We scour the news around the NFL to bring you what matters most to you and your dynasty team: the most current news on players, both superstars and the relative unknowns, and analysis to decipher the respective situations. These are many of the major stories and are not meant to be an exhaustive look at all the recent happenings around the league.
The Jacoby Brissett era is – mercifully – coming to an end next week. Adam Schefter reported last week that starting quarterback Tua Tagovailoa is expected back in the lineup in Week 6. He is almost recovered from the broken ribs. The entire offense, sans Mike Gesicki and his 20% target share is yearning for Tagovailoa to be back on the field.
Jimmy Garoppolo left Sunday’s game at halftime, ceding to rookie Trey Lance. The injury is to Garoppolo’s calf. The veteran quarterback told reporters after the game, “hopefully it’s just a couple weeks.” This would mean an extended audition for Lance. So, how did coach Shanahan view Lance’s performance? This quote relayed by beat reporter Cam Inman says it all, ‘"It looked like a typical first game." -- Kyle Shanahan on Trey Lance, adding "That's why he's a No. 2 quarterback."’ This is far from a ringing endorsement for the youngster. We still like his upside and think Lance will be a good pro.
David Montgomery has carried the Bears offense for much of the 2021 season. He was having another strong outing before injuring his knee in the win over the Lions on Sunday. His backup, Darrel Williams was also hurt in the contest. We should find out more about the severity of the injuries in the next few days. At this time, Montgomery is expected to miss a few games while Williams is the starter in Week 5.
Joe Mixon hurt his ankle late in the win over Jacksonville on Thursday night. Monday, Adam Schefter called the injury a “low-grade ankle sprain” and called Mixon “week-to-week”. We will know more about the severity of the injury later this week. Projecting backfield usage in Mixon’s absence, we expect Samaje Perine to pick up the slack. Perine played most of the third-down snaps in the game and will pick up early-down work if Mixon misses time. Cincinnati likes to run the ball so Perine makes for a great waiver pick-up whether or not Mixon misses much time in the next few weeks. It is a long season.
One player we like as a stash in deep dynasty leagues is Las Vegas Raiders tailback Jalen Richard. Richard was designated to return from injured reserve last week as he gets back in shape from a foot injury. Richard is a pass-catching phenom and the Raiders only have Kenyan Drake in the role. Drake has lost more than one step and looks like he is running in mud. The recent injury to Josh Jacobs showcased how much Richard adds to the offense.
Friday night, Adam Schefter tweeted, “Patriots officially placed RB James White on IR with what is expected to be a season-ending hip injury.” This is a big loss for rookie quarterback Mac Jones who needs reliable weapons. Hip injuries are difficult to come back from so there is no certainty that White plays next season. He was a receiving weapon on the Patriots offense for many years and his presence will be missed on a young team. Sunday night, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers clogged the run and forced Mac Jones to throw. The rookie played well but was without a receiving weapon coming out of the backfield. Hopes were high coming into the game that Rhamondre Stevenson would be that guy, but he was a healthy scratch. Dynasty managers were thinking this was the week for the rookie after New England running backs coach Ivan Fears told reporters that Stevenson has made "big improvements" in practice. Fears even said, he was “kind of excited to see if [Stevenson] can pick up a new role here. Maybe he can pick up some of the stuff James was doing. We’ll throw it at him this week and see what sticks at practice. See what he can handle." In the huge game against Tom Brady and company, Stevenson’s absence should speak volumes to coach Belichick’s level of comfort in the rookie. It is a long season and there is time for him to emerge.
The training camp emergence of Tony Jones permitted the new Orleans Saints to reduce the salary cap by letting Latavius Murray walk, On an offense without many weapons, Jones was thought to be an important cog. This may change as he was carted off the field Sunday in the loss to the New York Giants. The game was nearing halftime and Jones had his legs get rolled up on from behind. He is destined for injured reserve, even if the stint is short. Dwayne Washington and Ty Montgomery will not serve as Alvin Kamara’s backups. This offense has little rushing upside as long as Taysom Hill poaches touchdowns. Unless in deep leagues, we recommend letting someone else waste roster spots on the Saints backfield.
The Seattle Seahawks placed Rashaad Penny on injured reserve last Saturday. Penny has been struggling to get past a calf injury. Veteran Alex Collins filled Penny’s void and looked good. This backfield will continue to be a committee and Penny will have to wait a few weeks before getting his small sliver of the weekly backfield share.
Last Wednesday, Adam Schefter tweeted, “Ravens activated WRs Rashod Bateman and Miles Boykin from Injured Reserve in time for today’s practice.” The 21-day window for return opened on Wednesday, but Bateman should be ready to go this coming week. Baltimore – and quarterback Lamar Jackson – will benefit from Bateman’s presence.
We wrote last week about the Kansas City Chiefs signing Josh Gordon to the practice squad. His signing speaks volumes about how the team views the play of Mecole Hardman, Demarcus Robinson, and Byron Pringle. While he was reported to be in good shape, Gordon has not set foot on the field in a long time. Expect Gordon to begin seeing limited action in a couple of weeks. Early reports show coach Andy Reid excited to see what Gordon can do. Playing with Patrick Mahomes II has to be great for any receiver’s career.
D.J. Chark left Thursday night’s contest early. Before halftime, Ian Rapoport tweeted, “#Jaguars WR DJ Chark suffered a fractured ankle, source said. Out indefinitely. Just a brutal injury for one of Jacksonville’s best players.” He was placed on injured reserve Monday. Chark is out the remainder of the season. Expectations were high for Chark coming into the season as he finally had a viable quarterback. But, Chark never emerged in the offense and seemed to be passed by veteran Marvin Jones as the WR1. He is a free agent in the offseason will be working diligently to regain his health for potential suitors. The receiver who excelled Thursday was Laviska Shenault. Shenault is a player who could boom this year. He is an after-the-catch threat who can easily vault to the top of the target share table for the Jaguars.
Last Saturday, Jeremy Fowler reported that the Green Bay Packers were expected to place wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling on injured reserve. He was placed on injured reserve later that day. Valdes-Scantling has been battling a hamstring injury for a few weeks and the team is shutting him down to avoid re-aggravation. His absence was apparent in the game against the Steelers as Valdes-Scantling is the only speedster on the entire offense. Expect him back for Week 7.
With a depleted receiving corps, keep an eye on Kenny Stills, who was elevated from the practice squad Saturday. He returns to an old stomping ground with a golden opportunity for snaps and targets. Michael Thomas should be back in three weeks and TreQuan Smith possibly around that time. Until then, it will be Marquez Calloway and Deonte Harris with Stills mixed in.
Keep an eye on the Logan Thomas injury. He left Sunday’s game midway through the first quarter and never returned. When leaving the field, Thomas threw his helmet in disappointment. He has a hamstring injury and could miss multiple games. Ricky Seals-Jones subbed into the game in place of Thomas and played admirably. The Football Team plays the Saints this week and Seals-Jones could be a solid spot-starter.
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