Bears QB Justin Fields posted 24 completions on 37 attempts for 216 passing yards with 1 TD and 1 INT in Sunday’s loss vs. the Packers. The speedster also added 59 yards on 9 carries with a lost fumble in the contest. It’s too early in the season to declare the Bears’ experiment of supporting Fields’ passing a failure, though fantasy managers didn’t see much evidence of a step forward in Week 1. It certainly wasn't for a lack of passing volume, either. Their big offseason acquisition, WR D.J. Moore, recorded just 2 catches for 25 yards. Fields will have a chance to bounce back in Week 2 vs. the Buccaneers, a team that surrendered the second-most passing yards (344) in the NFL on Sunday.
Steelers RB Najee Harris recorded 6 attempts for 31 rushing yards in Week 1 vs. the 49ers. He also added a pair of catches for 2 yards as a receiver in the loss. Teammate Jaylen Warren received 3 carries for 6 yards and caught 5 of 6 targets for 12 yards. The Steelers split the backfield touch opportunities fairly evenly (Harris with 8, Warren with 9) on Sunday, though neither player was particularly strong. It’s also worth mentioning that Harris ran 24 receiving routes to Warren’s 19, so the usage still skews a little bit in the direction of the former first-round NFL draft pick. The duo will have an opportunity to rebound against the Browns in Week 2 on Monday night.
Steelers DL Cameron Heyward left Sunday's loss to the 49ers with a groin injury. He tried to return but left again shortly thereafter and missed the rest of the game. We'll see about the severity heading into Week 2.
Steelers TE Pat Freiermuth is questionable to return to Sunday's game vs. the 49ers with a chest injury. We'll update his status when we know more.
Update: Freiermuth returned to the game.
Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson (thigh) is inactive for today’s game vs. the Panthers. That leaves a few touches behind for RBs Bijan Robinson and Tyler Allgeier.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport says Steelers RBs Jaylen Warren and Najee Harris "could split carries" vs. the 49ers today. "Najee Harris is going to be the starter, getting the first- and second-down snaps. Jaylen Warren third-down snaps," Rapoport adds. "But Warren is expected to get a little more of the first- and second-down snaps than usual." We've heard conflicting reports on this backfield all summer, so it'll be nice to actually get a look at it today. We'd still try to keep Warren on fantasy benches; Harris is a low-end RB2 in a tough matchup vs. San Francisco.
Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson (thigh) is listed as questionable for Sunday’s opener vs. the Panthers. He was limited in practice all week. Patterson shouldn’t be in your Week 1 fantasy plans, but his absence would be a slight boost for RB Bijan Robinson.
Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson (thigh) got in a limited practice on Wednesday. He went down with this thigh injury in mid-August but seemingly has a shot to play vs. the Panthers this weekend. Patterson isn't a fantasy option but could siphon a few touches from RB Bijan Robinson.
The Athletic's Jourdan Rodrigue wrote recently that Rams WR Van Jefferson would take over as the team's WR1 should teammate Cooper Kupp (hamstring) not play in Week 1. HC Sean McVay shared on Thursday that Kupp's game status is uncertain after the veteran suffered a setback in his injury recovery the same day. The season-long fantasy impact of this news may not be much, but take note of Jefferson as someone to look at for relief in deeper leagues or certain DFS formats. See where these Rams wideouts appear in our current WR rankings.
On Friday, Steelers beat reporter Dave Lolley took to Twitter to help clarify the team's RB situation. Lolley shared that the "narrative that Jaylen Warren is going to 'surpass' Najee Harris ... is simply not true," adding that Harris is the "clear No. 1" and Warren is the third-down back in Pittsburgh. Warren is the more optimal draft pick from an ADP value perspective. Regardless, both Warren and Harris are still favorably slotted in our current RB rankings. This is yet another reminder that one of the pillars of fantasy is to pursue value above all else. Learn more about our draft philosophy here at Draft Sharks.
Steelers OC Matt Canada said Monday that RB Najee Harris remains the team's No. 1 RB. “I don’t think there’s any doubt about that," Canada added. It sounds a bit like a coach trying to tamper down any talk of a RB controversy after RB Jaylen Warren's 62-yard TD in Pittsburgh's second preseason game. Canada also said that he'll use Warren "a lot." We don't doubt that Harris will open the season as the Steelers' clear lead back. The question is whether that workload split will shift during the season if Warren continues to run more efficiently than Harris. We recently updated our projections for the Steelers backfield.
