgers capped a 15-play, 75-yard drive that ate nearly 8 minutes off the clock in lofting a fade to Bennett in the corner of the end zone, which the former Pro Bowler pulled down for a 3-yard touchdown.

“I’m pretty athletic,” said Bennett, who has caught at least 50 passes in each of his last five NFL seasons. “I think people tend to forget that at times. I try to go get the ball when I can.”

Bennett had a career-high seven TDs last year even though he was pretty banged up most of the year in New England, which could have limited his production. We rank Bennett eighth on our TE list and could be a nice value at the position in the late seventh round in 12 team leagues. A comparable for Bennett’s likely production is Jermichael Finley, who averaged 3.7 catches for 46 yards and 0.34 touchdowns (10.3 PPG) in 38 games from 2011 to 2013.

The latest news about Colts quarterback Andrew Luck‘s absence from the field after having right shoulder surgery is a lot like the news that we’ve been hearing since the surgery.

While General Manager Chris Ballard said recently that Luck’s strength levels are up from last year, there’s still no sign that his return is imminent. Coach Chuck Pagano was asked about Luck’s return on Tuesday and his answer was the same one that the team has been giving for quite a while.

“There’s no timeline,” Pagano said, via Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star.

Related players: Scott Tolzien, Donte Moncrief, T.Y. Hilton

The lack of a timeline at this point would seem to make it likely that Luck’s absence will stretch into the regular season, the story said. They play the Steelers this Saturday and then close out the preseason a week from Thursday, leaving very little practice time left before they would take on the Rams in Week 1. If Luck can't go, Tolzien could get the start but it's an obvious downgrade for all the Colts as long as Tolzien is under center.

Jets RB Matt Forté returned to team drills today.

"It felt really good to get out there," Forte said after returning to for the first time since July 31 due to his sore hamstring. "I hate having to watch through camp, but with an injury you've got to do that. I was excited to get back out there finally. Prayers do come true ... a lot of prayer."

Related players: Bilal Powell

Forte said it's his plan to play Week 1, adding he's not sure what the coaches plans are.

Mike Gillislee was limited throughout the spring with a hamstring injury, and the issue flared up early in Patriots training camp.

"I just tried to burst on one of those plays at the beginning of camp and it just happened," Gillislee said at his locker Tuesday. "And I was able to get an MRI and everything was good, so I'm back today and felt 100 percent."

Related players: Rex Burkhead

Gillislee had been limited since Aug. 2, sitting out of positional drills and team drills. He did not participate in joint practices against the Texans and has not yet appeared in a preseason game. Presumably the favorite to take over the LeGarrette Blount "big back" role, Gillislee said he was a full go on Tuesday. Just in time too, as Burkhead had a big game last week and was starting to draw a lot of attention. Burkhead didn't practice today for unknown reasons, as we reported earlier.

Bill O'Brien remained clear about the Texans' starting quarterback job, emphasizing that Tom Savage is Houston's starter.

Injuries putting Texans' depth at receiver to the test
Injuries have riddled the Texans' wide receiver corps but Bill O'Brien thinks everything will be fine by the start of the regular season.

"Tom is the starter," the Texans coach said after practice on Tuesday. "Tom is playing well this camp. Tom has really had a good camp. He's only thrown three incompletions in two games. He's really got good command of our offense."

Related players: Deshaun Watson

In two preseason games (and five series of work), Savage is 17 of 20 for 167 yards and a touchdown. He got off to a slow start in the preseason opener with two three-and-outs, but the Texans scored touchdowns on two of the last three series. O'Brien named Savage the starting quarterback early in the offseason and reiterated it after the Texans traded two first-round picks to draft Deshaun Watson with the No. 12 pick.

The New England Patriots were without running back Rex Burkhead and wide receiver Malcolm Mitchell at the beginning of Tuesday's practice.

Burkhead didn't appear to leave the game with an injury the story said regarding the Pat's preseason Week 2 contest. No further information was available on Burkhead. Mitchell is apparently dealing with a right knee issue.

Three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. is being listed as day to day with a sprained left ankle.

X-Rays on the shoulder of fellow wide receiver Brandon Marshall were also negative, coach Ben McAdoo said. The 33-year-old veteran also is being listed as day to day.

Speaking on a conference call Tuesday, McAdoo didn’t give many details about Beckham’s ankle, refusing to say whether the injury in a preseason loss to Cleveland on Monday night was a high ankle sprain, which usually takes longer to recover from. McAdoo said the team will wait to see how Beckham responds to treatment. An MRI on the ankle was negative. Beckham expressed optimism about playing in the opener, but players are often too optimistic about their recovery timelines. Beckham did return to the sideline after the injury diagnosis, and he wasn't on crutches or in a walking boot, which is an indicator that the sprain is minor. He should be available in Week 1.

Odell Beckham Jr. will have an MRI exam taken of his sprained left ankle early Tuesday afternoon, part of the “further evaluation’’ the Giants stated would happen after the star receiver was forced out of Monday night’s 10-6 preseason loss to the Browns in Cleveland.

X-rays taken at FirstEnergy Stadium led to the diagnosis of a sprained ankle, and now the Giants want to be sure there is nothing more going on with Beckham’s ankle. This is standard operating procedure and not an indication that something is feared to be more seriously wrong with Beckham, the story said.

Each practice, each preseason game, we see more of what rookie running back Christian McCaffrey is poised to bring to the Panthers.

“With that guy you just have to get the ball in his hands and we know he is going to make plays for us,” quarterback Derek Anderson said. “The kid is special.”

McCaffrey has certainly passed the eye test. We rank him 22nd on our RB list saying he has "Danny Woodhead-type upside in the passing game" which we think could be 70-plus catches.

If Eagles running back LeGarrette Blount is on the bubble in Philadelphia, somebody should probably tell coach Doug Pederson.

Becuase Pederson praised the veteran back’s work, and suggested that he’s not really on the bubble at all.

Via Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network, Pederson was asked about Blount’s possible roster status, the Eagles coach said: “The guy’s a beast of a runner.”

Pederson also said he expects Blount to be “a big part of our offense.”

Related players: Wendell Smallwood

The Blount story has really picked up steam the last few days in Philly as the Wendell Smallwood hype also exploded in that time. Blount appeared slow on a couple of sweep runs last week and it had many wondering how much he has in the tank after 299 carries last season. Blount also fumbled after catching a pass on the Eagles' first team's most productive drive to that point of the game with Buffalo.

Broncos coach Vance Joseph said last week that veteran running back Jamaal Charles would suit up for the first time in the preseason when the Broncos face the Packers on Saturday night and it sounds like the team plans to make up for the first two games by putting Charles to work.

Joseph said on Monday that Charles will play “a lot” against Green Bay in his first game action since Week Seven of last season. Charles missed the rest of the year with a knee injury and has played in just eight games over the last two seasons, leaving him with a need to show the Broncos that there’s still something left in the tank.

Related players: C.J. Anderson, Devontae Booker, DeAngelo Henderson

Charles is looking to get back on the radar it seems. The story said Anderson is the number-one back and Booker is expected back for the start of the regular season. Meanwhile, rookie Henderson has looked good.

After quarterback Cam Newton stepped up his work in Monday’s practice, Panthers coach Ron Rivera said that he wanted to see how Newton felt on Tuesday before deciding if the quarterback will play against the Jaguars on Thursday night.

Rivera wanted to make sure there was no soreness or tightness in Newton’s surgically repaired shoulder and it sounds like Newton avoided both. Rivera said on Tuesday, via David Newton of ESPN.com, that Newton is on track to play and that he’s seen signs of the quarterback getting more comfortable after a summer of limited work.

Rivera pointed out he can see the timing coming back for Newton. It's likely Newton will be limited in any game action on Thursday.

It's possible Golden Tate headed for a role change this year due to the rise of Kenny Golladay.

The rookie third-round pick has looked good throughout the offseason, and been a powerhouse in the red zone. He's repped mostly with the twos in camp, but it looks like it won't be long before he cracks the starting lineup. (And that could happen sooner than expected, depending on the status of Jones' hamstring.)

But Golladay is also 6-foot-4, which means he's a better fit for the outside. And the Lions also return Marvin Jones, another receiver who does his best work on the perimeter.

That means Tate, who has played mostly on the outside in Detroit, could be headed into the slot more this season.

Tate has caught at least 90 footballs every season since joining the Detroit Lions in 2014. Among receivers, he was top five in yards after the catch each of those yeas too. The story believes Tate is built more like a traditional slot player, so it could be a smooth transition. The story also pointed out Tate learned a lot from Anquan Boldin about the position.

Giants wideout Odell Beckham left Monday night's game after taking a hard shot directly to his left knee, but did not sustain any serious injuries.

The team's top offensive weapon was drilled by Browns corner Briean Boddy-Calhoun as he came down from nabbing a high pass in the second quarter. Beckham spun his helmet in frustration but walked off the field under his own power. After trotting into the tunnel en route to the locker room, a television camera caught Beckham on his knees rocking back and forth in pain.

ESPN reported during the broadcast that Beckham was being evaluated for both a concussion and an ankle injury, but that Beckham was cleared of any concussion symptoms.

The Giants said officially that Beckham sustained a sprained ankle. X-ray results came back negative and the team says that Beckham will undergo further examination.

In other news, Brandon Marshall underwent an X-ray on his shoulder.

Related players: Sterling Shepard

The Giants will probably put Beckham on ice for the remainder of the preseason, though we should have an idea of how his ankle is progressing based on his practice participation. Given Marshall's apparent shoulder injury, Sterling Shepard might deserve to be bumped up a few spots in the receiver rankings.

Isaiah Crowell and Nate Orchard are among the 13 Browns players sitting out tonight's nationally-televised game against the Giants on ESPN.

Both players were surprised scratches after suffering groin injuries during Thursday's practice. The players had Friday off and both were idle during Saturday's session that was closed to the media.

According to the story, a team spokesman said the injuries are precautionary and not believed to be serious.

Donta Foreman's performance through Houston's first two preseason games has many raving about the rookie.

Texans coach Bill O'Brien is not among them.

"That's the second preseason game ... he's got a lot of talent, but I think he's got a long way to go," O'Brien said.

Related players: Lamar Miller

While O'Brien was careful not to heap too much praise upon the running back so early, it's hard to deny that he's been one of the most impressive performers for the Texans so far. The third-round pick from Texas ran for 76 yards in the first preseason game before grabbing two receptions for 66 yards and rushing for a 4-yard touchdown on Saturday against the Patriots. The story suggested Foreman could be a change of pace to Miller.

On Monday, coach Todd Bowles said he expects to announce the opening-day starter next Monday, and it'll be a major upset if it's not Josh McCown. Neither Christian Hackenberg nor Bryce Petty has challenged for the job, making it a no-brainer, barring injury.

Bowles gave Hackenberg his shot last Saturday night in Detroit, and it was a major disappointment. In five possessions, he completed only two of six passes for 14 yards. His misread the defense on the third play, resulting in a vicious sack/fumble. That he escaped injury was a small miracle. Through two games (13 possessions), he has yet to lead the offense to points.

Cards WR John Brown was back at practice, but it will be a cameo appearance.

Arians said, via Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com, that Brown will leave the team to attend a funeral and miss practice on Tuesday and Wednesday as a result. He will rejoin the team in Atlanta, where they will face the Falcons on Saturday night.

Brown is returning from a quad injury and the story said Brown's sickle-cell trait he carries slowed down his recovery time. The piece added it's unlikely Brown would play in the preseason game this weekend.

Jacksonville Jaguars coach Doug Marrone has a tentative plan for his quarterbacks during Thursday night's preseason game against Carolina but he won't be announcing a final decision until Wednesday night.

Marrone said Monday that he wants to see how Blake Bortles and Chad Henne look during Tuesday's practice and Wednesday's walk-through just in case he decides to change his mind.

Marrone opened up the competition after Bortles turned in another lackluster performance in last Thursday night's 12-8 loss to Tampa Bay. Bortles completed 8 of 13 passes for 65 yards but he twice missed receiver Allen Robinson on deep passes. He slightly overthrew Robinson down the sideline and another pass to a wide-open Robinson was badly underthrown. Bortles also badly threw behind Robinson on an in route. Henne completed 6 of 10 passes for 44 yards against the Bucs. His first throw was a strike to Keelan Cole in the end zone that Cole dropped. Robinson also dropped a touchdown pass later that possession.

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton increased his workload in practice Monday, which could lead to his first work of the preseason.

Via David Newton of ESPN.com, Panthers coach Ron Rivera said they need to see whether Newton shows up to work in the morning sore before they declare whether he’ll play Thursday night in Jacksonville. He hasn’t played in the preseason after undergoing right shoulder surgery in March.

Rivera said the big thing is to see if he feels sore or tight. The team is still trying to be smart about it and not put him in a situation where he goes from 0-50, the story said, especially since it's a hamstring injury that can always linger.

The Philadelphia Eagles and Miami Dolphins held their first of two joint sessions at the NovaCare Complex in South Philly on Monday. It’s fair to say that, given the circumstances, no one got more out of it than Dolphins quarterback Jay Cutler.

“I think situations like this are really good for me,” Cutler said after practice. “I think situations like this are really good for me, the receivers, the O-line, of just knowing how we’re going to react in game-type situations.”

The story said Cutler looked sharp and the ball exploded out of his hand. For the most part, he was on point, and said afterward he felt "fresh," according to the story.

Despite the fact that he has opened both preseason games atop the depth chart and been given the bulk of the snaps and carries with the first-team offense, it wouldn't be surprising to see LeGarrette Blount among the Eagles' cuts despite signing as a free agent back in May.

Related players: Wendell Smallwood

This is a story that's picking up a ton of steam in Philly the last two days, perhaps all because of a couple of sweep runs in preseason Week 2 which made Blount appear extremely slow. In Blount's defense, he ran those plays due to a lack of healthy Eagles RBs, at least according to Eagles HC Doug Pederson who cited injuries to Darren Sproles and Smallwood. Also keep in mind the Eagles could be putting those plays on tape to keep defenses on their toes as Blount on the field usually signifies a run up the middle. Perhaps most important about this story is the talk of Smallwood as of late, and how his role could be vital to the Eagles in 2017, especially if Blount doesn't make the team. Until now, he's been somewhat of an afterthought. Smallwood's being called the Eagles most complete back, with those who follow the team saying he's bulked up and has improved in the passing game. For those who took Blount and could be left on the short end of the stick, Smallwood is a player to keep in mind as a replacement. However there's probably no need to overreact at this point, but having a plan in mind always helps.

Trevor Siemian won the Denver Broncos' quarterback battle with his steady play.

NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport reported Broncos coach Vance Joseph will name Siemian starting QB at his Monday news conference, per a source informed of his decision.

Related players: Paxton Lynch

Siemian has been much more consistent guiding the Broncos' offense than former first-round pick Paxton Lynch. During the 2017 preseason, Siemian has completed 14-of-18 passing for 144 yards, 8.0 yards per attempt, with one touchdown, zero interceptions at a 118.5 passer rating. Lynch, meanwhile, has struggled to read defenses while going 15 of 22 for 81 yards, 3.7 YPA, zero touchdown passes or interceptions and a 74.2 passer rating. We have Siemian ranked 25th on our list giving him lower-end QB2 and streaming value.

The Chiefs bumped rookie quarterback Patrick Mahomes up to the second string last week, but that’s as far as he’s going.

At least this year.

“It’s Alex Smith’s job. That’s what it is. There’s no gray area with that,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said when asked about the chances of Mahomes taking over this year, via Terez Paylor of he Kansas City Star.

Reid attempted to temporarily block out the light emanating from his bright young quarterback, saying there’s not a competition for starting quarterback role. The Chiefs traded a future first to get Mahomes with the 10th overall pick.

Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins‘ absence from the practice field continued on Monday.

Hopkins has not practiced since the team’s preseason opener on August 9 due to a hand injury and remained out to kick off the week leading up to the third outing of the summer. The Texans will be in New Orleans to face the Saints on Saturday night and a couple more days on the sideline might be enough to keep him from playing in that game as well.

The story said there hasn’t been any indication that Hopkins’ injury is going to threaten his availability for the regular season, but time missed on the field now could cost him when it comes to developing chemistry with quarterback Tom Savage.

