New England Patriots Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Patriots RBs Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliott each received 8 carries in Week 5’s loss vs. the Saints for a combined 45 rushing yards. The New England pass-catchers didn’t perform much better in the 34-0 blowout either. WR Kendrick Bourne led the team in receiving with 43 yards on 2 catches. No other Pats player exceeded 25 receiving yards. This game is the second straight beating that this team has taken without much fantasy-relevant production. It’ll be curious to see if HC Bill Belichick makes a change at QB in Week 6 vs. the Raiders.

Patriots WR JuJu Smith-Schuster was knocked out of Sunday's game vs. the Saints with a concussion. It's his fifth documented concussion. We'll track his progress through the protocol, but Smith-Schuster is unlikely to be cleared to play Week 6.

Patriots WR Demario Douglas sustained a concussion in the first half of Sunday's game vs. the Saints. We'll track the rookie's progress through the protocol next week, but he's unlikely to play against the Raiders considering how concussions have gone so far this year.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson (thigh) is active for today’s game vs. the Saints. He was limited in practice all week and listed as questionable, but we haven’t heard anything to suggest that the thigh will be a major issue today.

Patriots QB Bailey Zappe got more reps in practice this week, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports. QB Mac Jones has struggled the past two weeks, completing 54% of his passes with one TD and two INTs. "Other teams who watch the tape from the Cowboys game say Mac's eyes are down. He is looking at the rush. It's impossible to play on-time, efficient football like that," Pelissero says. "No change [at QB] is considered likely or imminent at this point," Pelissero adds. But it sure sounds like Jones' leash is shortening.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson (thigh) is expected to play vs. the Saints on Sunday, ESPN's Dan Graziano reports. Stevenson is listed as questionable but got in three limited practices this week. It doesn't seem like the thigh will be a significant issue tomorrow, but it adds a bit of risk to a guy who's already been disappointing through four games.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson (thigh) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game vs. the Saints. He was limited in practice all week. We haven't heard anything about Stevenson being in danger of missing Sunday's game -- but you can never be sure with New England. We'll look for updates on Stevenson's status and get the Patriots' inactives around 11:30 am ET on Sunday. RB Ezekiel Elliott would become a viable fantasy starter if Stevenson ends up out.

Patriots rookie CB Christian Gonzalez suffered a shoulder injury in the first quarter of Sunday's loss to the Cowboys. New England originally deemed him questionable to return but ruled Gonzalez out for the game in the third quarter. We'll see about his outlook for Week 5 against the Saints, and perhaps beyond.

Update: He dislocated his right shoulder. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Gonzalez is out indefinitely while seeking a second opinion.

ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Patriots Edge Matthew Judon tore his right lower biceps tendon and will be out "indefinitely." We'll see about a more specific return timeline, but you'll probably need to find a replacement option in your IDP league this week.

Patriots TE Hunter Henry led the team with 4 receptions and 51 receiving yards in Sunday's beatdown at the hands of the Cowboys. He was the only New England player to catch more than two passes in the game. WR JuJu Smith-Schuster matched Henry's 5 targets for the team lead. WR DeVante Parker followed with 4. Five others tallied 3 targets apiece. New England gets another tough matchup with New Orleans in Week 5 but a friendlier spot at Vegas the following week.

Patriots QB Bailey Zappe completed just four of nine passes for 57 yards after taking over for Mac Jones in the third quarter of Sunday's loss to the Cowboys. Zappe took a sack and didn't pilot any scoring drives. But he at least avoided turnovers. We're guessing New England will go back to Jones for Week 5, but we'll watch for confirmation.