The Athletic's Mark Kaboly lists WR George Pickens as one of the winners of Steelers training camp. "That proverbial next step by a second-year receiver appears to be in progress," Kaboly writes. "He’s no longer just a deep-ball or highlight-catch guy like we saw last camp and last season. He has transformed into a more polished receiver with an expanded route tree, and that will do nothing but help [QB Kenny] Pickett and this offense." Pickens made plenty of highlight-reel contested catches as a rookie last season. But the knock on him was that he didn't create much separation, leading to a relatively low target-per-route rate. It sounds like Pickens is on track to earn more volume this season, which would be a big boost to his fantasy production.
Falcons RB Cordarrelle Patterson will miss a couple of weeks with a soft tissue injury. HC Arthur Smith said he’d have a clearer picture of Patterson’s status following Week 3 of the preseason. Even if the veteran gets on track for Week 1, he’s only a fantasy factor for your best ball strategy.
Mark Kaboly of The Athletic expects little change to RB Jaylen Warren’s role. “Honestly, I don’t see much more of a role than he had last year if [Najee] Harris stays healthy,” Kaboly wrote. Harris played through a foot injury in 2022 but still appeared in all 17 games. Warren averaged 6.5 touches per game overall; nearly 11 over the final month. The second-year back is an ideal RB5.
On Monday, the Athletic's Mike DeFabo reported that Steelers WR George Pickens is making solid impressions at camp. DeFabo writes that while Pickens entered camp with a lot of buzz, he's "exceeding those expectations" between "highlight-reel grabs" and his spirited competitiveness in practice. Another interesting note in this report is that veteran WR Allen Robinson has "has only strengthened his case" to seize the starting slot role in the Steelers' offense through his performance in the "Seven Shots" red zone drill the Steelers frequently run from the two-yard line. Pickens will need to improve upon ranking 38th in drop rate (7.1%), 49th in yards after catch (110), and 40th in PFF receiving grade among 80 WRs who recorded 50+ targets last season. To his credit, Pickens ranked first in contest catch rate (67.9%) of that group in 2022. Still, greater evolution in his route tree is something both DeFabo and the Draft Sharks staff note as something to watch out for before we get too excited about him. Pickens presently sits as a high-end WR4 in our current WR rankings.
Broncos QB Russell Wilson is off to a “slow start” in training camp, per team insider Troy Renck. He’s committed multiple turnovers in practice, but HC Sean Payton isn’t deterred. "He’s doing fine," Payton said. “We are in an installation pattern. As we install, sometimes we put a play in, and it doesn’t really match, and we wouldn’t run it if we were playing Denver’s defense. Throughout this training camp and preseason, you will see things we do well and some things we don’t feel as comfortable about. So, you are constantly building that memory bank of what we are seeing and how we are executing it.” Wilson and the Broncos open the season vs. Las Vegas on September 10.
Bears WR Darnell Mooney said QB Justin Fields's biggest area of growth is his knowledge of the playbook. "There's no confusion there at all,” Mooney said on Wednesday. Per beat writer Courtney Cronin, Fields has called plays himself in walk-throughs during two-minute drills — something he didn’t do in 2022. Entering Year 2 in the same system, it’d be a disappointment if Fields wasn’t showing growth. The arrival of WR D.J. Moore simply adds to his passing ceiling.
Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer believes Bears QB Justin Fields has shown growth in training camp. Per Breer: “The ball’s coming out faster, and he’s throwing with more accuracy…[Fields] looks looser out there in large part because he’s moving more efficiently (with improved footwork) and the picture of all that’s around him is clearer to him than it was a year ago.” Chicago’s O-line received a shout-out, too — specifically the arrivals of G Nate Davis and Round 1 rookie OT Darnell Wright. See where Fields sits in our updated fantasy QB rankings.
Chargers WR Mike Williams is kicking inside to the slot more often in OC Kellen Moore's offense, according to The Athletic's Daniel Popper. “People are going to have game plans and matchups associated with where he lines up,” Moore said of Williams. “The more you can line him up in different spots, it just makes it more challenging for other teams to focus on him.” Popper writes that, "the results have been impressive thus far." Consider this a reminder that, despite the addition of first-round rookie WR Quentin Johnston, Williams will remain a big part of this high-scoring Chargers offense. He's a value at his WR26 ADP.
"A trimmed down Russell Wilson hinted that we are going to see him move around more this season and use his legs more frequently," NFL Network's James Palmer says. He adds that HC Sean Payton is encouraging it and believes "it's still a strength" for the 34-year-old QB. Wilson posted his fewest (13.1) and third-fewest (18.5) rushing yards per game the past two seasons. Although Palmer's report doesn't specifically speak to Wilson rushing for yardage, pursuing mobility more often should help that area. And any rushing boost would help Wilson's fantasy floor and ceiling. He's going at a low-risk, all-reward level in fantasy football drafts so far. See where Wilson sits in our 2023 QB rankings.
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