What caught the Chiefs' attention from Kareem Hunt was his blocking. In particular, it was the block he threw that took out two Bengals at once and allowed Alex Smith the time to complete a pass to Anthony Sherman on a fourth-down play. The Chiefs scored the first touchdown of their 30-12 win two plays later.

It takes game action to be sure of a running back's ability to pass block.

Related players: Spencer Ware, Charcandrick West

Hunt also looked good running the ball but if the rookie can pick up pass protection it could increase his time on the field this season. Ware owners may want to try and grab Hunt later in drafts as a potential handcuff.

The Titans announced WR Tajae Sharpe has been activated from the physically unable to perform list.

Related players: Corey Davis, Rishard Matthews, Taywan Taylor, Eric Decker

Sharpe had foot surgery after being injured in June and was cleared a day after coach Mike Mularkey said they would evaluate the receiver’s readiness for a return to action. Sharpe's role is up in the air to say the least, especially after missing time as well as the additions of Davis and Decker.

If labor unrest in the NFL’s future is a “virtual certainty,” we know who’s going to be presiding over it.

According to Daniel Kaplan of Sports Business Daily, the league is close to a deal with commissioner Roger Goodell to extend his contract.

Goodell’s current deal expires after the 2019 season, but this would take him through 2024. And with the CBA set to expire after the 2020 season, that would mean Goodell will again be representing owners, the story said.

Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn stopped short of saying running back Devonta Freeman will return to practice this week while going through the concussion protocol.

Freeman did not travel with the team to Pittsburgh for Sunday's 17-13 exhibition loss to the Steelers.

Quinn said Freeman is "looking up," and the team would "get rolling" with him Monday, but said he didn't know yet about his status this week.

In a time when injuries and inconsistent play have been the norm, the Indianapolis Colts finally had a member of their rookie class step to the forefront and give an indication that he could have an impact this season.

First-round pick Malik Hooker? Nope, he’s been dinged up so far. Second-round Quincy Wilson? He left Saturday’s preseason game at Dallas with a knee injury. Third-round pick Tarell Basham? There’s glaring need for pass-rushers, but Basham has yet to seize the opportunity.

It’s running back Marlon Mack.

The fourth-round pick out of the University of South Florida rushed for 45 yards on five carries against the Cowboys. What made Mack’s debut even more impressive was that he had runs of 10, 13 and 23 yards.

Related players: Frank Gore, Robert Turbin

Mack was one of the few bright spots for an offense that continues to sputter along without starting quarterback Andrew Luck (shoulder) during the preseason, the story said. Mack, who also had two receptions for 14 yards, missed the preseason opener against Detroit on Aug. 13 with a shoulder injury. The Colts are looking to ease up on Gore's workload and keep him healthy for what they hope is a playoff run, so if Mack continues to excel, he could pop up on the fantasy radar.

Bucs head coach Dirk Koetter believes his quarterback Jameis Winston is poised to make big strides in 2017.

"You can't argue with how Jameis has done," Koetter said. "He threw a beautiful deep one to Mike Evans in the game the other night, so I think Jameis improved across the board."

Related players: DeSean Jackson

The numbers suggest it. His completion percentage compared to last preseason has shot up from 59 percent to over 71 percent in 2017. The story added there are two areas where Winston wants to improve: execution on the deep ball and the red zone.

Corey Davis quietly paced along the sideline in practices over the last few weeks. He's itching to get back after a hamstring injury forced him to miss most of training camp.

"He is frustrated, without showing it, about not being able to be with his teammates," Tennessee Titans coach Mike Mularkey said. "He wants to be out there, more than we want him to be out there."

The good news is he won't have to be frustrated too much longer. Mularkey said Davis "ahead of schedule" in his recovery and on track to play in the Titans' preseason finale Aug. 31 at Kansas City "if he continues to progress like he is."

The story said Davis has showed flashes of being the team's top receiver, but the team wants to avoid the hamstring injury lingering into the regular season. Even if he plays in the final preseason game he's likely behind in terms of camp and that could cause a slow start in the regular season. He's ranked 49th on our WR list.

Anquan Boldin's stint with the Bills didn't last long. Less than two weeks after signing a one-year deal with the Bills, Boldin is retiring.

The news was first reported on Sunday night by ESPN's Jim Trotter. Shortly after, Boldin released a statement through Trotter.

Related players: Jordan Matthews, Zay Jones, Andre Holmes, Rod Streater, Brandon Tate, Philly Brown

It's a pretty big blow to the Bills who are dealing with a banged up Jordan Matthews as perhaps their top receiver. After that it's Zay Jones, a rookie. Andre Holmes, Rod Streater, Brandon Tate and Philly Brown round out the team's WRs.

Jordan Reed is back.

The Washington Redskins announced on Sunday that the Pro Bowl tight end has been activated from the Active/Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list after he passed a physical.

Reed was placed on PUP the day before Washington’s training camp opened. The five-year veteran told reporters last week that he expected to return to the field prior to Washington’s preseason Week 3 game against the Cincinnati Bengals. He had recently been fitted for customized orthopedics, which can be worn in any cleats or shoes of his choosing.

Wide receiver Jordan Matthews‘ first practice with the Bills last weekend ended with a chip fracture in his sternum that put an indefinite delay on his second practice with the team.

The delay ended on Sunday, albeit in limited fashion. Matthews wore a helmet but no pads as he took part in individual drills with the team.

“He continues to improve,” head coach Sean McDermott said, via the Buffalo News.

The sooner Matthews can return to a full workload the better his chances of a smooth integration into the Buffalo offense after being acquired in a trade.

LeVeon Bell is expected to stay away from the Pittsburgh Steelers for Week 3 of the preseason, a source tells ESPN.

The source would be surprised, however, if Bell isn't back with the Steelers shortly after that, citing his love for football.

The story added Bell can always rearrange his plans, but currently he's slated to remain training on his own for at least the next few days.

Rex Burkhead won't dominate the touches, but could he lead the backfield in combined rushing attempts and receptions?

At this point, he's probably the safest bet.

If he does emerge, Burkhead will follow in the footsteps of players like Danny Woodhead and Dion Lewis. Both were deep reserves prior to coming to New England.

Related players: Mike Gillislee, Dion Lewis, James White

To this point, many felt Gillislee would be the early down back but Burkhead had an impressive showing in preseason Week 2 (so did Dion Lewis). The author seems to favor Burkhead as a breakout star this season. The Pats backfield is still too crowded to figure out at this point, but perhaps Burkhead is a guy to at least take a flier on later in drafts.

When third down presented itself Saturday and quarterback Jared Goff needed to keep the sticks moving, he went to Cooper Kupp -- four times in eight third-down situations.

Kupp, a third-round pick after a record-setting career at Eastern Washington, has already solidified a role as the Los Angeles Rams' slot receiver. Now he has become a security blanket for the Rams' second-year quarterback.

In two preseason games, Kupp has hauled in eight of his 10 targets for 105 yards and a touchdown. Rookie WRs don't always tend to make a major fantasy impact, but story added Kupp is the one who seems poised to lead the Rams in catches this year, because he's so sure-handed and because he has such a knack for getting open.

Running back Leonard Fournette said his foot is “most definitely” feeling better than it was when he got hurt in practice a week ago and has no doubt that he’ll be ready to make his regular season debut when the Jaguars meet the Texans on September 10.

Wide receiver Marqise Lee said he’s “pretty confident” his ankle will be healed in time for the game. He was injured a week ago in practice and said he initially thought he broke his ankle, but is out of a boot and off crutches with designs on returning to running soon.

Fournette sounds more confident than Lee at this point, but both seem to be on track to play Week 1 when it counts.

The Patriots have long opted to save tight end Rob Gronkowski‘s game action for the regular season, but they went in a different direction on Saturday night in Houston.

Gronkowski was in the lineup for a preseason game for the first time since 2012 and played two series with the starting offense before retreating to the bench.

He didn’t get targeted for a pass, but blocked well in the run game and, most importantly, came out of the game without any nicks to his surgically repaired back or other body parts, the story said.

It didn't take long for Dak Prescott and Dez Bryant to find a rhythm in Saturday night's 24-19 preseason win over the Indianapolis Colts.

Prescott targeted the Pro Bowl receiver on his first pass play. First and 10 from Dallas' own five, Prescott found Bryant for an eight-yard strike that was quickly turned into 23 yards after breaking a tackle.

"He has been healthy all offseason, so that chemistry has grown," Prescott said. "He's been a guy that his ears are wide open, wanting to know what I'm thinking, and I want to know what he's thinking. It's just been back and forth of just talking and doing it out there on the field and it's only growing."

Prescott added, "it's the best Dez has been." He also thought Bryant has been the most improved player so far this season. This obviously could be very key this season for both players and fantasy owners, especially with RB Ezekiel Elliott out because of a suspension.

Tight end Rob Gronkowski spent a lot of time run blocking for Rex Burkhead in his first preseason action since 2012.

Burkhead was making his first game appearance for the Patriots and the wasted no time getting him involved in the offense. Burkhead carried seven times for 20 yards and caught a pair of passes from Tom Brady during his time on the field.

The second of those catches was a 22-yard touchdown in the second quarter and ended the night for many of the Patriots offensive regulars. James White was also involved early and Dion Lewis took over the running duties once Jimmy Garoppolo entered at quarterback with Mike Gillislee not in the lineup.

Related players: Tom Brady, James White, Dion Lewis

We believe Mike Gillislee is the most talented early-down option for the Patriots and offers double-digit touchdown upside, but a hamstring injury is keeping him off the field. He needs to get healthy, or it is not out of the realm of possibility that Burkhead wins this job. With fantasy drafts fast approaching, this backfield needs to be monitored very closely. If you are going to use a 5th/6th-round pick on Gillislee, it's probably wise at this point to draft Burkhead late too.

Third-round pick Kareem Hunt got a chance to show his versatility. He was limited to one carry and one catch in the preseason opener. On Saturday, he was the featured running back on the first two drives. Hunt had 8 carries for 40 yards and 3 catches for 23 yards.

Related players: Spencer Ware

Hunt has been generating some buzz, but Spencer Ware isn’t going to go gently into that good night. Since becoming a Chief, Ware has averaged 4.63 YPC on 286 carries, and his 13.5 yards per catch was the second most of any running back with 30-plus receptions in 2016. It’s more likely that Hunt finds a role on passing downs, potentially replacing Charcandrick West. However, this is still a situation to monitor as the season approaches.

Rookie running back Leonard Fournette expects to be ready for Jacksonville's season opener. So does receiver Marqise Lee. Fournette and Lee spoke Saturday for the first time since being sidelined by injuries a week ago and expressed confidence they would play in the Sept. 10 opener at Houston.

"I'm very confident," Fournette said. "There's nothing to worry about."

The fourth overall pick in the NFL draft was shut down last Sunday with a left foot injury that coach Doug Marrone called a "nagging issue." Fournette said he didn't know what caused the pain. "I've never had a foot or toe injury or anything like that," he said. "But they're doing a great job with rehabbing. I think it's going pretty good."

Fournette missed parts of his junior season at LSU because of a sprained left ankle, but he said his latest injury has nothing to do with that setback.

Lee fell to the ground during a passing drill last Sunday and immediately grabbed his right leg. Lee's lower leg was immobilized before he was taken off the field on a cart. He was diagnosed with a badly sprained ankle.

Lee spent several days in a walking boot and used a crutch, but ditched those in the last few days. He said the next step is to start running again.

"I'm pretty confident I'll be fine," Lee said. "I can't make a move without the trainers and the coaches. It's their decision, but I'm going to go ahead and jump in: I think I'll be fine by Game 1. Doing everything possible to be ready by Game 1. That's all I really can control. So I'm just going to do that."

Related Players: Blake Bortles, Chad Henne, Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns

Fournette is the odds-on favorite to lead all rookie running backs in fantasy points. The last eight running backs drafted in the top 10 that saw at least 200 carries (in their rookie season) averaged 308 touches for 1484 yards and 9.8 touchdowns, for a PPR average of 240 fantasy points. The Jaguars are going to run Fournette early and often. VP of Football Operations Tom Coughlin said that the team drafted Fournette “to put the ball in the end zone.”

Lee emerged in his third season as the #2 receiving threat in Jacksonville, turning 105 targets into 63 catches for 851 yards and three touchdowns en route to a #42 finish in PPR formats. He could progress into the top 30 if he continues to improve as a receiver, but the Jaguars have drafted (Leonard Fournette) with the intent to run the ball more, and that may negatively impact Lee’s workload.

Panthers rookie RB Christian McCaffrey's day is done against the Titants:

"Christian McCaffrey wearing a hat on the sideline.
His day: 3 carries for 33 yds, TD
2 catches for 39 yards
1 glimmer of hope"

Related players: Jonathan Stewart

That sound you hear is the sound of McCaffrey's hype train having already pulled out of the station. With Jonathan Stewart still likely to see 200-plus carries, the third round feels pretty early for Christian McCaffrey, though he has Danny Woodhead-type (70-plus catch) upside in the passing game. The issue is Cam Newton has never been one to check down or target his running backs heavily, so it's fair to question how easily McCaffrey will fit into the Panthers offense. Given the fact that they used the eighth overall pick on the Stanford back, changing the offense to suit his skill set would seemingly be a major priority, but how flexible is Newton? Stewart has missed three games in each of the last three seasons, and has missed a total of 26 games in the last five seasons, so McCaffrey has RB1 upside if Stewart is sidelined.

Marcus Mariota led the Titans to points on each of the first two drives against the Panthers in the second preseason game Saturday at Nissan Stadium, leaving with a 10-0 lead. He was replaced by Matt Cassel. Mariota completed 6 of 8 passes for 61 yards, a touchdown and a 135.9 passer rating. He threw one touchdown pass to tight end Delanie Walker and added a nine yard rush.

With DeMarco Murray not playing, Derrick Henry gave a glimpse of how impressive he could be if Murray were to ever miss time. He was not efficient on the ground with 16 carries for only 36 yards (2.3 avg) but punched in two touchdowns (including a 17-yard score). Henry also caught three passes for 17 yards.

Related players: DeMarco Murray, Delanie Walker, Rishard Matthews, Eric Decker, Corey Davis

Henry had a solid rookie year, turning 123 touches into 627 total yards and five scores and finishing as the #45 RB in PPR formats (#39 in standard). Unfortunately, not much has changed in the Tennessee backfield as the still-productive DeMarco Murray is expected to continue to serve as the team’s lead back. Barring a Murray injury, it’s difficult to see a path to a top-25 finish for the second-year back.

In his first 27 NFL games, Mariota has averaged 17.7 fantasy points per game, which would have extrapolated to about what Dak Prescott scored last year as the league’s #6 fantasy quarterback. When his six-attempt game against the Patriots (from his rookie year) is removed, his average jumps to 18.3 fantasy points. With the addition of Corey Davis, the #5 overall pick, and TD-machine Eric Decker, Mariota now has Davis, Decker, Rishard Matthews and Delanie Walker to throw to. The Titans have invested heavily in the passing game, which is an indicator that the team is willing to open up the offense. If he plays a full season, a top 5 season is well within reach. This makes Mariota an excellent value in the middle rounds.

Seahawks 7th-round pick and Chris Carson rotated with fellow RB Eddie Lacy on the Seahawks' first-team offense. Carson carried six times for 27 yards. He also had a 17-yard catch-and-run on third down. And on special teams, Carson forced a fumble on kickoff coverage. The seventh-round pick out of Oklahoma State has had an impressive summer and looks like a lock to make the roster. The only question now is: How big of a role can he earn between now and the regular season?

Related players: Thomas Rawls, Eddie Lacy, C.J. Prosise

Meanwhile, Lacy only rushed for 20 yards on his six carries and added a reception for three yards. Thomas Rawls did not play with a minor injury. It was Rawls who had been getting the majority of first-team reps in recent practices. C.J. Prosise also did not play. This certainly appears to downgrade Lacy's fantasy stock. It should also be noted that Seattle's already brutal offensive line from last year also lost starting left tackle George Fant to a torn ACL Friday night.

Titans 1st-round rookie WR Corey Davis (hamstring) still hasn't been able to get back on the practice field, more than two weeks after injuring his hamstring on August 3rd.

Coach Mike Mularkey said he’d like to see him play in the preseason, but they’re not going to risk it. It really depends on how he does in his rehab, and return. So far, he hasn’t done anything in practices since the injury earlier this month.

