Award-Winning Fantasy Football Advice

For the 2nd straight year, the NFL has suspended Cowboys DT David Irving for the 1st 4 weeks of the regular season. Per multiple reports, this suspension comes under the league's substance-abuse policy. (Last year's was for PEDs.) Irving spent much of this offseason away from the team or working off to the side, with coaches revealing only that he was working through some "personal" issues. In his absence, former Raiders DT Jihad Ward saw reps with the 1st team. Ward could step in for Irving early this season if his intriguing play carries over into padded practices. Irving, meanwhile, posted big IDP numbers after missing the 1st quarter of last season. So he should remain on IDP radars. Whether he'll make sense in your league will depend on your scoring, lineup settings and roster depth.

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When asked about 2nd-year RB Elijah McGuire on Thursday, Jets RBs coach Stump Mitchell compared the former 6th-round pick to a hall of famer. “He has the skill set to be a LaDainian Tomlinson, if he was given that opportunity,” Mitchell said, per the New York Post. Frankly, that's a laughable comparison. It would be for just about any RB, given that Tomlinson ranks among the best ever. But Mitchell's opinion could put McGuire more in the mix for touches this season than we might have expected. Mitchell added that he "told David Johnson the same thing" about his skill set, when Mitchell coached Arizona RBs. Mitchell added that McGuire doesn't face such an opportunity with the Jets, but Isaiah Crowell might be the only RB locked into a big role. We're far from excited about McGuire, but we'll be curious to see if he generates any training camp buzz.

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Michael Gehlken of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports that the Raiders "fear potential NFL discipline might be imminent" for WR Martavis Bryant. Gehlken said the team refused to comment but that it is "awaiting final word on the situation" which is "believed to pertain to the NFL's substance-abuse policy." Bryant, of course, already lost the whole 2016 season to a drug suspension. So it's hard to imagine any further discipline in that area would be light. If Bryant goes down for a significant stretch, then Jordy Nelson would likely get pushed back outside from his slot role. That would leave Seth Roberts and Ryan Switzer to compete for snaps inside. We'll see how this one plays out.

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Marlon Mack, Nyheim Hines and Jordan Wilkins have been garnering the fantasy attention in the Colts backfield. But insider Stephen Holder warns not to rule out Robert Turbin. "If there’s one thing this offseason has shown, it’s that Turbin seems to have an important place on this football team," Holder writes. Turbin has been getting a bunch of 1st-team snaps this spring. But we wouldn't consider that a surprise considering Mack is sidelined after shoulder surgery and Hines and Wilkins are rookies. Still, HC Frank Reich talked up Turbin's "size and power and strength" this week. Holder believes Turbin is in line to play a short-yardage, goal-line role in what will be a full-blown committee backfield. It'll certainly be a situation to monitor when training camp opens, but we're not ready to call Turbin an option in fantasy drafts.

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Bills WR Zay Jones is on track to be ready for the start of training camp, HC Sean McDermott said Thursday. Jones had surgery to repair a torn labrum in his shoulder in January and then another procedure on his knee in May. That followed a dreadful rookie campaign that saw him haul in just 27 of 74 targets (36.5%) for 316 yards and 2 scores. There's plenty of opportunity in a thin Bills WR corps, but Jones has a lot to prove.

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Cowboys HC Jason Garrett expects WR Terrance Williams to be ready for the start of training camp next month. He underwent surgery earlier this offseason to repair a Jones fracture to his foot. That's an injury that's caused complications and setbacks for plenty of guys, so we'll be keeping a close eye on Williams when he hits the field. There's still a boatload of opportunity for him in a passing game that lost WR Dez Bryant and TE Jason Witten. But it's been a rough offseason for Williams, between the foot injury and a May arrest.

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Bengals HC Marvin Lewis admitted on Wednesday that TE Tyler Eifert is uncertain for the start of training camp. It sounds like he's still recovering from October back surgery. ESPN's Adam Schefter reported in February that Eifert had been medically cleared -- and he was on the field for OTAs. But Lewis claims Eifert hasn't endured a setback. “There’s no reason to get him jostled,” Lewis explained. “Just ease his way into things. No setback. We’re trying to make sure we manage everything they want him to do." We'll see what Eifert is able to do when camp opens in late July. He remains 1 of the biggest injury risks in fantasy football.

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The Saints on Wednesday agreed to a deal with RB Terrance West, according to NFL.com’s Herbie Teope. The move followed a tryout that reportedly included multiple veteran backs — plus DeMarco Murray declining an invitation. West has averaged a mere 3.9 yards per carry career and appeared in just 5 games last season for a Ravens offense seeking backfield answers. New Orleans clearly felt the need to tap a veteran to help fill the early Mark Ingram void. We’ll see if West can work his way into fantasy relevance. If nothing else, he’s in the right place for it.

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Bucs WR Chris Godwin lined up on the outside with the 1st-team offense during Tuesday's minicamp session, according to Pewter Report's Trevor Sikkema. Mike Evans was the other outside WR, with DeSean Jackson in the slot. This is clearly Tampa's most dangerous 3-WR grouping (despite how reliable Adam Humphries has been) and would make Godwin a potential breakout candidate this year. He closed his rookie campaign with 10 catches for 209 yards and a score over the final 2 weeks and has been buzzing all spring. We'll continue to watch how this WR corps shapes up. Jameis Winston, meanwhile, continues to look like 1 of the most undervalued QBs in early fantasy drafts.

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