Bucs HC Todd Bowles said Wednesday that he expects the team's TE production without Rob Gronkowski to be made up with the WRs and RBs. In other words, the answer to which Bucs TE to target in fantasy football is probably none of them. Tampa has a deep WR corps with Mike Evans, Chris Godwin, Russell Gage and Julio Jones -- plus a couple of quality pass-catching RBs in Leonard Fournette and Rachaad White. All of those guys could play significant roles in the passing game at different points of this season.
Commanders TE Logan Thomas (knee) was a limited participant in Wednesday's practice. It looks like he has a real chance to play in this weekend's opener vs. the Jaguars -- 9 months after suffering a multi-ligament knee injury. We wouldn't trust Thomas in Week 1 fantasy lineups, but he might be in the mix by the end of September.
Falcons HC Arthur Smith said Wednesday that WR Drake London (knee) is iffy for this weekend's opener vs. the Saints. "We won't know until the end of the week," Smith said. London just got back on the practice field on Wednesday after going down in the preseason opener. Even if the rookie suits up on Sunday, he'll be a shaky fantasy play after missing so much time.
The Jets will start QB Joe Flacco in Sunday's opener against the Ravens, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports. QB Zach Wilson is reportedly "progressing well but not quite ready" in his return from the right-knee injury he suffered in the preseason opener. It's not a surprising announcement. We already had Flacco projected in our Week 1 fantasy football rankings. HC Robert Saleh says that Wilson isn't likely to be available before Week 4 at the earliest, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.
The Bills have agreed to a 4-year extension with TE Dawson Knox, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Buffalo had already made it clear that Knox would be the lead TE heading into the season. This further displays the team's belief in the 4th-year player, who had been in the final year of his rookie deal.
WR Emmanuel Sanders announced his retirement on Wednesday. The 35-year-old caught 42 balls in 14 games for the Bills last year but seemingly didn't garner much interest on the free-agent market this offseason. He'll retire a Bronco, where he spent 6 of his 12 NFL seasons.
Saints insider Jeff Duncan reports that WR Michael Thomas (hamstring) was present for Monday's walkthrough. "Another positive sign for his playing status on Sunday," Duncan tweeted. We'll get the Saints' first official injury report of the season later today, but it sounds like Thomas is trending toward being available for this weekend's opener vs. the Falcons.
The Giants and WR Darius Slayton have negotiated a pay cut that will keep the wideout on the team, according to Newsboy's Tom Rock. Slayton agreed to drop his salary from $2.54 million to the league minimum of $965,000, with incentives that could rebound the number. The move saves the Giants $1.6 million in cap space. Although the agreement keeps Slayton on the team, it clearly doesn't bode well for his role in the offense.
The Texans list rookie RB Dameon Pierce #1 on their initial regular-season depth chart. Although "unofficial," this matches up with all other indicators from the team through preseason. Pierce carries upside from RB3 range in fantasy football drafts.
Buccaneers WR Julio Jones landed on the 2nd team on Tampa Bay's initial "unofficial" depth chart of the regular season. That puts him behind WRs Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Russell Gage. We'll exactly what that means as we move toward and then see the opener. Barring 1 of the top 3 being ruled out for Week 1, though, Jones will be a risky opening-week fantasy option.
Raiders TE Darren Waller said Tuesday that he's ready to play in Sunday's opener against the Chargers, according to Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. He has only been back at practice since Aug. 31, but the hamstring that kept Waller out for nearly all of August is apparently good to go.
Giants WR Sterling Shepard (Achilles) said Tuesday that he's "ready to go" for this weekend's opener vs. the Titans. ESPN's Jordan Raanan confirms that Shepard "fully plans on playing" on Sunday. It's a remarkably quick turnaround for Shepard, who tore his Achilles last December and was just activated from the PUP list 2 weeks ago. Shepard shouldn't be in Week 1 fantasy lineups, but he's worth stashing on benches and complicates the outlooks of WRs Kadarius Toney, Wan'Dale Robinson and Kenny Golladay.
Pro Football Network's Aaron Wilson confirms that Rams WR Van Jefferson (knee) won't play in Thursday night's opener vs. the Bills. But Wilson hears that Jefferson is expected back "within the first few games" of the season. We'll see if he's able to get on the practice field next week.
The Chargers list Sony Michel and Joshua Kelley as co-#2 RBs on their Week 1 depth chart. It feels notable that Michel has already climbed that high just a week after joining the Chargers. Rookie RB Isaiah Spiller remains 4th on the depth chart. We'll have a better feel for what this backfield looks like behind Austin Ekeler after Week 1, but Michel looks like the Chargers RB to target in remaining fantasy drafts behind Ekeler.
Bucs WR Chris Godwin (knee) was non-committal on his Week 1 availability on a recent podcast appearance. "I don't think any of us know that yet," Godwin said when asked if he'll play vs. the Cowboys. "I would imagine I have the final say. It's going to come down to feel. Because I understand what I'm capable of doing on the field when healthy. But I also understand what I'm capable of pushing through. ... In the grand scheme of things, it doesn't matter that much. I would love to be there for the entire season, but I think what's more important is being there for the second half of the season." We get the feeling that Godwin is leaning against playing Week 1, but we'll continue to keep a close eye on him.
Steelers HC Mike Tomlin officially named QB Mitch Trubisky the starter for Sunday's opener vs. the Bengals. He played well enough in the preseason to hold off a hard-charging Kenny Pickett. “We're really comfortable with what Mitch has shown us," Tomlin said. We're still expecting Pickett to take over at some point this season. In the meantime, Trubisky's rushing ability and weaponry gives him some QB2 appeal.
Rachaad White is listed as the Bucs' #2 RB on the Week 1 depth chart. It's not a surprise after White was the 2nd RB to hit the field in the preseason finale -- but the confirmation is nice. We're still not expecting White to see enough action behind a healthy Fournette to be a reliable fantasy play. But a Fournette injury would turn White into a high-upside starter.
Patriots HC Bill Belichick said Tuesday that RB Ty Montgomery (ankle) "has a shot" to play in this weekend's opener vs. the Dolphins. We'll track Montgomery's practice participation over the next few days. He shouldn't be in your Week 1 fantasy plans, but Montgomery's absence would open up passing-down snaps -- likely for RB Rhamondre Stevenson.
Falcons HC Arthur Smith said after Monday's practice that rookie WR Drake London is "progressing" in his return from a knee injury but that this week of practice will determine whether London will play in the opener. Even if London's active for Sunday's game against the Saints, he'll make for a risky fantasy starter. That he's even contending to play, though, bodes well for the 1st-round pick's outlook beyond Week 1.
Bills S Jordan Poyer put in a full practice Monday, indicating that his preseason elbow injury won't stop him from starting Week 1. We'll watch for confirmation ahead of Thursday night, but it appears Poyer is all the way back.
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