Related players: Rishard Matthews, Eric Decker, Taywon Taylor

Meanwhile, 3rd round rookie Taywon Taylor impressed in his preseason debut, and the Titans have two seasoned veterans in Eric Decker and Rishard Matthews. Davis was the first receiver off the board and is probably landing in the best situation theoretically, if he can get healthy. However, we've seen this script before with rookie receivers missing time in the preseason and having their snaps limited in the first quarter of the regular season. He has a good quarterback (Marcus Mariota) and the team has a glaring need at receiver. The last eight receivers who were drafted in the top 10 averaged 56 catches for 824 yards and 6.0 touchdowns as rookies.

LeGarrette Blount has underwhelmed this summer with nine carries for 17 yards. In Thursday’s 20-16 win over Buffalo, Blount had five carries for 8 yards and fumbled on one of his two receptions.

Coach Doug Pederson played down Blount’s lack of production. He said the Eagles have not called any design runs. They’re using training-camp concepts and trying to get evaluations of their personnel. He expects different results when there are blocking schemes and running schemes tailored to the personnel, game situation, and defense they face.

Related players: Darren Sproles, Wendell Smallwood

In 19 games (including the playoffs), Blount averaged 67 yards and 1.0 TD en route to 12.9 PPG and a #9 finish at his position in PPR formats. He only averaged 3.80 YPC on the year, and just 3.29 YPC over his final eight games. He should take over the Ryan Mathews role in the Philadelphia offense. Mathews saw 168 touches (13 receptions) in 13 games, or 12.9 touches per game. If Blount gets all of Mathews’ carries and plays a full season, he should see 185-195 carries and is a threat for double-digit touchdowns. (Mathews scored eight rushing touchdowns last year.) Beware of Wendell Smallwood though, as some reports this preseason say he may be involved more than last season. That could eat into Blount's projected early-down workload, especially if he continues to struggle.

Dalvin Cook picked up 33 yards on three consecutive carries against the Seahawks, showing off his combination of power and elusiveness once he finds a seam. Cook’s production came behind a patchwork offensive line that expects to return two of its starters — Alex Boone and Riley Reiff — for the next preseason game on Aug. 27.

Dalvin Cook has played 36 snaps this preseason. That's about one half of a game. He has touched the ball 17 times (12 carries and 5 receptions). That's exciting bell cow level production for a rookie whose ADP has moved into the 4th round. Cook also has the third-easiest schedule by our PPR RB aFPA tool. It's looking more and more that Cook will line up as the starter in Week 1. The Vikings had a lot of problems running the ball last year, but signed tackles Riley Reiff and Mike Remmers and drafted center Pat Elflein (3rd round) and guard Danny Isidora in an effort to rebuild the offensive line. Cook has had a good spring and his primary competition (Latavius Murray) is still well behind after offseason ankle surgery.

Bills HC Sean McDermott: on Tyrod Taylor moving forward - "I've got all the confidence in the world in Tyrod." He'll start this week.

Related players: Nathan Peterman

McDermott was non-committal after Taylor threw two interceptions in a preseason game, so we're not convinced that he or the team are fully behind their quarterback. The decision to trade away Sammy Watkins, a player who fits Taylor's downfield strengths, indicates that the team isn't invested in Taylor's success. From a fantasy perspective, Taylor is a great asset given his ability to run, but the team may move on to Nathan Peterman sooner rather than later.

Bears RB Jordan Howard suffered corneal abrasion in walk thru today. Did not travel to AZ. Injury considered minor.

This doesn't sound serious but it's something to monitor. Howard took over the lead back duties in Week 3. From that point on, he was the No. 7 fantasy back in the league, averaging 16.1 fantasy points per game. In terms of likely workload, he’s one of the safest plays on the board since he averaged 20.5 touches per game in the second half of the season. He averaged 116 total yards and 0.5 touchdowns in that span.

Jay Cutler and Alshon Jeffery were a dynamic duo in Chicago. Jeffery had back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons with the Bears, including a career-high 1,421 yards in 2013. Cutler was his quarterback. And Cutler thinks he might have found a similar — if not better — target in Miami.

“I think he's kind of a faster Alshon, a little bit,” Cutler said. “He's got a lot of range. Back-shoulder, over the top. He's got great hands. And he can burn you up if you get [stuck] flat-footed.”

Related Players: Jarvis Landry, Kenny Stills

In 15 games, Parker was the #50 WR last season, catching 56 passes for 744 yards and four touchdowns on 88 targets. He was on the injury report for six of those games (3.3-39-0.33, 9.2 PPG in PPR formats) and healthy for nine (4.0-57-0.20, 11.0 PPG). Those "healthy" PPG numbers are about what Anquan Boldin scored as 2016's #41 fantasy receiver. If he can stay healthy, he should provide WR3 numbers, but that’s a big “if.” For what it’s worth, he has drawn rave reviews for his work this offseason.

"Chad Henne going into game with first-team offense. Pre-planned we're told," was the tweet from the Florida Times-Union.

Blake Bortles, a constant Twitter goat through training camp with constant reporters of practice interceptions, could have had at least one picked Thursday night against Tampa Bay, before finishing with only 65 yards on 8-of-13 passing.

Chad Henne entered the game late in the 2nd quarter with the starters.

Related Players: Blake Bortles, Leonard Fournette, Allen Robinson, Marquise Lee, Allen Hurns

The fact that Henne was even out there with the starters in the second preseason game shows Blake Bortles' job is not safe under a new coaching staff. If you watched the game, Bortles was worse than his pedestrian numbers even show, at one time underthrowing a wide open Allen Robinson downfield. Meanwhile, Henne had two passes for would-be touchdowns dropped by his receivers, including Robinson. However, Robinson's eight first half targets are certainly notable.

LeSean McCoy saw five touches in his preseason debut against his hold team in Philadelphia. He rushed for 21 yards on four carries (5.3 avg) and added one catch for 11 yards.

Shady lived up to his Twitter handle cutting on a dime at one point to juke former teammate Ronald Darby after his offensive line gave him a huge hole. McCoy's longest run was 13 yards.

Related players: Jonathan Williams

McCoy was the #3 RB in standard and #4 in PPR formats. Mike Gillislee (112 touches, 627 yards and nine touchdowns) is gone, so McCoy could see some of that work as he heads into his age 29 season. After the top three running backs, McCoy looks like the best option at the position in all formats.

John Gruden during the Jaguars preseason broadcast said of Leonoard Fournette's foot injury, "He said someone stepped on his toe at practice."

Fournette was ruled out of the preseason game after the injury and head coach Doug Marrone saying they would play it safe.

This is good news for Fournette, who dealt with recurring foot and ankle injuries at LSU. Apparently, this issue is unrelated to those previous injuries.

With Ty Montgomery out with a leg injury, Mays worked as the No. 2 running back behind fourth-round pick Jamaal Williams. It means he jumped ahead of fifth-round pick Aaron Jones. That could be the order in which they play in Saturday’s second preseason game at Washington.

This is an on-going competition, and with Ty Montgomery's limited RB experience, pass protection concerns and now a leg injury, whoever emerges as his back-up from the trifecta of RBs the Packers drafted certainly has upside in this upper-echelon offense (if Montgomery falters in the regular season).

Pete Carroll says Thomas Rawls dealing with sore ankle. Likely Won't play Friday.

Related Players: Eddie Lacy, C.J. Prosise

Rawls had been getting the first-team reps in practice lately ahead of Eddie Lacy. Lacy could now seize the opportunity in Seattle's second preseason game (as could C.J. Prosise). This is a starting RB competition to continue to monitor.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said Thursday that the reinstatement of Browns receiver Josh Gordon 'is not under active consideration' at this time.

Speaking to Browns season ticket holders before the final practice open training camp practice, he added, 'at least it hasn't made it to my desk yet.'

Gordon, who's petition for reinstatement from his drug ban was denied three months ago, is eligible to re-apply in September.

Related players: Kenny Britt, Corey Coleman

(Sad face emoji)

Eric Ebron injured his hamstring on the first day of training camp in the opening minutes of the first practice. He finally returned Friday but didn't do much; however, the expectation was he would ramp up his practice time this week. That has not happened.

"No, he's just got a couple issues that he's dealing with, you know?" head coach Jim Caldwell said after practice Wednesday. "He's got a couple things and not quite ready yet, so hopefully he'll continue to heal and we'll get him back out there soon."

The article goes on to say Detroit still expects big things from Ebron, who doubled his production from year one to year two, then did it again last season with 61 catches for 711 yards. That was top 10 at the position. But he also dropped seven balls, a league high at the position, and caught just one touchdown. Availability has been the ability Ebron has struggled with so far in his career, missing eight games in his first three seasons. He is still on our radar as a low-TE1.

Colts center Ryan Kelly will need foot surgery, Colts coach Chuck Pagano announced Thursday after the team's final practice of training camp.

Kelly is expected to miss 6-8 weeks.

This loss should not be underestimated for a Colts offense that already struggled pass protecting for its quarterback in the past few seasons, and Kelly was a player who actually did not allow a single sack in 2016. If Andrew Luck misses games, that combined with not having Kelly could prove disastrous for the entire offense. Even when Luck comes back, constant inside pressure is what eventually led to his 2015 injuries.

Normally, it's business as usual for veteran receiver Cole Beasley, but one rep last week got him a little extra pumped.

Starting safety Byron Jones gave Beasley a shove off the line. Beasley responded by breaking free and beating Jones to the outside. Dak Prescott put a nice back-shoulder ball over the top of Jones and Beasley allowed his athleticism to do the rest, leaping to make the grab.

"I've been trying to expand my route tree for a long time," Beasley said. "That stuff is only going to help the stuff that I'm good at. Any time we can get stuff like that going and any routes like that, more down the field, more vertical, that's only going to help my game underneath. That stuff is big for just setting up other things that I do."

His increased work on the outside and expanded route tree could also help the Cowboys find more situations to get rookie Ryan Switzer on the field with Beasley.

The 5-8, 180-pound Beasley was targeted a team-high 98 times last season, finishing with a career-high 75 receptions for 833 yards and five touchdowns. The story added Beasley continues to win one-on-one battles in camp.

DeMarco Murray took the opening handoff of team drills, galloped through a large hole, and ran past a couple of would-be Carolina Panthers tacklers for a big gain. It looked as close to a fully healthy Murray as the Tennessee Titans have seen since the first week of training camp.

Murray's hamstring injury, suffered Aug. 2, cost him nearly two weeks of full practice reps, but Titans coach Mike Mularkey anticipates him playing Saturday against the Panthers.

Murray said his hamstring feels better, but he did not want to put a percentage on his health. He returned to team drills earlier this week and did not appear limited in Wednesday's joint practice with the Panthers, the story said.

Josh McCown culminated a long drive by hitting Robby Anderson on a short post route in the back of the end zone. This was a fantastic day for Anderson, who scored two touchdowns and made a highlight-film catch.

He has raised his level of play since the season-ending injury to Quincy Enunwa. They need two or three others wide receivers to do the same.

Related players: Christian Hackenberg

The Jets may not have a lot of fantasy-worthy players in your league but this is something to at least keep an eye on. McCown also got more reps than Hackenberg, the first time this has happened in about a week the story said.

When in doubt, always give it to wide receiver A.J. Green. When you pick a six-time Pro Bowler, how can you go wrong? Especially in this training camp. Want to hear something scary? Talk to enough people at Paul Brown Stadium and they’ll tell you his seventh camp is the best one he’s ever had.

“I would agree with that,” said quarterback Andy Dalton after Wednesday’s practice, the last full-scale workout before Saturday’s game.

The story said Green has put a lot of work into the little details of his game. It should encourage those looking to target Green in fantasy drafts. We rank Green fourth among WRs on our list.

Washington receiver Josh Doctson participated in individual drills Wednesday as he works his way back from the hamstring he “slightly” pulled Aug. 6.

“Doctson went out and did some individual today, and he’s getting better day to day,” coach Jay Gruden said in a team Facebook Live stream.

Related players: Terrelle Pryor, Jamison Crowder

The team is monitoring Doctson in terms of playing on Saturday against the Packers. He only played 31 snaps last season and is being counted on to help take the place of Pierre Garcon and DeSean Jackson.

After weeks of speculation, analysis and evaluation, the Browns’ quarterback competition is headed into its home stretch.

Pro Bowl left tackle Joe Thomas believes it’s over — Brock Osweiler will start the season opener on Sept. 10 against Pittsburgh.

“I could be totally wrong,” Thomas said Wednesday. “I might be going out on a limb here, but I think they’re grooming Brock to be the starter in Week 1 based on what I’ve seen.”

Related players: DeShone Kizer

This is obviously just Thomas' opinion but he does see what's going on on a daily basis. The story said Osweiler is expected to start a second-straight preseason game Monday night. The story also says Thomas and head coach Hue Jackson are usually on the same page and Jackson will consult Thomas on major decisions.

Martavis Bryant was cleared by the NFL to practice and play in preseason games on the eve of the preseason opener against the Giants on Aug. 11, and he has been installed as the Steelers starting receiver opposite Antonio Brown on this most recent depth chart.

Also, Sammie Coates was activated from the physically unable to perform list today, which clears him to resume all on-field football activities with the team, and he is listed as the No. 2 receiver behind Brown.

While depth charts this time of year don't always mean a whole lot, it's good news for owners Bryant is plugged in as the team's WR2. We think he's worth the risk. In 24 career games, including the postseason, Bryant has averaged 4.0 receptions for 65 yards and 0.67 touchdowns, or 14.5 PPG (PPR). That would have been good enough to finish as the #13 WR in 2016, ahead of Jarvis Landry and Julian Edelman.

Steelers wide receiver Sammie Coates has been activated from the physically unable to perform list and will practice with the team Wednesday.

Coates had knee surgery in July. He is one of 10 wide receivers on the roster, the story said. Coates was the team's second wide receiver at the start of last season until breaking a finger in Week 5. He had only two catches the rest of the year.

Jaguars quarterback Blake Bortles was pulled from Sunday’s practice after throwing a pair of interceptions because, per coach Doug Marrone, it looked like he had a tired arm.

Bortles has been back to a full workload the last two days and said on Tuesday that he has taken more reps this summer than in any other year, but that his arm feels fine despite that workload.

The story said despite his arm feeling fine and taking more reps, it hasn't led to any consistency. It mentioned joint practices with the Bucs, and while Bortles didn't throw any interceptions, he also missed several throws including one that resulted in a negative response from WR Allen Robinson.

Vikes WR Laquon Treadwell missed more than two weeks as a result of a hamstring injury, but has returned to practice in a limited fashion. That will give him a chance to continue work on sharpening his technique.

The story was about Treadwell wanting to be a true receiver instead of relying on just talent alone. Treadwell added he didn't know how to win at certain points in his routes, and he spent a lot of time learning how to play the game.

When the Seahawks signed Eddie Lacy as a free agent this offseason, it seemed reasonable to conclude that they expected him to be the feature back. But Thomas Rawls has been running with the first team. During the first preseason game Sunday night against the Los Angeles Chargers, Rawls was the starter, and Lacy came in with the second unit.

Related players: Chris Carson, C.J. Prosise

The story said Lacy has passed all of his weight checks but hasn't looked impressive in camp, which could just be because of his running style. The piece also added Carson was perhaps the most impressive back in the preseason opener, even more than the stats indicated. The point of it all was the roles aren't quite defined yet for the Seattle backfield, but it seems to be a crowded one when Prosise is expected to get third down duty.

With Ezekiel Elliott staring at a six-game suspension pending the result of an appeal, Dak Prescott will be asked to do more, but maybe not run more in 2017. If Elliott is out, the Cowboys will rely on their tailbacks Darren McFadden, Rod Smith and Alfred Morris to make up for the absence of last season's leading rusher.

"He's going to run anyway because of his game, his mobility, but I think you're going to lean on the side of picking your times when you do it," offensive coordinator Scott Linehan said of Prescott. "I think if you do it a lot it certainly can be a little bit of a distraction to what you're trying to do. That's why you have runners. But when a quarterback has that element, it's an advantage. So I think the key to quarterbacks running is they know what kind of a run we're trying to get. If they can’t get 3 yards and we want 4 yards, 3 yards is OK, too. Don't take hits. That's my approach anyway."

The story said Prescott running the ball won't become a staple of the Cowboys' offense, even with Elliott scheduled to miss six games. They don't want to risk Prescott to injury even if he is 6-foot-2, 238 pounds. During training camp, Prescott has broken off a few long runs in the zone-read.

