Martavis Bryant Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Steelers WR Antonio Brown (concussion) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Broncos.  He hasn't made much, if any, progress through the protocol and isn't a lock to return if Pittsburgh is still playing next weekend.  Martavis Bryant, Markus Wheaton and Darrius Heyward-Bey will serve as the top 3 WRs on Sunday, but a matchup with the league's #1 WR defense limits the fantasy appeal.

Steelers WR Antonio Brown (concussion) is "not looking good" for Sunday's Divisional Round game against the Broncos, according to ESPN's Bob Holtzman.  We'll continue to track his progress through the league's protocol.  Pittsburgh would be left with Martavis Bryant, Markus Wheaton and Darrius Heyward-Bey as its top 3 WRs if Brown isn't cleared in time.  All 3 guys would be more intriguing if they weren't facing the league's top-ranked WR defense.

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger called out WR Martavis Bryant on Tuesday for sloppy play in last weekend's win over the Browns.  "He needs to understand that – and this is coming from love from me and other guys – that this time of year you have to tough it up,” Roethlisberger said. “You have to get tough and you got to make tough plays and make tough catches. You have to find ways to do everything you can to help this team."  Bryant was listed as questionable for last week's game with an illness and then reportedly injured his neck.  He ended up playing just 12 snaps, finishing with 1 catch for 0 yards.  We'll keep an eye on his practice participation this week.  Pittsburgh could certainly use Bryant's elite size-speed combination in the postseason, but his recent play makes him a risk/reward fantasy option for the Wild Card Round.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant told reporters after Sunday's win that he has a neck strain.  That partly explains why his snaps were way down.  But Bryant also dropped a pass and drew the ire of QB Ben Roethlisberger when he seemingly ran a wrong route, leading to an INT.  Bryant heads into the postseason with just 2 catches for 6 yards over his last 2 games.  Even if healthy, he'll be a risky fantasy play in the Wild Card Round.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant (illness) is active for today’s game against the Browns. He put in a full practice on Friday and should be a full-go today. Bryant remains a high-upside fantasy play, despite last week's dud.

The forecast for today's Steelers-Browns game calls for 20-30% chance of snow with 18 mph winds.  That might be enough to break ties against guys in this game, but we're not moving any Steelers or Browns in the Week 17 rankings.  QB Ben Roethlisberger, WR Antonio Brown and WR Martavis Bryant remain strong fantasy plays.  TE Gary Barndige is the only reliable option in Cleveland's passing game.

ESPN's Jeremy Fowler confirms that Steelers WR Martavis Bryant is expected to play against the Browns on Sunday.  He's officially listed as questionable with an illness but put in a full practice on Friday.  Use Bryant in fantasy lineups as you normally would.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant (illness) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Browns. It's encouraging that Bryant put in a full workout Friday, though. As long as he's active Sunday, he should be in starting fantasy lineups and will carry plenty of DFS upside.

The Steelers are "waiting until the last possible minute" to decide whether QB Ben Roethlisberger will start today's game against the Chiefs.  It sounds like he'll go through pregame warmups before a final call is made.  We'll find out by noon ET.  If active, Big Ben will be worth getting in fantasy lineups vs. Kansas City's 32nd-ranked QB defense.  His return would also be a boost to RB Le'Veon Bell and WRs Antonio Brown and Martavis Bryant.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant told ESPN's Jeremy Fowler that he "feels good" and expects to be a full participant in Wednesday's practice.  We don't know exactly what was ailing Bryant last week because he wasn't listed on the injury report, but it was reportedly a knee issue.  It sounds like he's on track to make his 2015 debut against the Cardinals on Sunday.