Patriots WR Kendrick Bourne recorded 4 catches on 5 targets for 46 yards in Week 3’s win vs. the Jets. Both WR DeVante Parker and TE Hunter Henry had some involvement but ultimately flopped with just 2 catches apiece. Helping no one in fantasy, TE Pharaoh Brown led the team in receiving with 71 yards on 2 catches. One of those catches from Brown was the only offensive TD scored by New England. This one was just one of those unlucky games in crummy weather where the Pats didn’t need to throw a ton to pull out the W. Fantasy managers should hope for better results from these receivers next week vs. the Cowboys.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson carried the ball 19 times for 59 yards in Week 3 vs. the Jets. By the contest’s end, Stevenson had just 1 catch on 4 targets for 3 yards. On Sunday, Teammate Ezekiel Elliott had some standalone value with 16 carries for 80 yards. This was a bit of a disappointing outing for Stevenson, though the weather and the fact that the Patriots led the way for most of the game justifies some of why Elliott was so involved. Next up for the duo is a Week 4 matchup vs. the Cowboys.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson bounced back in Week 2, recording 15 carries for 50 yards and a TD on the ground vs. the Dolphins. He also added 3 catches on as many targets for 10 yards as a receiver. Fantasy managers are assuredly glad to see this resurgent performance. Still, teammate Ezekiel Elliott is on the field and used an annoying amount of the time. The veteran logged 5 attempts for 13 yards and accounted for 33.3% of the backfield carries. We still like Stevenson in a tough matchup vs. the Jets in Week 3 regardless.

Patriots WR JuJu Smith-Schuster ran well behind veteran WR Kendrick Bourne and rookie WR Kayshon Boutte in Sunday's loss to the Eagles. Bourne led the WR corps with 73 offensive snaps and 54 routes among 58 Mac Jones dropbacks, according to Pro Football Focus. Boutte ranked second with 55 snaps and 43 routes. Smith-Schuster played just 43 snaps and ran 27 routes, tying rookie WR Demario Douglas in the latter category. ESPN's Mike Reiss says that playing time "reflects him being managed to some degree." Smith-Schuster is dealing with a knee that required a cleanup procedure in the offseason. SI.com's Albert Breer recently said in a radio interview that the knee "is a mess and ... could explode at any point." Smith-Schuster still fared well in target rate. His 7 tied for second on the team, trailing only Bourne. But he turned them into just 33 yards on 4 catches. There's little to like about Smith-Schuster, who is cuttable in some leagues if you're looking for more upside on the waiver wire this week.

Patriots TE Hunter Henry caught 5 of 6 targets in Sunday's loss to the Eagles, collecting 56 yards and a TD. His 6 targets made up just 11.1% of QB Mac Jones' 54 attempts on a day of abnormally high passing volume. Henry doubled TE Mike Gesicki's target count against the Eagles. Henry will push for fantasy-starter consideration in an upside Week 2 matchup with the Dolphins.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson managed just 25 yards on 12 carries against the Eagles Sunday. He made up for that (in PPR leagues, at least) with 6 catches for 64 yards on 6 targets. That marked just 11.1% target share among QB Mac Jones' 54 pass attempts. Elliott actually edged Stevenson with 7 targets, catching 5 for 14 yards. We'll see how the distribution looks in lower-volume games. Stevenson did get a solid 60% share of RB carries, with Ezekiel Elliott taking 7 and Ty Montgomery 1. Stevenson and the Patriots get an upside matchup with the Dolphins in Week 2. If Elliott maintains that kind of receiving share, he could be a standalone fantasy option in deeper leagues. But we'd like to see another game before boosting him to that level.

Patriots WR Kendrick Bourne led the team with 11 targets in Sunday's loss to the Eagles, catching 6 for 64 yards and 2 TDs. It helped that WR DeVante Parker was inactive, and that QB Mac Jones attempted 54 passes in the game. Five other Patriots drew 6 or 7 targets. Rookie Demario Douglas tied for second on the team with 7 targets, catching 4 for 40 yards. WR JuJu Smith-Schuster matched him in targets and receptions while tallying 33 yards. We'll see what target and playing-time distribution look like going forward, especially once Parker returns. Bourne gets an upside matchup with the Dolphins in Week 2 before tougher spots against the Jets and Cowboys the following two weeks. Don't be surprised if Bourne remains outside the top 36 in our WR rankings for Week 2, however. The veteran has had other splash weeks in his two Patriots seasons but hasn't been able to sustain production.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson (illness) is active for today’s game vs. the Eagles. He missed Friday's practice with a stomach bug but should be ready for his usual role today.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson (illness) "should play" vs. the Eagles today, NFL Network's Ian Rapoport tweets. Stevenson popped up on Friday's injury report but never seemed in danger of missing this one. He can stay in Week 1 fantasy lineups.