Cowboys star running back Ezekiel Elliott is facing a six-game suspension for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy, but he isn't willing to accept that ban without an appeal. On Tuesday, he officially submitted his appeal.

Adam Schefter reported the appeal is expected to be held on Aug. 29. Another report said if Elliott doesn't win his appeal, he could take the case to federal court, like Tom Brady did.

There wasn't one moment or one play that caused Ty Montgomery to grab his lower leg in agony, which is why the Green Bay Packers running back tried to play off his injury -- which he would describe in no more detail than calling it a "soft-tissue" problem -- as nothing major.

Montgomery did not practice on Tuesday and his status for Saturday's second preseason game at Washington is in doubt. Montgomery carried three times in last week's preseason opener and fumbled before he gave way to rookie Jamaal Williams.

"It was just something on and off, something I'm dealing with," Montgomery said after practice. "Nothing in particular that happened, nothing major, nothing to worry about."

Montgomery added he took the day off so the injury didn't worsen. We had a story on Williams Monday that said he's most likely the guy to get carries among the three backs the team drafted this year. He's looking like a solid option to draft as a backup to Monty.

Cards WR Jaron Brown, a little less than nine months after suffering a torn ACL in his left knee, looked fast and smooth as he streaked down the middle of the field and past defenders.

“I feel really good,” Brown said. “If I had to put a percentage on it, I’d say closer to 100 for sure.”

Brown’s recovery has been a pleasant development for the Cardinals, whose receiving corps has been beset by various sprains and pulls in training camp.

Brown, in contrast, has not missed a day of work, and he has not worn a brace since the opening days of camp.

Related players: Larry Fitzgerald, John Brown

We had a story on Monday about HC Bruce Arians ripping the receivers for not living up to expectations - outside of Larry Fitzgerald and Brown. The story added because of John Brown's quad injury, Jaron Brown is now the number-two WR.

After missing extended action in training camp due to a neck injury, Bilal Powell returned to full participation on Tuesday for the Jets.

“It’s good to get his feet wet,” said head coach Todd Bowles. “You know he’s missed some time now, so he’s got a lot of catching up to do but it’s good to see him out there.”

The story said Powell got a lot of contact his first day back. Powell also had some catches in the red zone during drills.

Todd Bowles hasn't revealed his exact quarterback plan for Saturday night against the Detroit Lions, but he indicated Tuesday that Josh McCown will play more than last week -- meaning more than one series.

"I like his leadership, I like how he takes control of the offense," offensive coordinator John Morton said of the Jets' presumptive Week 1 starter, who had a brief but effective outing in the opener. "He's seen a lot of football. I like that. I like his experience. That's the biggest thing."

Related players: Christian Hackenberg

The story said Tuesday was the first day Hackenberg had more reps than McCown. It was also a rare, clean day for Hackenberg.

Latavius Murray wants to be on the field in a game uniform, but the running back and the Vikings know it’s more important for him to be fully ready first.

Murray signed with Minnesota during free agency but needed ankle surgery (which he disclosed to the team before signing). The rehab sidelined him for the team’s offseason program and delayed his participation in practices until the final two days of training camp at Minnesota State University, Mankato.

“I’m feeling really good, was able to do a little bit more last week in practice, so I want to keep going on that trend and hopefully feel better each day,” Murray said. “I definitely like where I’m heading."

Related players: Dalvin Cook

The Vikings shifted Murray from the Active/Physically Unable to Perform List on Aug. 7, and he participated in individual drills that day and Aug. 8. He did not play in the Vikings preseason opener last Thursday at Buffalo but said on Tuesday that he is continuing to make progress. While Murray misses time, Cook continues to impress in his quest to win the RB1 job.

The Broncos signed running back Jamaal Charles this offseason in hopes that the veteran has enough left in the tank to help them during the regular season, but they’ll wait at least another week before putting that to the test in game action.

Coach Vance Joseph said on Tuesday that Charles will not play against the 49ers on Saturday night. He did not play in the preseason opener as well, but Joseph said the plan is for Charles to see playing time in the preseason.

Related players: C.J. Anderson, Devontae Booker

Getting Charles back on the field is a big deal. Devontae Booker remains out after having wrist surgery in July, which leaves Stevan Ridley, Bernard Pierce and 2017 sixth-round pick DeAngelo Henderson lined up behind C.J. Anderson on the depth chart.

Two of the key additions for the Eagles will likely make their debut in front of the home crowd at Lincoln Financial Field on Thursday night.

Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery and cornerback Ronald Darby are expected to play, head coach Doug Pederson said on Tuesday. Jeffery was held out by the coaches last week against Green Bay, while Darby was acquired by the team on Friday.

Jeffery and the rest of the starters won't be out there a lot the story said - which added the starters will play a series or two "at the most," according to Pederson.

Ezekiel Elliott touched the ball on 35 percent of the Cowboys offensive plays last season, but Dak Prescott insists he won’t have more pressure on him without the star running back.

“We’ve got great running backs,” the Cowboys quarterback said in a Tuesday media session, via the team’s Facebook Live stream. “Darren McFadden and Alfred Morris, those guys have had a lot of success in this league for a long time, so it’s just an opportunity for them to come in and get more reps in his time off.”

Prescott admitted teams stacked the box at times against Elliott, giving one-on-ones on the outside. That may change without Elliott in the lineup but Prescott said he still expects the offense to run smoothly.

The Ravens have had their fair share of injury issues to deal with this summer and many of them have led to players being ruled out for the entire season.

Wide receiver Breshad Perriman is not on that list, but it’s not clear when he is going to be back. Perriman hurt his hamstring and coach John Harbaugh gave an update on his status on Tuesday.

“He’s a long-term hamstring guy in terms of when he did it,” Harbaugh said, via Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com. “It’s a pretty good hamstring that he had. He’s making progress. Everything is on schedule. They’re happy with the way he’s progressing. That’s what I know.”

Perriman hasn't been ruled out of the preseason but this week's game doesn't seem realistic, the story said.

Travis Benjamin has been one of the breakout performers through the first two weeks of training camp, making big plays on a regular basis.

And that continued in last weekend’s preseason opener against the Seattle Seahawks. Benjamin got behind Seattle’s secondary and Kellen Clemens hit him in stride for a 74-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter.

Related players: Keenan Allen, Antonio Gates, Hunter Henry

Benjamin is now fully healthy from a PCL knee sprain and says he has a better understanding of the offense which has given him more confidence. The hope for the Chargers is Benjamin's vertical threat opens up room for Allen, Gates and Henry.

Eagles running back Ryan Mathews had been medically cleared to play.

Mathews had his surgically repaired neck checked out, and doctors gave him a clean bill of health.

To update this item, reports later said the team has officially released Mathews.

Related players: LeGarrette Blount, Darren Sproles, Donnel Pumphrey, Wendell Smallwood

Mathews turns 30 in October. He had 155 carries and 661 yards last season in 13 games but did have eight TDs in that span.

Bruce Arians doesn't mince words or hide behind passive aggressive language. When the Arizona Cardinals coach takes a shot, it's in your face or across your bow.

On Monday, Arians aimed at his receiver corps. After watching the group stink up training camp, he regretted the praise he lavished on them in the spring.

"I must've been seeing things back in the spring when I said we had had 12 guys who could play in the NFL," Arians said, via the team's official website. "We might have two."

Related players: Larry Fitzgerald, Jaron Brown, John Brown, J.J. Nelson, Brittan Golden, Aaron Dobson, Jeremy Ross, Chad Williams

The two he was talking about were Fitzgerald and Jaron Brown. The rest of the group have dealt with injury or inconsistency during camp thus far. Arians also mentioned simple execution errors like assignments and catching the ball.

The Jaguars have had RB Leonard Fournette working mainly with the second-team offense in camp because coach Doug Marrone says he wants rookies to earn their way up the depth chart, but it’s easy to see that Fournette is the real deal.

He’s a powerful runner, yet he has been able to slip through creases at the line of scrimmage to gain positive yards when it appeared he would be tackled for a loss or no gain. Fournette has also proven throughout camp that he will be a good receiver out of the backfield.

Of course all is not good. There's a little bit of concern about a foot injury that the team is trying to manage, the story said. Fournette missed his first practice Monday, and the team is taking a cautious approach with him.

If anyone is going to unseat Ty Montgomery as the starting running back, it will be Jamaal Williams.

Of the three drafted running backs, he’s the only one who has taken significant snaps with the No. 1 offense. Williams looks like an every-down back; he has the power needed on first and second down and also can pass protect on third downs.

This is probably putting a scare in Monty owners. But the story went on to say Williams is not the receiver that Montgomery is coming out of the backfield. Still, Monty owners may want to grab Williams in the later rounds if you're looking for a handcuff option.

Running back DeMarco Murray was on the Titans practice field and going through drills after almost two weeks on the sideline. Coach Mike Mularkey said Murray did so much work early in the session that he dialed things back toward the tail end of practice.

“He looked good,” Mularkey said. “He actually did more than I was expecting. I’m the one that pulled him out of the team period because of the number of reps he had up to that point. I was pleased with the way he looked.”

Related Players: Derrick Henry

Henry carried 8 times for 29 yards in preseason Week 1, but Murray is again expected to carry the load in Tennessee. Murray is ranked ninth on our RB list and can be had in the middle of the second round, but Henry might be a nice handcuff to grab in later rounds.

On Monday, Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich was asked about the plans for the position now that Jordan Matthews is in Buffalo. Reich mentioned Nelson Agholor, Mack Hollins and Marcus Johnson as players that will be in the mix and said tight end Trey Burton could also be a factor in what’s shaping up as a committee approach.

This isn't an ideal fantasy situation, and Reich was quoted in the story as saying it's going to be a "game-plan thing" for each play every week. As the story pointed out, it would help the team from a numbers standpoint to find guys who can handle a few responsibilities, but it sounds like the Eagles won't have a consistent WR3 with fantasy value unless someone steps up among the names mentioned above.

Giants HC Ben McAdoo went out of his way to criticize RB Paul Perkins only getting seven yards on a run to open the Giants' first offensive series in last Friday's preseason-opening loss to the Steelers. The Giants needed more than that, McAdoo said, adding Perkins had to make a man miss or run over the safety to make it a bigger play.

Perkins has taken almost all his usual first-team reps in practice since then, but Orleans Darkwa did get a few snaps with the starters Monday.

"I trust him, I have a lot of confidence in him. He's a young player who is working hard to get better and has a lot of value for us," said McAdoo of Perkins.

McAdoo was a bit all over the place in the story when it came to Perkins, saying he's "considering all [the RBs] for the job" and "whoever plays the best is going to get the ball." But McAdoo would later clarify a bit saying, "By no means have I lost confidence in Paul Perkins." The story said what seems to be a pretty good summary of the situation - Perkins will have to actively maintain his spot.

It must have been a comforting sight for the coaches to see star wide receiver Julio Jones catch passes in the red zone again.

On Monday, the last day of training camp, Jones was his old self, sprinting across the end zone to haul in a touchdown toss from reigning MVP Matt Ryan in 11-on-11 drills. In fact, Jones looked game-ready after having surgery on his left foot in March.

"I really practiced all day [Sunday]," Jones noted. "I feel great, though. No setbacks. Moved around today. I'm feeling good. But it's on [the coaches/medical staff] to make the decision. We communicate with each other and try to make the best decision as far as me moving forward, as far as reps; preseason. The ultimate goal is just to be ready, though."

Jones said he expects to be ready for the Sept. 10 opener. He added his timing with QB Matt Ryan is "great" since they've played together for so long and are familiar with one another.

Dirk Koetter beamed like a new father, ready to pass out cigars.

"Our new kicker is Nick Folk," Koetter said following the Bucs' joint workout with the Jaguars Monday.

The team recently cut former second round pick Roberto Aguayo. With a potential to be able to move the ball, Folk could certainly have some fantasy valuable

Matt Forte is being cautious this time around.

Nursing a hamstring injury suffered July 31, Forte was limited to only individual drills during Monday's practice, sitting out the team portion of practice.

Jets coach Todd Bowles said the 10th-year pro is still "day-to-day" and Forte, who rushed back from a similar hamstring injury last year and ended up re-aggravating it, is taking it slow this time around.

Related players: Bilal Powell

Forte said he's feeling good but not good enough for a full practice yet, adding that's he feels he's "pretty close," according to the story. Powell is also out as of now with a neck injury.

On Monday, the Bengals took a big step with the first-round pick. WR John Ross was cleared to participate in contact drills and was running with the rest of the team through 11-on-11.

Ross won’t be found digging a safety out in a run game drill just yet, but he’s closer to making his Bengals’ debut.

“It’s a process,” said Ross, who previously only worked with routes against air. “I just want to take everything slowly, I don’t want to rush everything. I don’t think it’s imperative for me to come back right now and play Saturday. I think it’s important for me to be ready for Week 1.”

The story went on to say Ross said it’s important to him to participate in a preseason game to get a feel for game speed before hosting Baltimore on Sept. 10, but acknowledges he’s following doctor’s orders. No call has been made on if he will participate in one of the preseason games at this point.

Broncos rookie receiver Carlos Henderson tore a ligament in his left thumb and underwent successful surgery Sunday. Head coach Vance Joseph said Henderson is day-to-day with his recovery, but he will not suit up for the remainder of the preseason.

Related players: Bennie Fowler, Cody Latimer

We have Henderson listed third on our Broncos WR depth chart and missing time could certainly affect his status. Fowler and Latimer are next up on the depth chart and one could now claim the WR3 spot.

The Jaguars practiced without running back Leonard Fournette again on Monday and they will play without him on Thursday.

That was the word from coach Doug Marrone after Monday’s practice. Marrone said that Fournette, who is dealing with a foot injury, and wide receiver Marqise Lee, who reportedly has a high ankle sprain, will not face the Buccaneers.

Marrone said the team is "just being smart on it," according to the story.

Andre Ellington didn’t have an overwhelming statistical night on Saturday against the Raiders, but did show glimpses of the player who once upon a time was the starting running back for the Cardinals.

Ellington finished with 20 rushing yards on seven carries, added four catches for 31 yards, and did not make any mistakes in pass protection.

Ellington’s most notable run was a 15-yarder in which he had nice blocking, and he also had a 13-yard reception.

“He’s healthy for the first time in two years,” coach Bruce Arians said. “He showed it on two or three runs (Saturday) and a couple of passes.”

Related players: David Johnson, Chris Johnson, Kerwynn Williams

Ellington told the writer the string of injuries affected him physically and mentally. The story said Ellington is fourth on the depth chart right now behind David Johnson, Chris Johnson and Williams.

Chargers rookie wide receiver Mike Williams ran on a field last week for the first time since suffering a back injury in May that led the team to announce he would be on the sideline for most or all of training camp and invited speculation about whether he’d be able to play at all this season.

The Chargers reportedly believe he will be able to play. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reports that the team is eyeing an October return for their first-round pick in this year’s draft.

Williams was placed on the physically unable to perform list at the start of camp, so he could remain on the list into the regular season. That would leave him ineligible to play for the first six weeks and Rapoport reports that no decision has been made about that at this point.

Houston Texans rookie quarterback Deshaun Watson saw first-team reps in practice on Monday.

Related players: Tom Savage

Starter Tom Savage has seen the majority of those snaps during training camp, and coach Bill O’Brien downplayed the significance of Watson's reps. He said it had more to do with how the chances lined up during their 12-play period and making sure Watson continues to get opportunities during practice, the story said.

The Minnesota Vikings weren't shy about giving rookie Dalvin Cook the ball in his preseason debut.

Cook either took a handoff or caught a pass on nine of the 13 offensive plays that the Vikings' starting offense ran against the Buffalo Bills. He finished with five runs for 13 yards and four receptions for 30 yards.

"He got what was there," head coach Mike Zimmer said. "The thing I liked about him was when it got into tight quarters, he lowered his shoulder and tried to fight for the extra couple yards."

Related players: Latavius Murray, Jerrick McKinnon

The story said Cook has put himself into position to win the starting job while Murray continues to rehab from ankle surgery. Both Murray and McKinnon didn't play in the team's preseason opener.

Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports that Jaguars receiver Marqise Lee suffered a high-ankle sprain and may not be ready for Week 1.

