Tests on Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown's injured ankle were "encouraging overall," according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. "They’ll be cautious, but if St. Brown misses time, it shouldn’t be anything long-term," Pelissero adds. It doesn't sound like St. Brown is quite a lock to play Week 4. But we're expecting him to considering he returned to last week's game after hurting the ankle.
The Eagles and Lions used a steady dose of double teams to limit Vikings WR Justin Jefferson to a combined 9 catches and 62 scoreless yards over the past 2 weeks. HC Kevin O'Connell is determined to get Jefferson going again. "I have to do a better job of giving Justin different aspects of lining up in different spots, different personnel groupings, whatever I need to do to help him," O'Connell said. WRs Adam Thielen and K.J. Osborn delivered TDs on more advantageous matchups in Week 3. The pendulum will swing back in Jefferson's direction soon. We're not worried about his rest-of-season fantasy outlook.
Dolphins HC Mike McDaniel called QB Tua Tagovailoa (back, ankle) "questionable" for Thursday night's game vs. the Bengals but added that he's "optimistic" his QB will be able to play. The short week is doing Tagovailoa no favors. We'll see what he does in practice today and tomorrow and how he's listed on the final injury report Wednesday afternoon.
RB Tony Pollard paced the Dallas backfield in production in Week 3, taking 13 carries for 105 yards. He saw the Cowboys’ first attempt of the night vs. New York but was narrowly out-carried by Zeke Elliott (15-73) overall. Elliott handled 3 of Dallas’ 4 goal line rushing opportunities, punching in 1 score. And, after seeing 7 targets in Week 1, Pollard garnered only 1 against the Giants. This backfield split will remain in place going forward, with Elliott the slightly better bet for weekly carries. Pollard’s receiving game involvement should rebound a bit Sunday vs. Washington. Also note that Dak Prescott (thumb) should return over the next couple of weeks.
Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb tallied 8 grabs for 87 yards and 1 score in a Week 3 win over the Giants. His 12 targets easily led the team and represented a 38.7% share from Cooper Rush. He dropped an easy downfield ball before halftime, but fantasy owners can’t really complain about his production. The young WR has now tallied lines of 6-112 (2021), 7-75 and 8-87-1 in 3 starts with Rush. Dak Prescott (thumb) might only be a couple of weeks away from returning, and Lamb will clearly remain a fantasy starter in the meantime. Next up is a divisional tilt with Washington.
Giants RB Saquon Barkley was the team’s lone standout in Monday’s loss to Dallas, rushing 14 times for 81 yards and 1 score. The highlight was a 36-yard scoring dash that showcased his speed and vision. Barkley added 4 grabs for 45 yards, although his 10.8% target share disappointed a bit. Still, through 3 games, his target share sits at nearly 18%. With Sterling Shepard now done for the year (ACL), that number could rise for Barkley. Next up is a home game vs. Chicago.
Steelers HC Mike Tomlin said Tuesday that S Minkah Fitzpatrick has entered the concussion protocol. He was diagnosed in the wake of Thursday night's loss to the Browns. We'll see whether Fitzpatrick can make it back for Sunday's game against the Jets, but plan as though you won't have him available for IDP lineups.
The Bears have placed WR Byron Pringle on IR with an injury to his right calf. That will knock him out for at least 4 games. Pringle -- coming off preseason injury issues -- only managed 26 total snaps through the 1st 3 contests. So his absence shouldn't mean too much impact, especially for an offense vehemently opposed to throwing the ball.
Giants WR Sterling Shepard tore his left ACL at the end of Monday night's loss to the Cowboys and will miss the rest of the season. It's an especially tough blow for a guy who just came back from a December Achilles' tear and was leading a disappointing Giants WR corps. Shepard's injury helps the opportunity for Kadarius Toney, if the 2nd-year wideout can get healthy and get his stuff together. Otherwise, it's David Sills V, Richie James and the ghost of Kenny Golladay. We'll see about Shepard's status heading into 2023, which will be his age-30 season.
Broncos RB Javonte Williams led the backfield in Week 3, rushing 15 times for 58 yards. Unfortunately for fantasy owners, Melvin Gordon mixed in for 12 attempts and a goal line score, plus 6 targets (vs. 5 for Williams). Williams added a drop. If there’s a positive here, it’s that he continues to pass the eye test as a tackle-dodger. Pro Football Focus charted him with 5 missed tackles forced against a stout San Francisco defense. He’ll enter a more favorable matchup this Sunday at Vegas.
Giants WR Sterling Shepard left late in the 4th quarter of Monday night's loss to the Cowboys after injuring his left knee. It was a non-contact injury, and Shepard left the field on a cart. This doesn't look good for a guy coming off a December Achilles' tendon tear.
