Colts QB Matt Ryan showed some love for rookie WR Alec Pierce. “More so than anything he does on the field, it’s the combination of the work ethic, the competitiveness, all of the intangible stuff combined with the talent,” Ryan explained. “If you’re going to be a great player in this league, which I think he can be, you’ve got to have it all.” It’s been a smooth summer for Pierce, who’s most recently impressed at join practices with Detroit. “It was good to see Alec make a couple of those plays [in joint practices]– a couple of those back-shoulder plays,” HC Frank Reich said. “I thought Matt put a couple of those right on the money. Alec made the plays. Those are the kind of things we saw from Alec in college.” A Round 2 pick, Pierce looks like a dark horse candidate for 90-100 targets.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler tweeted Friday that Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold “are still in a QB battle” for the starting job. Mayfield is believed to be the heavy favorite, but HC Matt Rhule hasn’t announced who’ll get the Week 1 nod vs. Cleveland.
Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic calls TE Isaiah Likely “the talk of camp.” Zrebiec expects the rookie 4th-round pick to see a lot of time in the slot and hold a “major part” in the 2022 offense. In other words, look for Baltimore's rate of 2-TE sets to rise. There are certainly targets up for grabs in a unit that’s thin at WR. Likely isn’t a high-end athlete and goes nearly 6’5, 245 pounds, but he emerged from Coastal Carolina with a huge career line of 133-2,050-27. Likely at least needs to be on the radar in FFPC leagues.
Jaguars rookie LB Devin Lloyd has worked only on the side throughout training camp because of a hamstring injury. The Athletic reports that HC Doug Pederson thinks he might be ready for full-team work by Saturday's game against the Steelers. We'll see about Lloyd's progress through the rest of August. For now, he's an upside flier late in IDP drafts.
Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic reports that rookie S Kyle Hamilton has had a "rough" training camp. That included inconsistent performance in the team's preseason opener. The 1st-round pick is running with the 2nd-team defense. Zrebiec expects the team to "find ways" to get him onto the field in games, but that doesn't sound like a role that will make him startle in IDP leagues. We wouldn't bother with Hamilton in most redraft formats right now.
Cowboys WR Michael Gallup ran routes on Thursday for the first time since tearing his ACL last January, according to insider Michael Gehlken. “It felt great," Gallup said afterward. Gallup is still likely to open the regular season on the PUP list and miss at least the first 4 games. But he's at least making progress in his rehab.
Joe Buscaglia of The Athletic writes that rookie WR Khalil Shakir "has been outstanding this summer, to the point that the Bills are likely trying to find ways to get him involved on game days." Shakir has apparently gone from being viewed as a slot receiver to getting a lot of reps on the outside. Shakir has a shot to hit the regular season as the #4 WR, or at least the backup to Stefon Diggs and Gabriel Davis. Perhaps more importantly, the impressive 1st camp makes it easier to like Shakir's long-term upside in dynasty leagues.
DK Pittsburgh Sports' Dale Lolley believes Jaylen Warren has supplanted Benny Snell as the Steelers' #2 RB. Warren, a 5'8, 215-pound undrafted rookie out of Oklahoma State, has been the surprise of Steelers camp. He also looked good in the preseason opener, posting a 6-34-0 rushing line and 4-30-1 receiving. We'll continue to keep an eye on this depth chart. Of course, neither Warren nor Snell is a fantasy option without an injury to RB Najee Harris.
After attending Rams practice on Wednesday, insider Peter King said QB Matt Stafford's arm "has not fallen off." Added King, "He really threw the ball well. ... The zip on the ball was very good. I think the reports of the death of his arm have been greatly exaggerated." It's certainly sounding like Stafford's right elbow issue is more of a pain-management thing, and not something that'll impact his play this season.
Buccaneers HC Todd Bowles said Thursday he wasn't sure when QB Tom Brady will be returning from his leave, ESPN's Jenna Laine reports. Back when Brady left the team, Bowles said they expected the QB back after the 2nd preseason game. That's Saturday night at Tennessee. Is it time to worry yet about Brady's absence? We're not too concerned about his readiness. But Tampa Bay is missing a lot of reps for a group of pass-catchers with some new faces.