Lee had a career-high 63 catches for 851 yards and three touchdowns last season, and the Jaguars thought that with Lee joining Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns, Rashad Greene and rookie Dede Westbrook, they had a strong group of receivers. Now they’ll need that depth.

That’s worse news than the Jaguars were initially hoping for, the story said. The early indications were that he wouldn’t miss much time after hurting his right ankle in Sunday’s practice. It should mean more reps for Greene and Westbrook.

Miami Dolphins running back Kenyan Drake appears to have suffered a head injury during Monday morning’s practice.

Drake collided with rookie cornerback Torry McTyer during an 11-on-11 period of practice and laid on the field for several minutes before being helped off by a team trainer.

It is possible that Drake suffered a concussion, and was likely being tested for it after practice. RB Jay Ajayi just returned from a concussion.

Falcons coach Dan Quinn told reporters that RB Devonta Freeman was in the concussion protocol, and won’t play Sunday against the Steelers.

Related players: Tevin Coleman

Freeman left yesterday’s practice with what was reported as heat-related symptoms. The story added Quinn wasn't ready to rule out Freeman for the rest of the preseason but, of course, that could still happen if he's not cleared by an independent neurologist.

It’s been a slow start for Julius Thomas with the Dolphins.
Thomas hasn’t had a ton of catches in training camp, though Adam Gase dismissed that as incidental, and now he joins an already long injury list. He’s out today with a back injury.

As the story pointed out, this is concerning given that back trouble ruined last season for him so keep an eye on this.

Wide receiver Alshon Jeffery (shoulder) was back on the practice field Monday morning, after taking part in one 7-on-7 drill Sunday, for the first time since going down with a sprained shoulder on the first full squad practice in pads.

Jeffery's injury has left him a limited practice participant and he has yet to take part in full-team 11-on-11 drills since briefly returning the same day he suffered his injury.

New Miami Dolphins quarterback Jay Cutler has yet to play in a game with the team, but he is full go in practice after signing a one-year, $10 million contract with incentives that could raise his salary to $13 million.

Cutler had a mostly accurate day. His best throw was a bullet early in practice in stride to receiver DeVante Parker for a first down. Cutler went over to congratulate Parker after the catch. Cutler also had two would-be touchdown throws negated by drops to Parker and fellow receiver Kenny Stills in one-on-one drills. Nonetheless, the throws were solid.

Two bad plays stood out to the writer - a near interception on a well-covered play and a sack on a three-man rush where he held the ball too long.

Jordan Reed didn’t practice with his teammates during the final day of Redskins training camp on Sunday, but he thinks he’ll be back in drills with them soon.

Reed worked on a side field while wearing new cleats fitted with orthotics to protect the injured toe that led the team to place him on the physically unable to perform list at the start of camp. After the workout, Reed said that he’s looking at next week as a target for a return to practice.

Reed said the toe "feels great." Reed added he's making sure he can do everything in his power to make sure the toe is comfortable when he's back on the field. The story added given Reed's injury history, it wouldn't be shocking if the team just waited until the regular season to put Reed back on the field.

The lack of Chiefs running success didn’t escape coach Andy Reid, who indicated the Chiefs would work harder to establish the run in their next preseason game on Saturday night against the Bengals in Cincinnati.

“We came in with the thought we wanted to throw the ball and get the quarterbacks some work in there since all four were going to play in this game,’’ Reid said of the 49ers game. “We got that part accomplished, but it took away from the run game a little bit. We saw enough from Spencer Ware and his ability to catch the football and run the football. We probably need to see a little more from Kareem Hunt and Charcandrick West and C.J. Spiller and Devine Redding down the way here.

“We’ll get that taken care of.’’

The Chiefs had a pass-heavy attack against the 49ers in their first game and QB Alex Smith led the way with 10 yards rushing, not something the Chiefs to see once the season starts.

The clock is most certainly ticking on the Denver Broncos' impending decision at quarterback.

In fact, either Trevor Siemian or Paxton Lynch could be named the Broncos' starter a week from now after all promises are kept in the coming days. Broncos coach Vance Joseph has often used the words "fair" and "open" to describe the competition.

The story added that this week, Siemian and Lynch will go through joint practices with the San Francisco 49ers, and then Lynch will get the start against the 49ers on Saturday night. Then, in theory, all of the boxes will have been checked, time has been split evenly through spring into summer and each quarterback will have had the opportunity to open a game with the starters.

It took four minutes for Todd Gurley to match his preseason workload from last season.

Gurley received four carries -- and gained 2 yards -- on the Los Angeles Rams' first possession on Saturday, which was extended by the Dallas Cowboys' muffed punt. He didn't play in the first preseason game last year. Or the third. Or the fourth. He began the 2016 regular season with only four preseason carries, then proceeded to be one of the NFL's least-productive running backs.

First-year Rams coach Sean McVay wants to change that, the story said. He's mindful of keeping Gurley healthy and fresh for the regular-season opener, but "being in a new system, and just for the overall continuity of our offense, I think it's important for him to be out there," McVay said.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant got the word from the league last week and took part in his first padded practice since late in the 2015 season on Sunday. Bryant was active on the field and turned a pass from rookie Josh Dobbs into a 60-yard touchdown, which is part of why coach Mike Tomlin said Bryant looked like his old self.

The receiver said after the session that he still needs to get back into proper football shape, however.

Bryant said in the story he's in great shape and is going to put the work in to get ready for the regular season. Bryant added he had no idea why the league didn't let him practice from the start of camp so he's a couple of weeks behind as a result.

The Bills have updated the condition of wide receiver Jordan Matthews after he suffered a chest injury during his first practice with the team on Sunday.

The team said Matthews has a chip fracture in his sternum and his return timeline has been pegged at week-to-week as a result.

Related players: Tyrod Taylor

Matthews will be able to do work in the playbook and attend meetings while he’s recovering, but the lack of time on the field with quarterback Tyrod Taylor will likely slow his immersion into a new offense.

Colts general manager Chris Ballard had this to say about quarterback Andrew Luck's shoulder during the broadcast of the Colts' preseason opener Sunday:

"He's doing really well. His strength levels are probably better than they were at any point last season."

Beat writer Stephen Holder adds he personally thinks Luck is throwing, despite no reports from the tight-lipped Colts while Luck is still on the PUP list. "Don't wanna be dramatic, but that's literally the most specific thing the Colts have said about Luck's status in months. Def good news," Holder tweeted.

UPDATE: The Indianapolis Star's Zak Keefer tweets this from Colts owner Jim Irsay after the game: "Irsay: Can't say unequivocally that Luck will play in the Sept. 10 opener, but he'll be ready around the start of the season."

Related Players: Frank Gore, Donte Moncrief, T.Y. Hilton

This is a welcome update on Luck for fantasy purposes, after having offseason surgery on the torn labrum in his throwing shoulder. In Luck's last three healthy seasons (missed nine games in 2015), he has finished as a top-five fantasy quarterback. Last season he was QB4, despite playing through a less than 100 percent shoulder.

Miami Dolphins running back Jay Ajayi has joined team drills for the first time since he was sidelined by a concussion July 31.

Ajayi wore pads Sunday for the first time since the injury, but left practice early because of hydration issues in the 90-degree morning sunshine. Coach Adam Gase said the issue was merely a matter of Ajayi regaining his conditioning.

Related Players: Damien Williams, Jay Cutler

Ajayi had a breakout season, but nearly 58% of his rushing yards came in four of his 15 games (against the Bills twice, the Steelers and the Jets). He averaged 6.74 YPC in those four weeks, and just 3.56 YPC in the other 11 games. Not coincidentally, three of those four big games came with center Mike Pouncey in the lineup, yielding a 5.96 YPC with Pouncey (versus 4.12 YPC without). As long as his offensive line is healthy, Ajayi should have a very productive 2017.

Jaguars coach Doug Marrone says RB Leonard Fournette has a foot injury and they're "being careful with him."

Fournette did not practice Sunday.

Related Players: Chris Ivory, T.J. Yeldon

There were reports last season that Fournette has a chronic condition with his ankle. The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that Fournette's ankle injury, which caused him to miss five games in 2016, could need surgery and that made it an issue for teams looking to draft him. The foot was the reported issue today, but that's pretty darn close to the ankle. It's a situation to monitor moving forward for a RB we projected to have 300+ touches as a rookie.

Jaguars WR Marquise Lee suffered what appeared to be a non-contact injury to his lower leg Sunday at practice. An air cast was brought over initially but not used before Lee was carried over to a cart with no weight put on his leg.

UPDATE: From NFL Network's Ian Rappoport: "Jaguars WR Marqise Lee, who was carted off today, did not suffer a serious injury, source said. Looked a lot worse than it was."

Related Players: Allen Robinson, Allen Hurns

That's good news for Lee who started to get more involed last season. Lee was the WR32 in the second half of last season in PPR points per game. It's important to remember new head coach Doug Marrone was one of the most run-heavy playcallers in the league during his time in Buffalo.

"Just being in LA can help me out," new Rams wide receiver Sammy Watkins said, speaking to reporters for the first time in Los Angeles after getting traded from Buffalo. "Nice city. Nice weather. And just to be in this city with the players, just trying to chase a goal and win a championship and go to the playoffs. It's a blessing to be here, to be on real grass eight or nine games out of the year."

Watkins' occasionally injured legs will benefit from the Coliseum grass, and the Rams intend to benefit greatly from Watkins' speed and skill. He is expected to provide the deep threat that was among many things lacking for Los Angeles last season, when the Rams had the NFL's worst offense for the second straight year.

Related Players: Robert Woods, Cooper Kupp, Tavon Austin

Watkins' home games may be on grass now, and theoretically, that could give his lower body a better chance of staying healthy (I suppose); however, we see his move to L.A. as a big downgrade in offense and quarterbacks. Watkins was among our top-15 receivers before the trade. It will be a battle now, we project, for him to be a WR2 this season. Artificial versus natural surface aside, Watkins still has also missed 11 games in the last two years. Watkins is fantastic...when he plays. In 21 games over the last two seasons, he has averaged 4.2 catches for 70 yards and 0.52 touchdowns per game, but his questionable foot make him a boom/bust pick.

Broncos head coach Vance Joseph said the Broncos will “probably” need to see RB Jamaal Charles, whose one-year deal could reach $3.75 million with incentives, play in the preseason before making a roster decision with the running back.

“He’ll eventually play,” Joseph said. “It depends on the (doctors) and how he’s feeling.”

Charles said he has experienced no setbacks as he’s gradually participated more in practice this month. He has made a concerted effort, he said, to run on his right side and cut off the knee that has been wrapped in a brace and was operated on as recently as November.

Related Players: C.J. Anderson, Devontae Booker, De'Angelo Henderson

It's concerning that Charles STILL isn't fully cleared for team drills after a full offseason of rehab. The Broncos signed Charles to a veteran minimum contract this offseason. Theoretically, they could cut him with no salary cap penalty; however, the Broncos aren't exactly deep at running back with an injury prone C.J. Anderson as the starter and second-year back Devontae Booker (wrist) in danger of missing the start of the regular season. This backfield depth chart is one to monitor in the preseason, with rookie De'Angelo Henderson a dark horse.

With Jets top receiver Quincy Enunwa (neck) out for the season, the next men up on the depth chart had a positive start to the preseason.

Likely new top wideout Robby Anderson hauled in a 53-yard reception from Josh McCown, while Charone Peake caught a 4-yard touchdown against the Titans. Peake will likely start the season as the Jets No. 2 receiver with Jalin Marshall slated to miss the first four games (performance-enhancing drug suspension).

McCown also strengthened his grip on the starting quarterback job.

It's hard to imagine any Jets receiver having consistent week-to-week fantasy value in re-draft leagues, but Anderson could be worth a late-round flier in re-draft leagues.

Jordan Reed (toe) received special orthotics for his left cleat. Head Coach Jay Gruden said Reed will test it out for the next couple days. Washington will reevaluate him after its second preseason game against Green Bay Saturday, August 19th.

Reed remains on the PUP list but can be removed from it at any point before the regular season. This latest injury reaffirms he is one of the riskier picks in drafts but also has a high ceiling. Reed has been first among all tight ends in back-to-back seasons in PPR fantasy points per week, but he has also missed 18 games in his four year career.

The Giants’ re-signing of Orleans Darkwa to a modest one-year deal this spring was a blip on the radar compared to the splashes Jerry Reese made with Brandon Marshall’s free-agent acquisition and a blockbuster contract extension for Jason Pierre-Paul.

But Darkwa, 25, now is splitting first-team reps with presumed starting running back Paul Perkins and seeing even more work than usual with Shane Vereen hobbled and unavailable. And with Rashad Jennings gone and veteran Shaun Draughn (foot) also not practicing, Darkwa quietly seems to be challenging for a feature role.

“I’ve said this for years now: At the end of the day, my mentality is to want to be the starter on this team and be an impact player on the offense,” Darkwa said after Thursday’s practice. “That’s not gonna change. That chip on the shoulder is not gonna go anywhere. So I’ve just got to prepare myself like that and keep getting better.”

Darkwa, a fan favorite the Giants signed off Miami’s practice squad in 2014, has shown flashes of production as a runner in the two-and-a-half seasons and 33 regular season appearances.

He has averaged 4.01 yards on 71 carries as a Giant (285 yards) and scored four touchdowns. That included 10 carries, 53 yards and a TD in Week 3 against Washington last season, and 12 carries, 48 yards and the Giants’ lone TD in Week 4 in Minnesota.

If this is truly the case, it puts a dent in the upside of Paul Perkins, which is already capped due to Shane Vereen's presence on third downs.

The Miami Dolphins will be placing QB Ryan Tannehill on IR and he will have reconstructive surgery. Next stop 2018.

Related players: Jay Cutler

The writing was on the wall after the Dolphins signed Jay Cutler. It's a small downgrade for the Miami offense as the skill position players will have to build chemistry with Cutler, who didn't sound all that excited about coming out of retirement.

Bills have acquired CB E.J. Gaines and Rams 2018 second round pick for WR Sammy Watkins and Bills 2018 sixth round pick.

Eagles acquire CB Ronald Darby from Buffalo for WR Jordan Matthews and a 2018 third-round pick.

Related players: Tyrod Taylor, Jared Goff, Nelson Agholor

These two trades came out of nowhere. We'll update projections shortly, but clearly this is a downgrade for Watkins as he changes teams late in the summer and will now have Jared Goff as his quarterback instead of Tyrod Taylor. Matthews will get a significant bump in our rankings since he'll now be the de facto WR1 in Buffalo, though he'll have to quickly build chemistry with Taylor in order to be productive early in the season. In Philly, Nelson Agholor is likely to take over the slot, so he'll get a bump as well. These moves are a net loss for Taylor and a net gain for Goff, but Taylor is still in the mix as a late-round value.

Cowboys' RB Ezekiel Elliott is being suspended 6 games, per source.

Related players: Darren McFadden, Alfred Morris

This is apparently the standard for domestic violence suspensions even though it sounded in recent days like the punishment would be shorter than this. Within three days, Elliott can appeal the suspension and then the league would need to hold a hearing within 10 days after that. It's possible that the suspension could be reduced or that Elliott would be allowed to play while the process plays out, but for now we're going to assume that he misses the first six games of the season, which would put him back in Week 8 since the Cowboys have a Week 6 bye. Darren McFadden served as the primary backup late last year and seems to be the biggest beneficiary from this news. He's likely to be the feature back behind a great offensive line for the first six games of the season. Assuming Elliott plays nine fantasy-relevant games, his projections put him into the 3rd or 4th round. McFadden now looks worthy of a pick in the middle rounds, but his value has an expiration date. It shouldn't be too difficult to draft both Elliott and McFadden, but Elliott owners will need to be on their toes in those middle rounds.

It may come Friday, it could be bumped into next week. Regardless of the timing, the prevailing view in league circles is that Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott will be suspended under the Personal Conduct Policy.

One league source characterized an Elliott suspension as “definite.” The specific duration of the suspension isn’t known, however.

We typically project running backs for 15 games, assuming one missed game due to injury. In the case of Elliott, we're currently projecting him to play 13 games, with the assumption that he'll serve a two game suspension in addition to one potential injury game. He's still worthy of a first round pick, but owners should be sure to draft Darren McFadden as his suspension handcuff.

Ravens WR Breshad Perriman is on the field as well, but hes not running or doing anything. He's been out for about 10 days w/hamstring injury.