Broncos WR Jerry Jeudy played through his questionable tag for Sunday night's win over the 49ers. He spent 20 fewer snaps on the field than WR Courtland Sutton but ran only 9 fewer routes (39-30, according to Pro Football Focus). Sutton led the team, though, in targets (10), receptions (8) and receiving yards (97). No one else on the team reached 30 receiving yards. Jeudy added 2 catches for 17 yards on 6 targets. His 1 missed connection was a narrowly completed deep ball that got tipped by the covering corner just before reaching Jeudy's hands. We'd bet on that playing-time gap closing as Jeudy gets further beyond his Week 2 injury.
Seahawks QB Geno Smith racked up 325 yards and 2 TDs on 32-of-44 passing in Sunday's loss to the Falcons. Smith threw 52.3% of his pass attempts at WRs D.K. Metcalf (12) or Tyler Lockett (11). No other Seahawk drew more than 4 looks. Lockett posted a 9-76 receiving line. Metcalf caught 5 balls for 64 yards and a TD. The remaining score went to TE Will Dissly.
Falcons TE Kyle Pitts had his best receiving line of the season so far, with 5 catches for 87 yards in Sunday's win over the Seahawks. His 8 targets led the team and accounted for 40% of QB Marcus Mariota's total pass attempts. The downside: Pitts saw his playing time decrease in 2-WR sets. He played in 64 of 74 such snaps through the first 2 games (86.5%). That rate dipped to 54.3% at Seattle, according to Pro Football Focus numbers. WR Drake London followed with 6 targets, the only other Falcon to draw more than 2. Mariota threw for 229 yards and a TD to London on his 20 attempts. He added a 1-yard TD on the ground in the 1st quarter.
Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson ran for 141 yards and a TD on 17 carries in Sunday's win over the Seahawks. He ceded just 7 other rushing attempts to Tyler Allgeier (6) and Avery Williams (1). Patterson again didn't see much receiving work. He garnered 1 target for the 2nd straight game and ran just 2 more routes than the combined total for Allgeier and Williams. We're not sure Patterson is built to regularly log 17+ carries, as he has in 2 of the 1st 3 games. But we'll take the production from a guy whose ADP sat well outside of starter range in fantasy football drafts. A decent Week 4 matchup with Cleveland gives way to tougher defenses from Tampa Bay and San Francisco the following 2 games.
Cardinals WR Marquise Brown racked up 17 targets in Sunday's loss to the Rams, catching 14 of them for 140 yards. We'll obviously take those number for fantasy football lineups, but credit a passing-volume bubble for a struggling offense. QB Kyler Murray attempted 58 passes, completing 37 (63.8%) for 314 yards, with no TDs or INTs. WR Greg Dortch and TE Zach Ertz followed Brown with 10 targets apiece. No other Cardinals drew more than 5 looks. Dortch caught 9 of his targets for 80 yards; Ertz caught 6 for 45.
Rams RB Cam Akers pulled nearly even with RB Darrell Henderson in playing time for Sunday's win over the Cardinals. He trailed Henderson by just 2 snaps while easily beating Henderson in carries, 12-4. Akers turned those into 61 yards, including a nice 14-yard TD run. Henderson collected a mere 17 yards on his 4 rushes, adding just 1 catch-less target despite running 10 more routes than Akers. After 2 straight games of Akers taking the carry and touch lead, it's time to play him 1st in this backfield.
Titans rookie WR Treylon Burks didn't help any fantasy football teams with his 1-catch, 13-yard outing on just 2 targets in Sunday's win over the Raiders. But for the 1st time in his 3 pro games, Burks led Tennessee in routes. His total playing time has risen from 37% of snaps in the opener to 45% and then 69% vs. Las Vegas. The rookie had finished just 7th and 4th on the team in routes the previous 2 games. But he edged WR Robert Woods by 2 to lead that category in Week 3 while playing just 3 fewer snaps in total. The absence of WR Kyle Philips (concussion) might have helped, but it certainly can't explain the whole thing. Philips has lined up almost exclusively in the slot. Burks has barely spent any time there. The 1st-round pick clearly carries the most fantasy upside among Tennessee WRs. We'll see if he can start commanding the target volume to get him into fantasy football lineups.
Lions S Tracy Walker confirmed Monday that he suffered a torn Achilles' tendon in Sunday's loss to the Vikings. That will cost him the rest of the season. Juju Hughes stepped in after Walker left early in Sunday's game. Walker signed a 3-year extension with the Lions in March that should keep him in the starting lineup if he's ready for the beginning of next season.
In addition to his customary 85 yards and a TD on the ground in Sunday's win over the Raiders, RB Derrick Henry collected 5 catches for 58 yards among 6 targets. It was just his 2nd career game with 5+ receptions and 5th game of more than 41 receiving yards. Henry had just 1 total target through the first 2 games, so we'll need to see more before we believe this signals a true change in approach for Tennessee.
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