Rams TE Gerald Everett (back) is questionable for this weekend’s game against the Eagles. He was a full participant in Friday’s practice, so we’re expecting him to play. Everett figures to need a Tyler Higbee injury to be a fantasy option this season.
Eagles QB Carson Wentz isn't listed on the Week 1 injury report. He missed some time late in camp with what was reported as a "minor soft tissue injury," but it's a non-issue now. Despite an beat-up WR corps (again), Wentz is a solid QB1 play against Washington this weekend.
Patriots RB Lamar Miller (knee) has been activated from the PUP list and is practicing on Monday. It's his 1st official work since tearing his ACL last August. With Miller and Sony Michel joining Damien Harris, James White and Rex Burkhead, New England's backfield is all of a sudden very crowded. (What else is new?) We'll see if the situation sorts itself out at all over the next couple of weeks. White's role in the passing game is the only sure thing for now.
The Seahawks have signed WR Paul Richardson. He spent his first 4 NFL seasons from 2014 to 2017 in Seattle, posting a career-best 44-703-6 line in that final year. Richardson figures to duke it out with Phillip Dorsett for the #3 WR job. He'd need an injury to Tyler Lockett or D.K. Metcalf to have a shot at real fantasy value.
Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy talked up TE Blake Jarwin on Sunday. “I think Blake is going to make a real impact on our offense," McCarthy said. "The ability to attack the middle of the field, in my view, is always critical to the passing game ... I’ve been so impressed with him and really the entire tight end group.” Jarwin has been efficient on somewhat limited opportunities over the past couple of seasons but gets a big opportunity in 2020 with Jason Witten gone. At a TE17 ADP, Jarwin is 1 of our favorite targets at the position.
ESPN's David Newton believes RB Mike Davis "might have the edge" for the Panthers' #2 RB job. His competition is Reggie Bonnafon and Jordan Scarlett. The battle is irrelevant as long as RB Christian McCaffrey is healthy, of course. We wouldn't bother spending a pick to "handcuff" CMC at this point.
ESPN's Jamison Hensley says Ravens rookie RB J.K. Dobbins will "be the primary backup in 2020 to Mark Ingram." Backup is probably the wrong word for this description, but we certainly won't be surprised if Dobbins opens his debut season running behind Ingram. The veteran didn't miss a game last season until Baltimore's meaningless finale, while averaging 5.0 yards per carry and 9.5 yards per catch for the year. We do, however, project the rookie to outscore Ingram -- who will turn 31 in December -- in fantasy for the season.
The Steelers selected Maryland RB Anthony McFarland in the 4th round of the 2020 NFL Draft. Watch McFarland’s 298-yard, 2-TD dismantling of Ohio State back in 2018 and you’d think he’s 1 of the top backs in this class. That was part of an impressive redshirt freshman season that saw him tally 1,034 yards on 7.9 yards per carry. 39 of his 131 carries went for 10+ yards that year. McFarland took a colossal step back this past season, though, battling through a high-ankle sprain and totaling just 614 yards on 114 carries (5.4 YPC). He’s also fairly inexperienced in the passing game, with only 24 catches across the past 2 years. But McFarland’s flashes are exciting. And the 5’8, 208-pounder confirmed his big-play ability with a 4.44-second 40 time at the Combine. He’s an intriguing addition to Pittsburgh’s backfield alongside James Conner, Benny Snell and Jaylen Samuels.
The Bears on Monday reached a 2-year, $16 million deal with TE Jimmy Graham, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Graham is a surprising addition at a somewhat surprising cost. His playing time and production fell off late last season, and he'll turn 34 midway through the coming campaign. Chicago also still has TE Trey Burton under contract, though he could be a cut candidate. The Bears' TE corps looks like a situation to avoid for 2020.
The Redskins hired Scott Turner as OC. He's re-uniting with Ron Rivera after working with him in Carolina the past 2 years. Turner replaced his father, Norv, as Panthers OC for the final 4 games of last season. That's his only experience calling plays at the NFL level.
Eagles RB Miles Sanders (ankle) didn't practice on Wednesday. The Philadelphia media seems generally optimistic about Sanders' availability for this weekend's game against the Seahawks, but we'd still consider him truly questionable at this point. We'll get another update on his status tomorrow.
Bills WR Cole Beasley, WR John Brown, RB Devin Singletary and TE Dawson Knox are all inactive for today’s game against the Jets. Don’t expect to see much of QB Josh Allen or RB Frank Gore. Top CB Tre’Davious White is also inactive for Buffalo.
ESPN's Courtney Cronin reports that the Vikings are "leaning heavily" toward resting the "bulk" of their starters in Sunday's game against the Bears. Minnesota is locked into the NFC's #6 seed. Cronin mentions QB Kirk Cousins as 1 starter who isn't expected to play. RB Dalvin Cook (shoulder) is almost certain to be inactive. And we'd bank on WRs Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen getting the day off, too. QB Sean Mannion will get the start for the Vikings, making this an offense to try to avoid in Week 17 fantasy lineups. The Bears DST is a strong play.
The Seahawks and RB Marshawn Lynch are meeting today about a possible reunion. “Both sides are optimistic he is back wearing 24”, a source tells ESPN's Adam Schefter. Seattle is desperate at RB after losing Chris Carson (hip) and C.J. Prosise (arm) in the Week 16 loss to the Cardinals. Lynch, of course, spent 2011- 2015 with the Seahawks. But he hasn't played since October of 2018, and it's entirely unclear what kind of shape the 33-year-old is in. He wouldn't be a realistic Week 17 fantasy option, but he'd make RB Travis Homer tougher to trust.
Bengals RB Joe Mixon (calf) isn't listed on the final Week 16 injury report. He was added to the injury report and limited on Thursday but returned to a full practice on Friday. ESPN's Ben Baby confirms that Mixon is expected to have "no issues" in Sunday's game against the Dolphins. Mixon is a legitimate RB1 in that matchup.
Rams TE Gerald Everett (knee) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. That puts him on track to return for Saturday night's game against the 49ers. Tyler Higbee leads all TEs in targets, catches and yards over the last 3 weeks -- but note that Everett out-targeted Higbee 59 to 33 over the Rams' first 11 games. We'd bet on Higbee sticking as the lead TE in Week 16, but Everett's return certainly adds risk to his outlook.
Raiders RB Josh Jacobs is expected to play this weekend after an MRI on his injured shoulder "checked out very positively," according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. It's good timing for Jacobs, who will return to face a barely-there Jaguars run defense that's allowed a pathetic 6.3 yards per carry to RBs over the last 4 weeks.
The forecast for today's Ravens-Bills game calls for 15-20 mph winds with gusts of 30+. QBs Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen both do a lot of their fantasy damage on the ground, so neither guy is significantly hurt by the weather. We would slightly downgrade WRs John Brown and Marquise Brown with deep passes likely to be impacted.
The Patriots expect WR Julian Edelman (shoulder) and WR Mohamed Sanu (ankle) to play through their "questionable" tags against the Chiefs today, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Play them in fantasy as you normally would.
The forecast for today's Bucs-Jags game calls for a slight chance of rain with winds of 17-20 mph. Gusts could come in at 25-30 mph. That's enough wind to impact the passing and kicking games. QBs Jameis Winston and Nick Foles come with increased risk in Week 13 fantasy lineups. Try to avoid Ks Matt Gay and Josh Lambo.
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