Perriman figures to serve as the Ravens' WR3 but it's hard to get excited about his upside when he's missing camp with another injury.

The tight ends have been the stars of training camp, with Derek Carr often throwing to his new 6-foot-5, 254-pound target, Jared Cook; Lee Smith, Clive Walford and Gabe Holmes have looked very good as well.

“We haven’t really gotten our tight-end position going as much as I’d like,” Del Rio said. “I think we’ve really addressed that. I think you’re going to see a team that can utilize the tight-end position more in their offensive plan and attack.

“Jared Cook opens up a lot of possibilities and Clive being in much better shape and healthier than he’s been, probably in a while, helps.”

Carr has been ecstatic about his new toy.

“When you add a guy like Jared Cook that runs a 4.3 or a 4.4 and he can outrun DBs on go-routes, (you) can throw him out wide and run different kinds of routes with him,” Carr said. “We can do that kind of stuff because he is that talented.”

Once Cook returned from his high-ankle sprain in Week 10, the Packers made a concerted effort to involve him in the offense. Over the final 10 games (including the playoffs) he averaged 4.2 catches for 55 yards and 0.30 touchdowns per game. That equates to 11.5 PPG, or low-end TE1 numbers. He joins the Raiders, who have not featured the tight end in the passing game in recent years. Oakland tight ends saw a total of 83 targets in 2016, which was the 4th-fewest in the league. The Cook acquisition may be the team’s attempt to change this.

Bengals beat writer Jim Owczarski was asked how long it would be before Jeremy Hill was no longer the starting running back.

"I’m not quite sure why this matters so much, who 'starts.' Outside of quarterback, it doesn’t really mean much. Unless Jeremy Hill is injured or is absolutely terrible, he’ll start all season."

Related players: Joe Mixon, Giovani Bernard

Who "starts" definitely matters for fantasy purposes. The starting running back gets the first chance to shine, and probably gets the most snaps and touches. Owczarski's assertion that Hill could start all season comes on the heels of the release of the team's depth chart which showed Hill as the starter and rookie Joe Mixon as third-string. Hill hasn't been very good the last two years, which prompted the pick of the talented but not-without-baggage Mixon in the draft. Mixon likely has a role right away, but with his ADP in the third round, owners are expecting much more in Week 1.

Every day, Michael Floyd made three or four plays in training camp that opened your eyes. His physical presence, sure hands and ability to create separation are impressive. Often times, a Vikings defensive back was in perfect position to knock down a pass heading Floyd’s way, but the veteran would leave his feet, extend his arms and pluck the ball from the air before the defender could swat it away. Floyd made catches in traffic, deep down the field, in the red zone and along the sideline day after day.

Related players: Laquon Treadwell, Jarius Wright

Floyd is competing with Laquon Treadwell and Jarius Wright for snaps behind starters Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen. He's suspended for the first four games, so he'll have ground to make up when he returns.

Per Steelers GM Kevin Colbert: WR Martavis Bryant has been informed by NFL he is now permitted to participate in all preseason activities.

Bryant sat out the 2016 season after multiple failed drug tests, so he's a risky pick, even if he is on track to be reinstated. Still, it's good news that he'll be allowed to practice while he continues to move towards full reinstatement. Given his production, he's worth the risk, though his ADP has been hovering around the 4th/5th turn. In 24 career games, including the postseason, Bryant has averaged 4.0 receptions for 65 yards and 0.67 touchdowns, or 14.5 PPG (PPR). That would have been good enough to finish as the #13 WR in 2016, ahead of Jarvis Landry and Julian Edelman. He has posted similar numbers (4.4-67-0.56) in his last 16 games, which extrapolate to a 71-1074-9 season.

You'd be hard-pressed to find a player more impressive than Jets TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins these first three weeks of camp. Armed with a renewed sense of determination, and a suddenly-chiseled 6-6, 265-pound frame, the fourth-year pro has dominated most who attempt to cover him.

On Monday, it was Davis. On Tuesday, Seferian-Jenkins beat two defenders for a red-zone touchdown, and made another long catch up the seam while covered by cornerback Morris Claiborne. He looks very much like a legitimate offensive weapon.

If Seferian-Jenkins can continue his strong play into the regular season -- although he's suspended the first two games -- he could be the team's No. 1 option in the passing game. At least right now, though, that's not on his mind.

"He lost a lot of weight, he re-shaped his body, dedicated (himself)," Bowles in early August. "Obviously all the things you heard, he made a dedication to himself, so that's a credit to him. He's come in lighter, quicker, leaner and he's moving a lot better."

Seferian-Jenkins was reportedly the “most impressive player on the field” at OTAs, and the athletic tight end could surprise since the good vibes have continued into camp. He’s familiar with his likely quarterback, Josh McCown, since they played together in Tampa. While in Cleveland, McCown enhanced Gary Barnidge's numbers -- the tight end's PPR production was 34.5% higher in games that McCown played. So there is reason to believe that ASJ could become a dependable option for McCown, especially considering the state of the Jets' receiving corps. Seferian-Jenkins is an intriguing pick in the final rounds for those owners looking for upside at tight end.

Patriots WR Brandin Cooks has been impressive throughout the offseason, and he has put on a clinic against the Jaguars during two days of joint practices at Gillette Stadium. Remarkably, despite actively scheming to defend the deep post, the Jaguars still were vulnerable to Cooks’ speed.

Cooks is anything but a one-trick pony. His route tree is complete, and he is lethal when he builds off his deeper patterns. By comparison, the Patriots used to shrug off less-defined opposing deep threats like Mike Wallace who only ran one route. That’s easier for a smart defense to contain.

Cooks does it all, and when he decides to turn on the jets, the artist can turn the field into his blank canvas.

When receivers change teams, they usually experience a dip in production unless they see an upgrade at quarterback or an increased role. Cooks is unlikely to see significantly more targets, so given his 2nd- or 3rd-round ADP, he’s not without some risk. Camp reports of Cooks have been glowing, so it appears that he’s quickly earning the trust of Tom Brady. The Patriots aren’t going to force him the ball, so he’s bound to have a few down games, but he should be a key cog in what’s shaping up to be the league’s best offense.

Devonta Freeman and the Falcons have agreed to a five-year contract extension that makes him the NFL's highest-paid running back.

The Falcons have committed to Freeman as their feature back, so he should continue to see the majority of the touches in the Atlanta backfield.

Already ruled out for the remainder of training camp with a lower back disc herniation, rookie receiver Mike Williams is getting better and began running on the field Monday, according to Los Angeles Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn.

"He’s back on the grass," Lynn said. "He’s running. He’s doing well."

@ProFootballDoc added: "No idea where Mike Williams is at with his herniated disc but typically, a player needs 4-6 weeks minimum from start of running to play."

Related players: Tyrell Williams

Williams is looking very iffy for Week 1. He has missed most of camp. Tyrell Williams' ADP has been weighted down by the rookie's presence, but he (Tyrell) is very likely to start the entire season as long as he stays healthy. He was terrific last year in a WR1 role with Keenan Allen out and showed very well as a route-runner. He's currently going in the late 7th round in early MFL10s.

LeVeon Bell still has not reported to Steelers camp after not reaching an agreement on a contract extension. At some point, he will have to decide whether to play on the franchise tag and sign his tender.

Rookie running back James Conner (shoulder) has also been out since last Monday, after getting evaluated at a Pittsburgh hospital for his injury.

That means Fitzgerald Toussaint is on top of the depth chart, ahead of Knile Davis heading into the Steelers' first preseason game.

There's no reason to think Bell won't eventually sign his tender and reward fantasy owners once again, but Pittsburgh is one of the few backfields that has proven to produce a high-value handcuff. We saw it with DeAngelo Williams, but we also saw it with Toussaint in the 2015 postseason when he turned 21 touches into 118 total yards. Bell owners may want to monitor who the back-up is this offseason, as it has produced high volume in years past when Bell has not played.

The Vikings on Monday activated running back Latavius Murray from the Active/Physically Unable to Perform List.

The veteran running back signed with Minnesota in March, disclosing at the time that he would need ankle surgery. He spent all of the offseason program rehabbing and was placed on the Active/PUP list when veterans reported to training camp.

Murray was not listed on the Vikings initial depth chart ahead of their first preseason game, with rookie Dalvin Cook listed as the starter.

Murray has a lot of ground to make up on Cook at this point. It's looking more and more that Cook will line up as the starter in Week 1. The Vikings had a lot of problems running the ball last year, but signed tackles Riley Reiff and Mike Remmers and drafted center Pat Elflein (3rd round) and guard Danny Isidora in an effort to rebuild the offensive line. Cook has had a good spring and Murray, at this point, is likely in a RB by committee at best.

Big loss: Jets are placing WR Quincy Enunwa on injured reserve with a neck injury, per source.

Enunwa was shaping up to be a nice value in the middle rounds, but his season is over. Robby Anderson, Charone Peak and rookie ArDarius Stewart will be asked to pick up the slack in the receiving corps, but Austin Seferian-Jenkins could be peppered with targets at tight end. This is a big blow to the Jets' passing attack, such that it is.

The Bills have announced WR Anquan Boldin has signed with the team.

Senior writer for FoxSports.com and Good Morning Football host on NFL Network Peter Schrager was the first to report it on Twitter.

At age 36, Boldin doesn’t have a ton of gas left in the tank, but he’s still good in tight quarters and should be a major factor in the red zone. he had eight touchdowns on 67 catches last year for the Lions and led the team in targets (9) inside the opponent’s 10-yard line. He figures to fill a similar role for the Bills. His arrival is good news for Tyrod Taylor, but it puts a dent into the upside of Charles Clay and Andre Holmes.

No Buccaneers offensive player has been more consistent in camp workouts than RB Doug Martin, who has easily been the Bucs back who has flashed the most during training camp.

Martin usually gets two first-team reps to one for Jacquizz Rodgers, who is the favorite to replace Martin as the Bucs lead back during those first three games of the season. Martin is still suspended for three games, but the Bucs have been giving him the bulk of the first-team reps.

Roy Cummings is a two-time Florida sports writer of the year. He knows what he's talking about with this team.

In 2015, Martin finished with 1,673 total yards and seven touchdowns and was the #4 fantasy running back in PPR formats. This offseason, he has seemingly returned from the dead. He was mentioned as a cut candidate early this year, but now it sounds like the team is expecting him to return to form in 2017. He's suspended for the first three games of the season, and Jacquizz Rodgers is likely to start in his place for that span. In regular redraft formats, it's an intriguing strategy for owners to draft both Martin and Rodgers to serve as RB2 by committee (in a WR-heavy strategy).

Dolphins WR Jarvis Landry is under investigation for battery. Dolphins head coach Adam Gase said "we're aware of it," when asked about the report on Monday morning.

Andy Slater is a sports talk radio host in Miami that breaks some stories from time to time. It's notable that Gase confirmed the situation.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport also tweeted: "#Dolphins coach Adam Gase says Jarvis Landry is under investigation. I'm told it's a situation with the mother of his child & team has known...When the situation arose months ago, police came & looked into it. Did not prosecute. Jarvis Landry cooperated & provided info to #Dolphins".

Landry is going into a contract year. The two sides have been at an impasse on extension talks, and perhaps this is one of the reasons the Dolphins are hesitant. There has been no word for the league yet as to whether Landry faces any kind of discipline.

Vikings rookie RB Dalvin Cook is the starter, ahead of Jerrick McKinnon. Yes, it's just the first depth chart ahead of a preseason opener, but it confirms all the praise that Cook has received from his teammates and coaching staff in training camp. Free agent acquisition Latavius Murray is not on the depth chart, still on the PUP list, recovering from offseason ankle surgery.

Head coach Mike Zimmer said of Murray last week, "He is a smart guy, but he needs to get out there” on the practice field.

Related players: Sam Bradford, Stefon Diggs

It's looking more and more that Cook will line up as the starter in Week 1. The Vikings had a lot of problems running the ball last year, but signed tackles Riley Reiff and Mike Remmers and drafted center Pat Elflein (3rd round) and guard Danny Isidora in an effort to rebuild the offensive line. Cook has had a good spring and his primary competition (Latavius Murray) has been sidelined as he recovers from ankle surgery.

Browns head coach Hue Jackson announced via a statement Monday that Brock Osweiler would start the team's first preseason game over Cody Kessler and rookie DeShone Kizer:

"A lot goes into our evaluation but it’s always going to be about efficiently and effectively running the offense," Jackson said. "You want your starter to be able to do that despite any circumstance. Brock hasn’t really gotten any first team reps and this will give him that chance. We look forward to seeing what he can do with this opportunity throughout the week and against the Saints."

Related players: Isaiah Crowell, Kenny Britt, Corey Coleman

It's notable that Jackson admits Osweiler hasn't gotten any first team reps in training camp. That should be all you need to hear that this is still clearly an open competition. The first preseason game is generally the easiest for a quarterback with defenses playing vanilla schemes and starters barely playing. If Osweiler plays poorly, you can probably eliminate him from this competition.

For those thinking rookie running back Kareem Hunt would be a threat to Spencer Ware this season, Hunt seemingly has a lot of ground to make up in the preseason.

The Chiefs released an initial depth chart ahead of their preseason opener, and Hunt isn't even the back-up. Ware is the starter, followed by Charcandrick West on the second team and Hunt on the third team. Obviously, this can change as the preseason progresses, but it's at least an initial sign that Ware's hold on the starting job is strong right now.

Hunt has been generating some buzz, but Spencer Ware isn’t going to go gently into that good night. Since becoming a Chief, Ware has averaged 4.63 YPC on 286 carries, and his 13.5 yards per catch was the second most of any running back with 30-plus receptions in 2016. It’s more likely that Hunt finds a role on passing downs, potentially replacing Charcandrick West.

Lions beat reporter Kyle Meinke wrote Monday that third-round rookie receiver Kenny Golladay could be an impact player from the get-go, with his latest impressive performance being an "absolutely devastating" Sunday practice in the red zone.

Golladay is 6-foot-4 and not only the tallest receiver on the Detroit roster but just as tall as TE Eric Ebron. He has impressed since OTAs.

With the departure of Anquan Boldin, the Lions have a big red zone void to fill. Boldin led the Lions last year in red zone targets (24), red zone receptions (16) and red zone touchdowns (7). Golladay is a name to monitor this preseason and could be worth the late-round flier. There are plenty of targets to go around as well in Detroit, after three receivers saw 95+ targets a year ago.

From 49ers beat writer Matt Barrows: "Hyde has gone from looking out of place early in the spring to looking like a man possessed in the summer."

Barrows reports after the offseason ended in mid-June, Hyde stayed at the team facility for the next six weeks instead of heading to South Florida or Ohio State, his usual routine. Hyde also dropped weight and cut his body-fat percentage from 16 percent to nearly single digits.

After attending 49ers camp, ESPN NFL Insider Adam Caplan added on Sirius XM radio Sunday night: "He's the guy...he's not being challenged."

Related players: Joe Williams, Tim Hightower

Hyde has been a low-RB2 in our rankings this offseason after some reports that he initially struggled in OTAs adapting to Kyle Shanahan's outside zone blocking rushing attack. There's still time though for Hyde to move up the rankings with a strong preseason. Hyde was RB14 in PPR fantasy points per game last season, but he has yet to play a full season, missing three games last year, nine in 2015 and two as a rookie. Hyde's ADP sits in the 4th round, which sounds about right to us. It's not great value, but he's not overpriced either.

The Patriots have released their first unofficial depth chart, ahead of Thursday's preseason opener against the Jaguars. Mike Gillislee is behind Rex Burkhead, who is on the second team. Dion Lewis and James White are back from last year and are listed on the first team. It's likely those two are the passing down backs, with Gillislee and Burkhead competing for the valuable goal line back duties. Brandon Bolden is also listed on the second team with Burkhead.

Gillislee has been nursing a hamstring injury since late in the first week of training camp, something he also dealt with in the spring.

This comes after Gillislee was the first to get a crack at goal line work in training camp and powered ahead for touchdowns on two consecutive plays. Burkhead also received first-team snaps since Gillislee has been out.

