Ravens HC John Harbaugh gave his early assessment of WR Odell Beckham. “It seems to me that Odell has a good plan,” Harbaugh said Wednesday. “I see him working himself on a schedule to be ready to start the season. He’s definitely not where he’s going to be, but you could see the step (up) from minicamp…it was a good step in the right direction.” Beckham, 30, recently told The Athletic that he’s approaching 2023 like it’ll be his final season. If he can stay healthy, spot-start WR3 value is within reach given a more aggressive Baltimore offense.
Chiefs OC Matt Nagy gave his take on rookie WR Rashee Rice. “[Rice] comes from a no-huddle offense (Southern Methodist University). Yet it’s a little bit different with the tempo here and now, a huddle play,” Nagy explained. “Getting to the line of scrimmage, running your route, having conversions with it and yet being on time, jogging back and doing it again… He came in phenomenal shape here to this training camp — and I think every day, he’s made incremental improvements. It’s exciting for us because the sky’s the roof for his talent.” The Round 2 pick projects in a rotational role out of the gate, but there are snaps up for grabs in the Chiefs’ WR corps.
Chiefs reporter Pete Sweeney writes that the connection between QB Patrick Mahomes and WR Skyy Moore “seems to be getting better every day.” Moore looks poised for a prominent early-season role given the recent injury to Kadarius Toney. A Year 2 leap into WR3 range is within Moore’s range of outcomes.
The 49ers have a “plan” for keeping RB Christian McCaffrey healthy for Week 1, per HC Kyle Shanahan. McCaffrey sat out team drills on Wednesday, and it shouldn’t alarm you if this becomes a trend. CMC, now 27, has nearly 1,500 career touches. Our RB rankings show he remains a top-end RB1.
ESPN’s Nick Wagoner believes 49ers RB Tyrion Davis-Price looks “quicker and leaner.” The 22-year-old is likely headed for the RB3/4 role in San Francisco. But recall that the team selected him in Round 3 just one year ago. He posted only 99 yards (on 34 carries) as a rookie.
Seahawks TE Noah Fant is opening training camp on the PUP list. No word yet on what's keeping him sidelined. He dealt with knee trouble last year but played in all 17 games. We'll update Fant's status when we know more.
Patriots WR Tyquan Thornton has not appeared limited in training camp so far, according to insider Alex Barth. Thornton missed time in the spring with a soft-tissue injury, but that looks to be behind him. The 2022 second-round pick has an opportunity to carve out a significant role in a New England passing game that could certainly use his speed.
Commanders RB Antonio Gibson said Wednesday that he anticipates being in the “JD [McKissic] role” this season, playing on third downs and the two-minute drill. McKissic averaged just 4.4 carries but 5.8 targets per game in Washington over the last three years. We're expecting Gibson to get more rushing work than that, but anything close to that level of usage in the passing game would be golden. Gibson is one of our 2023 Fantasy Football Sleepers.
Falcons TE Kyle Pitts was on the field for Wednesday's training-camp practice -- with a brace on his surgically repaired right knee. Pitts seemingly isn't back to 100% yet, although the fact that he's on the field at all in late July means he should be ready to roll come Week 1. We'll continue to keep a close eye on his status.
Broncos WR Marvin Mims is out with a hamstring injury, HC Sean Payton said Wedesday. Mims dealt with an injury to his other hamstring earlier this offseason. Payton expects Mims to be back in action in "about four days, five days, maybe a week." We'll see when the rookie returns to the field. He can't afford to miss too much more time if he wants to push for an early-season role.
Texans WR John Metchie has been cleared for the start of training camp, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. Metchie missed his entire rookie season after being diagnosed with leukemia and was sidelined for much of the spring with a hamstring injury. If healthy, the 2022 second-round pick has a real shot to win a top-three role in Houston's WR corps.
Cardinals TE Zach Ertz will open training camp on the PUP list. No surprise after his November 13 ACL tear. Ertz said early this offseason that his goal is to be ready for Week 1, but he wouldn't guarantee that he will be. He was excellent before going down last year, ranking third among TEs in PPR points through Week 9. But between the knee injury, his age (33 in November), and the presence of second-year TE Trey McBride, Ertz is just a TE3 in best-ball drafts and a waiver-wire watch-list guy in lineup-setting leagues.
