Fantasy Football News

With Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy reportedly out up to four weeks due to a sprained ankle, Carson Wentz becomes the next man up.

At some point over the next month, will undrafted rookie Max Brosmer become the next man in?

Brosmer, the only one of three backups throughout the offseason program and training camp to make it to the 53-man roster (Sam Howell and Brett Rypien are gone), played at the University of Minnesota last season.

The story added the Vikings love Brosmer, but he's currently not ready to take over the position. However, the Vikings could turn to him at some point if Wentz can't take advantage of his chances. The story also mentioned the team could make a move for another QB as well. A familiar name in Kirk Cousins was mentioned specifically in the story. This whole situation could be a very interesting one, especially if Wentz happens to struggle early.

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn confirmed today that quarterback Jayden Daniels is dealing with a knee injury that might keep him out this week.

“He did have an MRI, and he’s already begun his return to play process with us. He is truly day-to-day,” Quinn said of Daniels.

Quinn said it’s too soon to say whether Daniels can play at home against the Raiders on Sunday. But, he said he'd share more once the team is back at practice on Wednesday and the injury report comes out, the story said. As we stated earlier today, Daniels and the Commanders do play an early game on Sunday, so even if Daniels a game-time call, owners will have some time to adjust lineups.

DQ says Chris Rodriguez will "be back into the fold" but that he's good with Bill as a pass blocker: "We feel comfortable...We wouldn't have put him in if not."

Related players: Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Chris Rodriguez, Jeremy McNichols, Donovan Edwards, Chase Edmonds

It seems like Croskey-Merritt will be in line to get a big part of the workload with McNichols also factoring in. McNichols is also known as a good pass protector, so the Commanders seem comfortable with either back playing in passing situations. It remains to see how much Rodriguez is involved after being inactive for Weeks 1 and 2. The team also just signed Edmonds to the practice squad, but it looks like Rodriguez will at least see work as the team's RB3.

Jaguars WR Brian Thomas had an NFL-worst -9.1 receiving EPA yesterday. Next closest player in Week 2 was at -6.8.

Previous career low for BTJ was -5.5. Pretty easily worst game of his career

There have been reports out Monday that BTJ is dealing with a wrist injury as well, although Shipley didn't get into that aspect. The wrist injury also wasn't on the injury report. Shipley did say BTJ's third worst game of his career was in Week 1 of this season against the Panthers, so that's maybe the bigger concern for owners. Shipley added that Thomas Jr. and QB Trevor Lawrence are not only not on the same page, they're not even in the same book, and it dates back to training camp. He feels that issue carried over into Week 1. BTJ's possible wrist injury will be something to monitor this week. It's a potentially tough matchup against the Texans defense in Week 3 for the Jags.

Vikings RB Aaron Jones (hamstring) is unlikely to play this week vs. Bengals, per coach Kevin O'Connell.

Related players: Jordan Mason, Zavier Scott, Ty Chandler

Hamstring injuries can be tricky, so we could be looking at multiple weeks without Jones in the lineup. However, it's another injury to monitor this week as the Vikings are very shorthanded on offense with the recent loss of QB J.J. McCarthy (ankle) as well. Mason should get the start, and a bulk of the work, if Jones is indeed out in Week 3. It's a nice matchup against the Bengals, however, Carson Wentz is expected to be under center so the Bengals defense could focus on stopping Mason.

Big news: Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell says J.J. McCarthy came in sore with an ankle sprain. They don't anticipate having him for Sunday against the Bengals.

Related players: Carson Wentz

In a separate post, the Vikings say they are already preparing Wentz to start in Week 3. Another update to this story by Adam Schefter says McCarthy could be out 2-4 weeks with a high ankle sprain. The Vikings traded Sam Howell to the Eagles late in camp, then brought in Wentz to take his place. When we last saw Wentz, he struggled in a Week 18 game with the Chiefs against the Broncos last season. Those in desperate need of a QB could consider Wentz in a nice matchup against the Bengals. It remains to be seen just how much time McCarthy could miss.

Commanders QB Jayden Daniels, who underwent an MRI following the loss to the Packers, was diagnosed with a sprained knee, per me and Mike Garafolo.

Related players: Marcus Mariota

There is good news and bad news with the rest of the post, according to Rapoport. The good news is it's not a long-term injury ... the bad news is Daniels' status for Week 3 is in doubt. The Commanders do play an early game on Sunday against the Raiders at home, so if he's a game-time call, owners will have time to adjust fantasy lineups either way. If he can't go, Mariota would be expected to get the start. This will be one injury to watch this week once practice reports come out on Wednesday.

Running back Chase Edmonds, who last played with the Bucs in 2023, is signing to the Commanders' practice squad. Veteran back joins a talented, young backfield after Austin Ekeler's Achilles injury.

Related players: Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Chris Rodriguez, Jeremy McNichols, Donovan Edwards

Edmonds played under OC Kliff Kingsbury in Arizona as well, so this move makes some sense for the Commanders. However, Edmonds likely won't make a fantasy impact right away, if at all. Edmonds is expected to still be behind Croskey-Merritt and McNichols, and probably Rodriguez too, who should at least has a chance to be active on game days going forward.

Evan Engram: The signs were there when Engram played just one snap on the first drive of Denver’s season in Week 1, but the free-agent tight end was even less involved against the Colts than the Titans last week.

Nix emphasized Engram’s the Broncos’ No. 1 option on a variety of plays, but the tight end just doesn’t have the snap count at the moment to make a massive impact when defenses are taking him away.

It's been a frustrating start to the fantasy season for those who waited on the TE position and thought they got a steal in Engram in the later rounds. Engram was thought to be a perfect fit in the Broncos offense, which seemed to lack a lot of big-name targets. The story said Engram did have one chain-moving catch in the second half, but was a ghost before the break. Through two games now, Engram has just four catches, the story pointed out. Engram will be tough to trust until we start to see more fantasy production, so owners may want to look for another option.

New York Jets quarterback Justin Fields’ status for next week’s game against Tampa Bay is up in the air after he left Sunday’s loss to Buffalo early in the fourth quarter to be evaluated for a concussion. On Monday morning, head coach Aaron Glenn said Fields was in concussion protocol.

Related players: Tyrod Taylor

Fields took a hit from Bills defensive end Joey Bosa before being led to the medical tent and later the locker room. He completed 3-of-11 passes for 27 yards and also led the Jets with 49 rushing yards on five carries before he exited. Typically, we see players miss the following week when they are in concussion protocol, so Fields owners will want to monitor him over the week. Owners should probably come up with a backup plan in the event Fields needs to sit out Week 3, which is an early game on the road against the Bucs.