Related players: Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski

As is usually the case with Bill Belichick, this is a muddled situation and requires monitoring throughout the preseason. With Giovani Bernard sidelined, Burkhead averaged 10.8 touches for 56 yards as the change-of-pace back. Then, in Week 17 with Jeremy Hill also out, Burkhead turned in an epic 29-touch, 144-yard, two-touchdown effort against the Ravens. As a junior at Nebraska, Burkhead rushed for 1,357 yards and scored 17 total touchdowns. If not for the Mike Gillislee signing, Burkhead would be first in line for the “big back” role. Now he’s likely fighting for snaps behind Gillislee and James White.

White's role in the running game is minimal -- what's important is his role in the passing game after Dion Lewis returned. In nine games without Lewis, White averaged 3.7 catches for 32 yards and 0.33 TD per game. After Lewis returned, White averaged 3.4 catches for 32 yards and 0.33 TD in the nine games leading up to the Super Bowl, so his passing down role remained largely unchanged after Lewis returned. Of course, White had a huge performance in the Super Bowl, turning 20 touches (14 catches) into 139 yards and three touchdowns, and per beat writer Mike Reiss, White has “won over” Bill Belichick and has “seized” the passing down role. The Patriots don't seem inclined to give him as many carries as they would Lewis, though his 4.3 YPC in 2016 was an improvement.

Eagles beat writer Andrew Kulp reports RB Wendell Smallwood is going to have a larger role in the Eagles offense than people realize.

"Smallwood looks explosive and physical running with the football, and smooth as a receiver out of the backfield. "Thrashing" is how Eagles offensive coordinator Frank Reich described the second-year back the other day, and I agree...I think we see quite a bit more Smallwood than Pumphrey, and he could wind up with the most touches out of the whole bunch before the season ends."

Related players: LeGarrette Blount, Darren Sproles

The Eagles backfield was already a weekly minefield last season in Doug Pederson's first season as head coach. Darren Sproles was the best finisher at RB24 in PPR, and Ryan Mathews was the best finisher in standard at RB25. No RB saw more than 168 touches last season in Philadelphia. This could turn into a three-headed running back by committee or worse.

Carson Wentz is impressing in his second NFL training camp. This from Eagles beat writer Dave Zangaro:

"Carson Wentz was on fire Sunday. He was absolutely dropping dimes to his receivers on deep balls. He threw a perfect pass to Jordan Matthews over Malcolm Jenkins. His pass to Torrey Smith deep down the sideline was perfect, too. Perhaps the best pass of the day came when Wentz threaded the needle to Trey Burton down the middle of the field with three defenders near him. Burton might have gotten lit up in an actual game, but the ball couldn't have been placed any better."

Zangaro notes Wentz's accuracy on deep balls is a consistent theme this camp, but his throws Sunday were "shockingly good".

Related players: Alshon Jeffery, Torrey Smith, Jordan Matthews, Zach Ertz, Nelson Agholor

In his rookie season, Wentz finished as QB24 with 13.1 fantasy points per game, after only throwing for 6.23 yards per attempt (29th among qualified quarterbacks), 62.4% completion percentage (18th) and 79.3 passer rating (25th). The Eagles went out and upgraded his pass catchers by signing Alshon Jeffery and Torrey Smith, which should help with his fantasy production in year two. 4for4 Associate Editor TJ Hernandez notes: "Smith ranks eighth among qualifying receivers in career red zone touchdown rate and Alshon has been slightly above average inside the 20 as well. A bolstered receiving corps along with Jordan Matthews, who is quietly one of the better red zone targets in the league (34.1% career red zone touchdown rate), should result in Wentz approaching at least league average scoring rates." Wentz could be a viable streaming option in one QB leagues and a potential steady contributor in two QB leagues.

The Redskins released their first unofficial depth chart ahead of Thursday's first preseason game. One hyped newcomer will start, while another hasn't cracked the second string as of yet. As expected, free-agent acquisition WR Terrelle Pryor is listed as a starter along with incumbents Jamison Crowder and Josh Doctson.

At running back, Rob Kelley is the starter with 3rd-down back Chris Thompson on the second team. Fourth-round pick Samaje Perine will enter the preseason third string, with work to do if he is to earn playing time at the start of 2017. This gels with camp reports that Perine has had ball security and pass protection issues. Former starter Matt Jones is buried on the depth chart with the fourth string.

The coaching staff has continuously noted this offseason that while there’s a depth chart, position battles will be contested up until the cutdown from 90 players to 53.

Related players: Kirk Cousins, Jordan Reed

Pryor finished the season as the #21 receiver, though his numbers dipped over the final month of the season. Still, his output in the first 12 games -- 5.2 catches for 71 yards and 0.33 TD, #11 WR -- is very encouraging. He’ll certainly benefit from an upgrade at quarterback in Washington. The quality of his targets may offset the reduction in workload.

Kelley won the RB1 job in Week 8, and from that point on, he was the #13 RB in standard (#15 in PPR) down the stretch. He averaged 4.19 YPC, which was the 14th-highest per carry average of the 27 running backs who saw at least 150 carries last year. Rookie Samaje Perine will make a hard push for the job, but it's clear that Kelley is taking his job seriously by getting leaner in the offseason. He currently sits atop the Washington depth chart, so he’s one of the cheapest starters available in early drafts. OC Mat Cavanaugh said that Kelly is “obviously” the starter, but things can change. Chris Thompson is the best receiver in this backfield, so neither Perine or Kelley are likely to see many receptions regardless. Keep in mind that once Kelley won the job in Week 8, he was the #13 RB in standard (#15 in PPR) down the stretch.

The Dolphins and QB Jay Cutler are finalizing a one-year deal, sources tell ESPN. Two sides are expected to hammer it out shortly.

Based on the signing, it doesn't look like Ryan Tannehill's prognosis is very good. Cutler played for Dolphins HC Adam Gase for one season (2015) in Chicago, and he had a pretty good year: 64.4% completion, 21 touchdowns, 11 interceptions and 7.6 YPA in 15 games. He was the No. 20 fantasy quarterback that season (15.7 fantasy points per game). Keep in mind that Alshon Jeffery only played nine games that year, and with his top receiver in the lineup, Cutler was even better (16.8 fantasy points per game). If Tannehill is out for the year, and it certainly looks like he will be, Cutler will be in the QB2/streaming conversation. Miami has trio of solid receivers and added Julius Thomas at tight end. Their fantasy value should hold pretty steady, though they don't have the built-in chemistry that they had with Tannehill.

I hope you’re not sick of hearing 2017 third-rounder Alvin Kamara being liken to Reggie Bush and Darren Sproles. The comparisons will continue, and a red-zone drill session like the one he produced during Saturday’s training camp practice will keep the mentions alive.

The first-year tailback took two consecutive plays into the end zone against the first-team defense to give opposing defenses a glimpse of what might be coming their way during the regular season.

Kamara lined up as the single back behind Drew Brees. The play looked like it was supposed to go up the gut. The hole didn’t exist. Kamara improvised and bounced around the left edge of the offensive line. No one was catching Kamara as he scampered into the end zone.
Kamara lined up in the same spot on the play. Brees gave Kamara a playaction fake to the right. Kamara took his route to out the backfield to the route and made the reception. The Saints tailback then fought through a hit from A.J. Klein around the 2-yard line and dove into the end zone with an outreached arm for the score.

It appears that Kamara will take over as the team's passing down back, a role that has been filled by Sproles and Travaris Cadet in the last few years. He's a sleeper in PPR formats, but with Mark Ingram and Adrian Peterson in the same offense, Kamara is going to have a tough time getting many carries.

Carlos Hyde continues to get plenty of work as a pass-catcher and had two receptions during the final two-minute drill.

Hyde is having a good camp and is his fantasy stock is trending upward. He should serve as the lead back with Tim Hightower and Joe Williams vying for touches as the RB2.

Via Jim Wyatt of the Titans’ website, coach Mike Mularkey on Friday characterized the status of WR Corey Davis as “week-to-week.”

Davis tried to project optimism, but he eventually accepted the fact that he could be out a while.

“Obviously I was bummed, because I can’t practice the next few days,” Davis said. “I am a competitor, and I want to be out there and practice and play. But we are just taking it slow at this point. . . . I got real emotional about it [when it first happened]. I am a competitor and I want to be out there and do what I can to help out this great team. But I guess that is just not in God’s plans. I am just going to take it slow and take it week by week.”

This is a setback for Davis who we believe was already being overdrafted as the 44th receiver off the board. The presence of Rishard Matthews, Eric Decker and Delanie Walker will make targets tough to come by in Nashville.

With the pads on, the Lions spent one period working on their goal line offense and defense. Zach Zenner had two touchdown runs in four plays with the first-team offense - note to fantasy football players, Zenner was getting goal-line reps for the Lions.

Related players: Ameer Abdullah

Nate Atkins of MLive tweeted today that "Abdullah can be a game changer" so it's not all bad news for Abdullah owners. We believe that Abdullah can still break out even if he's not getting the goal line work, and he's bound to get a few carries inside the 5-yard line. Joe Holka was very impressed with Abdullah after studying him for his Rushing Expectation series.

NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah was once a scout for the Philadelphia Eagles from 2010 to 2012.

The most noteworthy statement Jeremiah made after a visit to Eagles camp was when he said with extreme confidence that Nelson Agholor is going to be the Eagles' slot receiver this year.

"Nelson Agholor has had a total rebirth," he said. "He’s in the slot. He’s going to live in the slot. He’s going to be their slot receiver. I’ll be shocked if he’s not. I don’t know what that means for Jordan Matthews.

"Agholor is a lot more dynamic. Last year against the Seahawks he just turned Richard Sherman inside out, but he dropped the ball. Getting separation was not his issue last year. Just being able to finish, and he was doing a nice job, and it sounds like he’s really focused.

If this is true, to maintain his previous fantasy value, Jordan Matthews will either need to move outside or be traded to a good situation. This is a camp situation to monitor.

Chiefs TE Travis Kelce had swelling on his knee. Reid thinks he'll be fine because it flares up every once in a while.

This doesn't sound like a major issue and it shouldn't deter owners from drafting Kelce in the 3rd or 4th round. After finishing #6 as a rookie and #8 as a sophomore (in PPR formats), Kelce was the top overall tight end in 2016, though he was #2 in per game average behind Rob Gronkowski. Although his usage isn't as consistent as we'd like, he's primed for another big year in Andy Reid's offense, especially with the release of Jeremy Maclin. In the five games that Maclin was either very limited or missed altogether, Kelce saw 9.0 targets per game en route to 14.9 PPG (PPR). That’s a 238-point pace, and only five tight ends have had better seasons in the last four years.

One thing that is flying under radar: DeAndre Washington getting all second-team RB reps over Jalen Richard.

We've been saying for weeks that Washington is our preferred attrition play behind Marshawn Lynch. He fared very well in Joe Holka's Rushing Expectation series, and is a great Zero RB pick in the 13th or 14th round.

Matt Maiocco: "Joe Williams seems like a new man, coming back after a day off. He's really running strong and looks to be playing at a much higher level"

Maiocco also Tweeted: "As noted, rookie RB Joe Williams is coming on strong. RB coach Bobby Turner had a little talk with him about finishing plays."

At the request of new HC Kyle Shanahan, the team traded up in the fourth round to draft Williams, who quit football due to depression in 2016 but returned to gain 1,332 yards in his final seven games after seeing a psychiatrist during his time away from the game. He even set the Rose Bowl stadium record for a college running back with 332 rushing yards in a win over UCLA. Carlos Hyde reportedly looks great in camp, so as an injury play, Williams is worth a late-round pick.

Chiefs WR Donte Moncrief out with a mild AC sprain in his shoulder, per Pagano. He's day to day.

Moncrief missed time last year with a broken shoulder blade. His fantasy scoring with Andrew Luck over the past two seasons (12.2 PPR FP in 15 games) would be good enough for a top 30 finish, and he certainly has upside as a solid route-runner who plays in a good pass offense with a talented quarterback. But his dependency on scoring touchdowns (0.73 per game with Luck) is worrisome when it’s not a very sticky stat year-to-year. With Luck, he has averaged just 3.7 catches for 41 yards on 6.6 T/G over the past two seasons.

Chiefs WR Tyreek Hill just made another nice contested over-the-shoulder catch on pass from Alex Smith. That connection has been great all camp.

Hill averaged 71 total yards and 0.64 TD in his final 10 regular season games (15.3 PPG). We know he’s going to start at Jeremy Maclin’s old “Z” position, the featured receiving position in Reid’s offense. Per 4for4's Player Snap App, among players who played at least 40% of their team's snaps, Hill ranked first in fantasy points per snap in both standard and PPR formats. He was the #11 fantasy receiver (PPR) after his team's Week 5 bye. The Chiefs’ decision to cut Maclin certainly raises Hill’s floor. In the four games that Maclin missed last season, Hill averaged 7.0 receptions (on 8.5 targets) for 63 yards and 0.25 TD. Throw in his role in the rushing game and he’s suddenly looking like a strong fantasy WR2.

It’s been one week since the Steelers began training camp practices, and receiver Martavis Bryant remains on the sidelines as he awaits word from the NFL on the reinstatement process after he served a one-year drug suspension in 2016. A spokesman for the NFL said Friday morning Bryant still has to fulfill requirements before he can rejoin his teammates in practice.

“He would be permitted to participate in all preseason activities, including practices and games, once he satisfies requirements,” league spokesman Brian McCarthy said in an email Friday.

McCarthy was not specific in what requirements Bryant has to fulfill, but the league’s announcement in April indicates it might have to do with his arrangements for “clinical resources” in Pittsburgh.

“Bryant may join the Steelers at the training facility and participate in meetings, conditioning work and similar activities,” the statement said. “Once arrangements have been confirmed regarding Bryant’s clinical resources in Pittsburgh, he will be permitted to participate in all preseason activities, including practices and games.”

Bryant sat out the 2016 season after multiple failed drug tests, so he's a risky pick, even if he is on track to be reinstated. Given his production, he's worth the reward, though his ADP has risen into the late-4th round. In 24 career games, including the postseason, Bryant has averaged 4.0 receptions for 65 yards and 0.67 touchdowns, or 14.5 PPG (PPR). That would have been good enough to finish as the #13 WR in 2016, ahead of Jarvis Landry and Julian Edelman. He has posted similar numbers (4.4-67-0.56) in his last 16 games, which extrapolate to a 71-1074-9 season.

Browns QB DeShone Kizer has won the first week of training camp, and has moved closer to being named the starter for the preseason opener.

With the two-minute drill being a quarterback's showcase, Cody Kessler and Brock Osweiler have not helped themselves this week.

Heading into the Orange and Brown scrimmage on Friday at FirstEnergy Stadium, Kizer not only won the day Thursday, but has won the first seven days of training camp.

In fact, it's not even close. Now, all he has to do is more of the same in the scrimmage to earn the nod against the Saints.

"Obviously after we have the scrimmage and go through that process (I'll decide),'' said Jackson. "Next week, there's really two days of practice before we play.''

Jackson stressed however, that the order could flip again depending on how things go. But if all goes as expected, it will be soon be Kizer's job to lose.

The Browns are one of the few teams with a legit quarterback competition. If Kizer wins the job, it's conceivable that he'll work his way into the streaming conversation as the season wears on.

Ryan Tannehill’s MRI this afternoon to determine the extent of his new left knee injury proved inconclusive, requiring further study, and all options remain on the table per multiple sources.

That means that in the worst-case scenario, it could still be determined that Tannehill needs surgery on his left knee. It could also mean, however, that the quarterback could once again avoid surgery and find a way to get back on the field this season.

Reports that Tannehill basically got a clean bill of health from the MRI are not correct at this time because further examination of that MRI may give a specialist pause.

Tannehill’s MRI result and perhaps even the player will be examined by more doctors before a final determination is made and a plan for recovery is drawn up.

Related players: Matt Moore

Matt Moore is one of the better backups in the league. In six years with the Dolphins, he has completed 60.6% of his passes with a 7.4 yards per attempt and a 5.4% TD rate. To put his TD rate in context, only eight quarterbacks had a higher rate last season.

Jim Wyatt: WR Corey Davis undergoing an MRI for his hamstring.

Hamstring strains are common in the preseason, but MRIs are not. We'll await word of the results, but in the meantime early drafters should move Davis down in case this is a long-term injury.