Giants OT Andrew Thomas said Wednesday that TE Darren Waller is "going to be a problem" for opposing defenses. S Xavier McKinney called Waller "special," adding that humans shouldn't be that large and fast. Waller was a spring standout and has rolled that momentum over to the start of training camp. SNY TV's Connor Hughes believes Waller gives the Giants' passing game a "go-to guy." Alongside an underwhelming WR corps, Waller is the favorite to lead the G-Men in targets this season. There's upside from his 6th/7th-round ADP.
Panthers HC Frank Reich named QB Bryce Young his starter on Wednesday. We appreciate Reich saving us from having to read about a faux QB competition between Young and Andy Dalton for the next month. A two-year starter at Alabama, Young looks like a relatively pro-ready rookie QB. There are lots of questions in his WR corps. But Young's sneaky rushing upside could give him some QB1 spot-start appeal throughout this season.
The Bears signed TE Cole Kmet to a four-year, $50 million contract extension with $32.8 million guaranteed. The deal ties Kmet with Hunter Henry and Jonnu Smith (LOL) for ninth among TEs in average annual salary. He's now signed through the 2027 season. It's a surprisingly lucrative deal for a guy who's been just fine through three NFL seasons. Kmet has racked up 110 catches over the last two -- 13th most among TEs -- but averaged just 10.5 yards per catch. He ranked 25th and then 22nd at his position in Pro Football Focus receiving grade. Kmet is coming off a TE16 finish in PPR points per game -- and even that was boosted by a 14% TD rate. With WR D.J. Moore bringing additional target competition in a run-heavy offense, Kmet sits in mid-range TE2 territory in our rankings.
The Cardinals are placing QB Kyler Murray on the PUP list to open training camp, to the surprise of absolutely no one. Murray, of course, is working back from a Dec. 12 ACL tear. The main question on him for 2023 has been just how much regular-season time he'll miss. We'll continue watching for more insight on that.
Lions TE Sam LaPorta has already emerged as a "favorite target" of QB Jared Goff, The Athletic's Colton Pouncy writes. "I’m trying my best not to write about LaPorta every day, but it’s hard not to when he looks as dialed in as he has," Pouncy adds. "Not a day goes by when LaPorta doesn’t make a standout play. ... It feels like Goff targets No. 87 on just about every series, and LaPorta continues to be heavily involved with the first-team offense." It sounds like LaPorta has pretty much already locked up the starting job. He has a chance to be the rare rookie TE to make a real fantasy impact. We just moved him up the TE Rankings.
Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown has had a strong start to training camp and cited his still-growing rapport with QB Jared Goff. “I feel like we have a pretty good connection already,” St. Brown said Tuesday. “I know what [Goff] likes. He knows the way I like to run my routes. I’m starting to see what he sees, he’s telling me what he’s seeing, what he’s expecting, so we’re on the same page, for the most part. So if we can just keep that up, I feel like the sky is the limit for us.” St. Brown followed a hot finish to his 2021 rookie campaign with a PPR WR7 finish last year. He's a key player in our 2023 fantasy football draft guide.
Colts GM Chris Ballard suggested Tuesday that RB Jonathan Taylor landing on the PUP list has more to do with contract negotiations than his ankle. Ballard said he and Taylor were scheduled to have a "long conversation" on Tuesday. “Like I’ve always told you, you pay good players, you pay players that are going to help you win, regardless of the position,” Ballard added. It's worth noting that owner Jim Irsay said Taylor was "healed up" a few weeks ago. We'll continue to keep a close eye on Taylor -- both his health and contract situation. For now, we're not moving him in the RB Rankings.
Browns GM Andrew Berry has been impressed by RB Jerome Ford's ability in the passing game. "Feel really good about Jerome Ford," Berry said. "Had a strong spring, pass protection especially. We think his receiver skills are strong." That's particularly noteworthy as the Browns look to replace RB Kareem Hunt, who averaged 3.4 targets per game over the last four seasons. We're not expecting Ford to pick up all of that work -- or be a standalone fantasy option behind a healthy Nick Chubb. But this looks like further confirmation that Ford is the Chubb handcuff, barring an addition to the Cleveland backfield.
Search