The Steelers have activated WR Martavis Bryant from the reserved/suspended list.  He'll need to be listed on this week's injury report if that knee is still an issue.  Bryant should immediately take over as the #2 option in Pittsburgh's passing game, but he'll be a high-risk, medium-reward WR3 until QB Ben Roethlisberger returns.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant won't play against the Chargers on Monday night, according to insider Ed Bouchette.  Bryant is reportedly dealing with a minor knee injury, but the team hasn't provided any updates.  The Steelers will add Bryant to the active roster on Tuesday, and he'll need to be listed on the injury report (if needed) next week.  His absence on Monday night means another game for Darrius Heyward-Bey and Markus Wheaton as the #2 and #3 WRs.  Bryant's absence puts a dent in QB Michael Vick's streaming appeal.

FOX Sports' Ross Jones report that Steelers WR Martavis Bryant "tweaked" a knee in practice Monday and "he'll likely be inactive" for Monday night's game against the Chargers. It's good to finally get some info on a situation that has seemed mysterious all week.  Note that Bryant hasn't appeared on the injury report because the Steelers haven't yet activated him to the roster. Plan on some other WR for your Week 5 lineup, and we'll keep an eye on how this situation develops.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant reportedly hasn't practiced since Monday.  He's not on the team's Week 5 injury report because he hasn't officially been activated.  (That'll happen on Monday.)  "Getting a little concerned," QB Michael Vick said of Bryant's status for Monday night's game against the Chargers.  "Just gotta keep the faith.  Hopefully he'll get himself back."  Bryant was a risky Week 5 fantasy play to begin with.  Now, he needs to be on fantasy benches.  We might not get an update on his status until Monday.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant is facing a 4-game suspension for violating the league's substance abuse policy, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter.  Bryant will likely appeal the ban but is unlikely to get it reduced.  He'll miss games against the Patriots, 49ers, Rams and Ravens.  It puts a major dent in the value of a guy many were projecting a breakout season from.  We'd been mostly avoiding Bryant at his 5th-round ADP, but it'll be interesting to see what this does to his price tag.  He's still capable of emerging as a high-upside weekly play over the final 12 games.  Meanwhile, Markus Wheaton is now locked in as Pittsburgh's #2 WR for those first 4 games.  That makes him a sneaky spot-start option for your fantasy squad, especially with RB Le'Veon Bell out the first 2 games.  QB Ben Roethlisberger gets a slight bump down the rankings.

Update: Bryant's impending suspension is for "multiple failed marijuana tests," per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.

Steelers C Maurkice Pouncey broke his fibula in Sunday's preseason game against the Packers.  He'll undergo surgery and is expected to miss at least half of the season.  There's a chance Pouncey misses the entire year, according to insider Ed Bouchette.  Pouncey will be replaced by Cody Wallace, who received negative run and pass-blocking grades from Pro Football Focus in limited action last year.  Pouncey finished 6th among 41 Cs in PFF's 2014 overall grades. This is a significant loss for an offense full of fantasy assets.  We're not knocking any of the Steelers down our rankings yet, but we'll be keeping a close eye on the offense in the 3rd preseason game.  Note that Pouncey missed almost the entire 2013 season, and Pittsburgh ranked 20th in yards and 16th in points.  They vaulted into the top 7 in both with Pouncey back last year.

Steelers WR Martavis Bryant (elbow) returned to practice on Tuesday.  He ended up missing about 10 days with the elbow infection.  Bryant can now get back to work pushing Markus Wheaton for the #2 spot on the depth chart.  Both guys will see plenty of playing time in an offense that uses lots of 3-WR sets, but Bryant will have trouble meeting his 5th-round price tag if he doesn't pass Wheaton.

Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger suggested that Markus Wheaton remains the team's #2 WR.  "We're in 2-WRs (sets), he's our #2 and we're asking him to play outside," Big Ben said.  "When we go 3 WRs we ask him to move inside."  Roethlisberger obviously hasn't been reading the clippings on WR Martavis Bryant's impending breakout 2015 season.  Bryant remains a strong bet to out-produce Wheaton this year, but if he truly stays 3rd on the depth chart and isn't an every-down player, he'll struggle for week-to-week consistency.  This will be a situation to keep a close eye on over the next month. Wheaton could end up as a value pick at his ADP is he retains the #2 spot.  Big Ben named Wheaton his team's "breakout player of the year."