Redskins beat writer Master Tesfatsion:

At this point, it’s clear that Rob Kelley will be the starting running back. Kelley has been the first running back to receive carries with the first team, when he’s healthy. Redskins Coach Jay Gruden’s past would also suggest that Kelley should receive most of the carries during the regular season. He started Alfred Morris over Matt Jones two years ago. Last year, Jones had the starting job despite Kelley’s impressive performance during training camp and the preseason.

Chris Thompson will still be the third-down back, so that must be accounted for as well. I would think that, just as he did two years ago, Gruden will likely roll with the hot hand between Kelley and Samaje Perine. Kelley should get most of the carries, but if Perine can get something going during a game in his limited role, I would think Gruden would stick with him until he cools off or needs a breather.

Perine has been impressive, but I’m still a fan of Kelley. They are both aggressive runners who should give the Redskins a level of physicality they didn’t consistently have last year.

This positive Kelley mention comes on the heels of an earlier report that Perine was struggling with ball security and pass protection. Kelley won the RB1 job in Week 8, and from that point on, he was the #13 RB in standard (#15 in PPR) down the stretch. He averaged 4.19 YPC, which was the 14th-highest per carry average of the 27 running backs who saw at least 150 carries last year. Perine will make a hard push for the job, but it's clear that Kelley is taking his job seriously by getting leaner in the offseason. He currently sits atop the Washington depth chart, so he’s one of the cheapest starters available in early drafts.

Joe Buscaglia of WKBW:

It feels like almost on a daily basis now, I’m writing that “this was Zay Jones' best practice to date,” and then the next day, he raises the bar just a bit more. That’s the type of improvement you hope to see from young players in their first training camp and rookie year, and it’s what we saw yet again on Wednesday. What really stood out was his route running ability, and where some receivers loaf through breakdowns ahead of their cuts, Jones has seemingly thrived. It’s within the intricacies of route running that players that aren’t the most physically gifted to win with speed, can win all game long. That was Stevie Johnson’s game when he was working as the Bills’ top target, and it’s what kept him as a productive player until injuries derailed his career. Jones has that type of ability, and he’s clearly getting open against cornerbacks during training camp. Plus, they’re training him as both an outside receiver and in the slot. Now, the big questions are this: Can he do it during games, and eventually, in the regular season? That’s a bridge we’ll have to cross when the opportunities present themselves, but Jones has done just about as well as you could have wanted him to through the first six days of training camp. To me, he is winning the battle for the second wide receiver spot as it stands today.

Jones was the first receiver taken in the second round and the fourth wideout off the board overall. The Bills have been -- and should continue to be -- a run-oriented team, but there is plenty of opportunity for targets in Buffalo. The Rams signed Robert Woods away, and he averaged 86 targets in his four seasons with the Bills. Jones is 6-foot-2, ran a 4.45 40-yard dash, and generally tested well across the board at the Combine. He was a standout at the Senior Bowl, and showed the ability to run a full route tree in practice. Throw in the second-best drop percentage of his class and you can see why he’s a good bet to contribute immediately in Buffalo. If Sammy Watkins is active and healthy, fantasy owners will likely be using Jones only on a matchup basis, but if Watkins misses time, the rookie could quickly see WR1-type targets.

Miami Dolphins starting quarterback Ryan Tannehill suffered what appeared to be a left leg injury Thursday and was taken off the practice field.

Tannehill fell awkwardly on the sideline while scrambling and didn't get up. Trainers looked at his left knee, which has a brace on it, before taking the quarterback inside. Tannehill suffered a sprained ACL and MCL in the same knee last season and didn't require surgery.

UPDATE: Aditi Kinkhabwala reports, "Sigh of relief for Dolphins. Member of org says no structural damage for Ryan Tannehill, knee same now as in AM."

UPDATE: @ProFootballDoc David Chao writes, "It appears Tannehill won’t be able to avoid ACL reconstruction surgery this time. Whether the ACL is 'partially' torn is not the issue. The knee has proven to be unstable. Nine times out of 10, partial ACL ends up unstable and needing surgery."

Tannehill may still need to have surgery if the doctors determine the knee is too unstable to play. We'll wait to hear his short-term prognosis before updating our draft rankings. Matt Moore is the primary backup in Miami. Stay tuned.

The Chargers believe OL Forrest Lamp has suffered a torn ACL, source said. That's the initial diagnosis.

Related players: Melvin Gordon

Lamp was likely to win the starting job at right guard, so this is a blow to Melvin Gordon's upside.

Early in the day, Washington Redskins coach Jay Gruden laid out what he wanted to see from a running back. It wasn't earth shattering; he says the same thing every year. It was noteworthy, though, because of what happened later.

Gruden wants his backs to be able to pass protect, to not fumble and to make tough yards.

During a red-zone drill, rookie running back Samaje Perine had the ball stripped from him at the 5-yard line. He did not carry the ball again. Maybe that was by design, but it also could have been Gruden letting Perine know that was unacceptable.

"Ball security is very important," Gruden had said before practice.

Perine showed mixed results in a blitz pickup drill against the linebackers, allowing Mason Foster to get inside him on one rush and stopping Zach Vigil on another.

Perine will continue to challenge Rob Kelley for the starting job. But days like Monday serve as a reminder Perine has to prove a few things. There's a lot to like -- and other stuff to clean up. Kelley does well with ball security and he's improved in the pass game. Gruden loved some of his short runs last season that he felt weren't blocked well.

Perine has a fairly clear path to major touches in Washington since he only has Kelley to beat out. Reports about Kelley have been mixed, so Perine is no shoo-in to win the starting job. Redskins OC Mat Cavanaugh said that Kelly is “obviously” the starter, but things can change. Chris Thompson is the best receiver in this backfield, so neither Perine or Kelley are likely to see many receptions regardless. Keep in mind that once Kelley won the job in Week 8, he was the #13 RB in standard (#15 in PPR) down the stretch.

Texans' WR Will Fuller broke his collarbone today during practice. Out indefinitely.

Broken clavicles generally take 1-2 months to heal, so the Fuller's availability in September is in jeopardy.

It was a good first week of practices for Carlos Hyde. He looks – right now – to be in good position as the team’s starting running back. Veteran Tim Hightower is also looking very good. He appears to be the team’s second-best running back.

Hyde looks to be adapting better and better to the 49ers’ run scheme. And he has also placed a lot of emphasis on catching the ball out of the backfield.

Rookie Joe Williams, a fourth-round draft pick who was seen as a serious challenger to Hyde, has gotten off to a slow start and he is still gaining familarity with the system. He also must do a better job of securing the football.

GM John Lynch openly questioned Hyde's fit in Kyle Shanahan's running scheme and then traded up to draft Joe Williams, a Shanahan favorite, so Hyde was on the hot seat entering camp. But it appears that he his doing well while the rookie is struggling, a sign that Hyde is winning the job. Meanwhile, Hightower appears set to be the primary backup to start the season.

Sterling Shepard was looked at on sideline. He's in serious pain. Taken off on cart. Apparently in tears. Not good.

Related players: Odell Beckham, Brandon Marshall, Roger Lewis

Update: Mike Garafolo tweeted, "Early for Giants WR Sterling Shepard but the team is hopeful it's just a bad roll of his ankle. Stay tuned."

Shepard is slated for WR3 duties behind Odell Beckham and Brandon Marshall, but his season may be in jeopardy based on this report. We'll have more details as they emerge. Roger Lewis played the most snaps (24%) of the remaining Giant receivers last year.

Jay Ajayi sustained a concussion during Miami Dolphins practice Monday, as feared, and he will miss at least a week of drills, sources familiar with the running back’s situation told The Miami Herald.

Although his concussion is considered mild, the Dolphins are wary of exposing the NFL’s fourth-leading rusher from a year ago to unnecessary contact. That is why once Ajayi is cleared to return to football activities, coaches are expected to be judicious with how much work Ajayi actually gets early in the preseason.

The Ajayi injury happened during a live tackling practice but it did not happen during a live contact period within the practice. The Dolphins were in a two-minute drill and Ajayi caught a pass. Safety T.J. McDonald rallied to the ball and bumped (thudded) Ajayi without taking him to the ground.

That is how the concussion happened.

Ajayi had a breakout season, but nearly 58% of his rushing yards came in four of his 15 games (against the Bills twice, the Steelers and the Jets). He averaged 6.74 YPC in those four weeks, and just 3.56 YPC in the other 11 games. Not coincidentally, three of those four big games came with center Mike Pouncey in the lineup, yielding a 5.96 YPC with Pouncey (versus 4.12 YPC without). As long as he and his offensive line can stay healthy, Ajayi should have a very productive 2017.

Lance Dunbar's prolonged injury has helped rookie head coach Sean McVay realize something: Todd Gurley is a very talented receiver.

The Rams signed Dunbar because they liked his pass-catching ability. They were hopeful he could mimic Chris Thompson's role in McVay's offense during his two-year stint in Washington. But a lingering knee issue has kept Dunbar from practicing, and there is no timetable for his return. His injury has the Rams wondering when Gurley will actually be able to take a break this season.

The Rams hope to eventually establish some depth behind Gurley by drawing from outside the organization. For now, though, Malcolm Brown is the favorite to become Gurley's backup.

"Regardless of whether Lance is available or not, we always knew that Todd would be the lead dog," McVay said. "And it's just kind of us figuring out what is that fine line between him being at his best, while making sure that he gets his touches necessary, and then also being mindful of having somebody that can spell him so that when the fourth quarter rolls around, and to finish the game, he feels good.”

After a strong rookie season, Gurely managed just 885 rushing yards on 278 carries (3.18 YPC) in the Rams’ anemic offense. Fantasy owners drafting him in the late 2nd round are banking on new head coach Sean McVay’s ability to turn around the offense, especially the running game. McVay was the OC in Washington from 2014-2016 and his teams finished in the No. 19 to No. 21 range in rushing yards all three years. However, his offenses did have two top 10 finishes in rushing touchdowns (2014, 2016) which is a reason for optimism when it comes to Gurley. If he’s on the field on third down, it will certainly raise his floor as a fantasy asset.

CBS NFL Insider Jason La Canfora wrote Tuesday that he has "heard plenty of rumblings about (Andrew Luck) starting the year on the physically unable to perform list...".

Right now, Luck (shoulder) is on the preseason PUP list, which means he can come off of it at any time, but LaCanfora is alluding to the regular season PUP list in which any player on that must miss the first six weeks of the season.

La Canfora notes: "As a first-time general manager just on the job, (general manager Chris) Ballard has time on his side, and undoubtedly Luck is the greatest thing this organization has going for it. This roster is far from the finished product, and with Ballard just beginning a five-year contract, the long view -- or at least the medium-view -- has to dictate the vision of the front office."

4for4's Steve Andress is a former team reporter for the Indianapolis Colts and notes any decision involving Andrew Luck usually goes through owner Jim Irsay's office. Irsay has spoken about wanting to win multiple Super Bowls in the Luck era after regretting only winning one with Peyton Manning. It's hard to imagine he would jeopardize Luck's long-term health just to get him on the field early this season, if his rehab is not 100 percent complete.

The Colts have given no timetable for Luck's return, and Luck, when asked, did not say whether he thought he'd be ready for the start of the season.

Indianapolis Star beat writer Zak Keefer also noted Tuesday night on Twitter: "1 thing to stress again about Luck: There are SIX weeks until regular season starts. He's begun the throwing part of his rehab. Lot of time."

Herald Bulletin beat writer George Bremer also tweeted: "For those asking, I'm told Chris Ballard's statement from last week stands. Luck expected to come off PUP before reg season begins."

There's no red alert yet on Luck, but drafters need to proceed cautiously at this point, considering how deep the quarterback position is and Luck's high 5th round ADP. When healthy, Luck is a top-five fantasy quarterback; however, this shoulder injury is one the Colts had put off surgically repairing since it first happened early in the 2015 season before later lacerating his kidney and missing the rest of that season. In 2016, Luck would regularly sit out a day or two of the practice week trying to manage the shoulder, before the Colts and Luck finally opted for surgery this past offseason. All parties have said the same thing, that they are going to methodically take their time with Luck's rehab. What that means exactly for his early season availability is still to be determined. Proceed cautiously in drafts.

Jordan Reed opened training camp on the PUP list with a toe injury, with head coach Jay Gruden saying he hoped it would be a short-term stay.

Five days later, Reed is travelling to Charlotte to see a specialist about the toe. That is a bit alarming, considering Reed's injury history and Gruden not suggesting a timetable for his return.

CSN Mid Atlantic Redskins Insider JP Finlay notes visiting a specialist does not necessarily mean an injury is serious, especially as the visit was scheduled. It's possible Reed and the team just want to get clearance from an expert before the star tight end returns to practice. But it could also mean things aren't improving.

On Monday, Reed was also spotted with his left knee wrapped during team drills. Redskins PR later said that Reed was icing down his knee after a workout.

Related players: Vernon Davis, Kirk Cousins

Reed has missed 20 games in four seasons. We have Reed projected for about 12 games right now. When he's on the field, his production is elite. Reed has led all tight ends in PPR fantasy points per game in back-to-back years. But will he be on the field to help your fantasy team?

When asked Tuesday about rookie quarterback Deshaun Watson's progress in training camp, head coach Bill O'Brien said, "Deshaun is ahead of any rookie quarterback I've ever been around."

The buzz is building around Watson, after many beat reporters speculated during OTAs that Tom Savage would be the Week 1 starter. The Texans traded up in the first round to select Watson after giving up a second round pick to the Browns to get rid of Brock Osweiler's contract.

O'Brien also said of Savage and star receiver DeAndre Hopkins: "They stay after practice. They are coming out early...watching film together. They get along really well."

Related players: Tom Savage, DeAndre Hopkins, Lamar Miller

Savage provides little fantasy upside to himself or the Texans wide receiving corp, with zero touchdown passes and one interception in five career games. Even if Watson were to win the job Week 1, our current combined projections for Savage and Watson would still put the Texans starting quarterback outside the top-24 fantasy quarterbacks. An upgrade at quarterback though, even a rookie quarterback, could potentially raise Hopkins' floor, after only catching 78 of the 151 targets thrown his way last season.

The Panthers rested Cam Newton's throwing shoulder for the second half of practice Sunday, but after a day off Monday, Newton still wasn't throwing at practice Tuesday. Newton had that shoulder surgically repaired this offseason.

“He started warming up this morning and said he still felt a little bit sore,” head coach Ron Rivera said, via the team’s website. “Why push it? Why have him throw with a sore arm and make it worse? It made no sense to have him throw with a sore shoulder.”

Newton being held out of some team drills during Sunday’s practice was part of what Rivera called routine maintenance coming off surgery, and there's no deep concern yet, but the fact that it is still sore after a day off is at least something to monitor closely.

Related players: Kelvin Benjamin, Greg Olsen, Christian McCaffrey, Jonathan Stewart

Newton is coming off an injury-plagued 2016, where he finished as QB17 (QB13 in fantasy points per game). That after an MVP 2015 where he was the best quarterback in fantasy football. Any setback from his offseason surgery would be a big blow to not only him but the rest of the weapons in Carolina's offense.

Saints beat writer Jeff Duncan reported Tuesday that Saints rookie RB Alvin Kamara "looks like the real deal and has the inside track to land the role in the Saints' nickel offense."

Sunday, Hall of Fame running back Marshall Faulk visited New Orleans Saints training camp on Sunday, for his job as an NFL Network analyst.

With Faulk at team headquarters, Payton was asked if he would push Saints rookie RB Alvin Kamara to pick Faulk's brain, but the coach took his response in a different direction.

"There's some traits that Kamara has that remind me (of Faulk) in regards to his intelligence, his ability to run routes," Payton said. "It was real evident in the first half hour of how smart (Kamara) was. He was in with the quarterbacks, he understood schemes, he understood route reads, concepts. And even on the field, it was impressive. It would be something that would be difficult to know if you were just looking at a test."

Related players: Mark Ingram, Adrian Peterson

Tavaris Cadet held down this role in recent seasons but was not nearly as fantasy relevant as when Darren Sproles held the role. Cadet only averaged 6.3 PPR fantasy points per game, playing 23 percent of snaps in 2016. However, that was due to Cadet's lack of involvement in the rushing game (four carries all season). Cadet's caught 40 passes for 281 yards and four touchdowns. If Kamara can make an immediate impact in the Saints nickel offense, it could eat into Mark Ingram's receiving production, after catching 96 balls over the past two years. It wasn't so long ago that Sproles had three consecutive seasons with 70+ receptions in this role.