Dynasty News, Week 3

Photo: Troy Taormina, USA Today Sports

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, 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.

Eyes were on 49ers quarterback Trey Lance and his attempt to rebound from the poor performance in the rain against the Bears last week. He had the offense playing well before taking a hard hit on an option play in the first quarter. Lance’s legs were caught under him on the play and had to be carted off the field. The second-year passer was replaced by veteran Jimmy Garoppolo, who led San Francisco to an easy victory over the Seattle Seahawks. The team recently reworked Garoppolo’s contract, and he is likely the starter for the remainder of the season. He will be a free agent after the season and is playing for an offseason payday. Former Packers general manager and player agent Andrew Brandt gave details on the reworked deal in a tweet, “ On Jimmy G: Reduced from $24M to $6.5M. Has 500k in per-game roster bonuses, should make it all. Has 250k per game w/25% playtime; should make $4M. Has 100k per win in games w/25% playtime, estimated at roughly $1M. Thus, estimated 2022 comp of ~ $12M. Playoff bonuses as well.” Lance is expected to miss the rest of the season after undergoing ankle surgery. He should be fine for the 2023 season. It will be interesting to see if the San Francisco brass trusts Lance enough to permit Garoppolo to walk.

Chargers quarterback briefly exited the Week 2 loss to the Chiefs Thursday night. After the game, coach Brandon Staley told reporters that Herbert would be “ok” but did not give much detail. Herbert was in obvious pain while trying to play finish the game. On Friday, Staley gave reporters an update. Ian Rapoport tweeted his version of what Staley said, “#Chargers coach Brandon Staley says QB Justin Herbert was diagnosed with a rib cartilage fracture and that he could be back at practice next week. Staley alluded to this being better than a broken bone.” Staley also said that Herbert is considered “day-to-day”. In response to Rapoport’s tweet, former Chargers’ team doctor, Dr. David Chao, tweeted, “Not sure I agree with ‘better.’ Rib cartilage takes longer to heal as lack of blood supply. Will need game day injection to play.” Herbert will be able to play through the injury with the aid of an injection. He and the Chargers do benefit from having a few extra days to recover.

Before the Sunday games, Jay Glazer tweeted, “Jameis Winston playing with 4 fractures in his back today from L1 down to L4. Playing in a lot of pain with extra padding to protect the area but still playing @NFLonFOX.” Winston played middling in the loss to the Buccaneers. He did not seem bothered by the injury. Rookie Chris Olave was his favorite target this week. The Saints have a viable receiver trio in Olave, Michael Thomas, and Jarvis Landry.

We value the opinions of beat reporters. One such is the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s Mark Bradley. Last week, Bradley wrote that he believes “we’ll probably see a lot” of rookie quarterback Desmond Ridder this season. Yes, Marcus Mariota has played passably, but the Falcons must see what they have in Ridder with eyes focused on the 2023 NFL Draft. Mariota is not owed any more guaranteed money after the season so the team could go a different direction in the offseason. Mariota is what he is. He is a middling veteran, unable to elevate his scrappy offense against a top defense like the Rams. While it may not be in Atlanta, Mariota is an NFL starter and should have a job for the next few years. The Falcons will go with a youth movement, and he may not be in the long-range plans.