"The Bills’ running back corps has all the potential to devolve into a muddy three-person committee dependent on the situation and riding the hot hand," The Athletic's Joe Buscaglia writes. We know RBs Devin Singletary and James Cook will have a role in this backfield, but Buscaglia believes RB Zack Moss could be an "early-down threat to Singletary" and the goal-line back. That, of course, would put a major dent in Singletary's fantasy value. Buscaglia also says that Cooks' role "could be smaller than some expect."
Following a settlement between the Browns and the league, QB Deshaun Watson will be suspended 11 games. He’ll pay a $5 million fine and be required to enter a treatment program. Watson’s now scheduled to make his Browns debut in Week 13… at Houston. The 11-game suspension makes Watson undraftable outside of deep 2-QB leagues and maybe as a last-round pick in best-ball tournaments. The fantasy values of guys like Nick Chubb, Amari Cooper and David Njoku also take a hit with the news. We'll see if Cleveland makes a move for QB Jimmy Garoppolo.
Vikings HC Kevin O'Connell said Thursday that TE Irv Smith is "on track" for Week 1. Smith is recovering from August 2 thumb surgery. It sounds like rehab has gone well, but it's still concerning that Smith will miss most of August -- after missing the entire 2021 season with a knee injury. He'll be tough to trust in fantasy lineups early in the season, although there's still top-12 upside here.
Jaguars HC Doug Pederson said Thursday that the "expectation" is that RB James Robinson will be ready for Week 1. That was implied when Jacksonville left Robinson off the PUP list to open training camp. Still, it'd be an impressively quick recovery from a guy who tore his Achilles on December 26. Of course, it remains to be seen how much work Robinson is able to handle and how effective he'll be out of the gate. We're not overly interested in him as a draft target. But Robinson's status certainly impacts RB Travis Etienne's fantasy value.
Chiefs HC Andy Reid said Thursday that WR Mecole Hardman was knocked out of Wednesday's practice with a groin spasm. Hardman is "making progress," according to Reid, and might even be able to play in Saturday's preseason game vs. the Commanders. It doesn't sound like the groin will be an issue by the time Week 1 rolls around.
WR Will Fuller remains unsigned as of mid-August. Yahoo's Charles Robinson spoke about why that might be the case on the Underdog Football Show. "He's a deep-field player when he's at his best. I don't know if teams necessarily feel like he can still be that player," Robinson said. "I think people think that injuries have taken their toll on him. Obviously there have been issues with suspension. I don't think he's what you would consider a 'clean signing.' ... What's been relayed to me is some of it is physical. It's the thought process that physically he does not look like a player that can hold up and has really lost a little bit." Even if Fuller signs before Week 1, he'd be a long shot for early-season fantasy value. At this point, he's nothing more than a last-pick flier in best-ball drafts.
Despite coming off the PUP list last week, Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins' availability for Week 1 is still uncertain, HC John Harbaugh admitted Wednesday. "He's made some good progress this week," Harbaugh said. "We measure times of how fast he runs, how fast he decelerates, how fast he changes direction. You can see the improvement is tangible. So, we'll see." The decision to remove Dobbins from the PUP list means the Ravens expect him back by at least Week 4. We'll continue to keep a close eye on his progress.
Rams QB Matt Stafford said Wednesday that his right elbow "feels good" and is "right on track." He admitted that he's not sure when the soreness in that elbow will go away, but he doesn't think it'll impact his performance. "I'm just going out there, doing my work [and] trusting the process that we have," Stafford said. "I know that I'm able to go out there and function at a high level right now. So whatever it feels like, hopefully, continues to keep getting better as it has. But I know that functionally, I feel like I can do everything I need to do. So just trying to continue on that road."
Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb was sidelined for Wednesday's joint practice with the Chargers. He told insider Clarence Hill that he suffered a cut to his foot that required stitches. Lamb wouldn't say how it happened. We'll see exactly how long he's out, but we're not expecting this to impact Lamb's availability for the start of the season.
Raiders TE Darren Waller returned to practice on Wednesday. He'd been out since July 30 with a hamstring injury. Barring a setback, though, consider Waller's fantasy stock unaffected.
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