Packers WR Christian Watson (hamstring) missed practice again on Thursday. At this point, he looks unlikely to play vs. the Bears this weekend. We'll see if Watson is able to get on the field tomorrow.
Packers WRs Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs missed Wednesday's practice with hamstring injuries. Doubs has been sidelined for close to two weeks now, but it's unclear when Watson got hurt. Their absences vs. the Bears this weekend would leave rookies Jayden Reed and Luke Musgrave as Green Bay's top two pass-catchers -- and likely mean heavy doses of RBs Aaron Jones and A.J. Dillon.
The Colts have released RB Kenyan Drake. With RB Jonathan Taylor's status still unresolved, this just signals that Drake failed to beat out RBs Deon Jackson or Evan Hull. Zack Moss remains out with a wrist injury. We should know more about Taylor's status this week and will certainly keep watching the whole situation.
Packers QB Jordan Love completed a nice preseason Saturday against the Seahawks. He went 9-of-15 passing for 63 yards and a TD vs. Seattle. That makes him 21 of 33 (63.6%) for 193 yards, 3 TDs, and 0 INTs across three preseason contests. Love notched a 109.8 passer rating. The new starter added 21 yards on the ground against the Seahawks, giving him 32 yards on five rushes for the preseason. SI.com's Bill Huber says Love "didn't scramble much during training camp," so we probably shouldn't expect big rushing numbers. But he has the speed and athleticism to add at least some fantasy value there. Most importantly, Love remains low in QB2 territory in ADP. That leaves basically nothing but upside to drafting him in leagues where a second QB makes sense.
Per reporter Rob Demovsky, Packers WR Romeo Doubs missed Saturday’s preseason game with a hamstring injury. No word yet on the severity, but we’ll look for an update this weekend. Doubs sits low in our WR rankings.
The Raiders and RB Josh Jacobs have agreed to a one-year deal worth up to $12 million, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. It's the same thing RB Saquon Barkley got from the Giants. Each RB was limited in what he could get once the July deadline passed for franchise-tagged players to sign long-term contracts. This new pact brings Jacobs back with still more than two weeks before the regular-season opener. We'll see how quickly Jacobs' ADP rebounds. He has commonly been going in Round 3 of recent drafts. He's certainly a nice value in that range and can make sense anywhere from the second half of Round 2 on -- depending on your format. Jacobs never moved much in our fantasy football rankings this summer.
The Packers have "big plans" for TE Luke Musgrave, The Athletic's Matt Schneidman writes. That's not a surprise if you've been paying attention to Packers training camp and preseason action, where Musgrave has been a fixture with the first-team offense. "Musgrave is special, and the Packers seem hell-bent on making the most out of him," Schneidman adds. "The rookie second-round pick is running jet sweeps, go routes and everything in between as he flashes his potentially lethal combination of freakish athleticism and contested catch prowess." Musgrave has emerged as one of the best late-round TE targets in fantasy drafts.
Packers TE Luke Musgrave was on the field for all 12 of QB Jordan Love's snaps in Friday night's preseason opener. The rookie ran a route on eight of Love's 10 dropbacks and was targeted on three of Love's 10 passes. If that type of playing time continues into the regular season, Musgrave will be a 2023 fantasy factor. He's climbing the TE rankings.
Packers TE Luke Musgrave was on the field for all 19 of QB Jordan Love's snaps that were broadcast in Saturday night's scrimmage, according to Acme Packing Co.'s Justis Mosqueda. It's further confirmation that Musgrave is set to open the season as Green Bay's starter. The rookie has struggled some with drops and blocking in camp but has consistently flashed his speed and pass-catching skills. Musgrave is a worthy late-round flier in fantasy drafts.
The Colts signed RB Kenyan Drake to a one-year deal. In theory, he adds backfield depth with Jonathan Taylor (PUP) and Zack Moss (broken arm) sidelined. The 29-year-old performed decently as a rusher last year in Baltimore (109-482-4). Even if the Colts trade Taylor, Drake is an unlikely fantasy factor.
Packers HC Matt LaFleur praised WR Christian Watson for his growth in Year 2. "He just seems like a much more confident player and I think we saw that kind of take shape last year, about halfway through the season," LaFleur said. "You gotta remember… I think any time you're a young player and you miss all of training camp essentially, that's tough. That's difficult, so just him being healthy, he had a really good offseason and just his knowledge with our offense, he is one of the most intelligent players that I've ever been around.” (Note: Watson missed most of the ’22 camp following offseason knee surgery.) Now healthy, the 24-year-old brings enticing fantasy upside at a current ADP of WR25.
Insider Josina Anderson reports that the Raiders are "open to restarting talks with RB Josh Jacobs, with the hopes of getting him to rejoin the team, which still remains the goal for the organization." RB Saquon Barkley's one-year deal with the Giants should help lay some groundwork for an agreement between Jacobs and the Raiders. We're still not projecting him to sit out any regular-season games.
According to The Athletic's Matt Schneidman, Packers QB Jordan Love "had his best day of camp" on Saturday. The newly-minted starter reportedly "looked in rhythm, crisp and tight with his throws and capable of throwing on the move," completing 16 of his 22 pass attempts in all 11-on-11 drills. Taking over for long-time starter and former NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers undoubtedly puts much pressure on Love. He's only appeared in parts of 10 games, with just one start in his career thus far. We truthfully don't know much about how Love will be as an NFL starter. Because of this unknown, we don't have the former first-round pick placed very high in our current QB rankings, but he'll be an intriguing option in superflex leagues should we continue to see positive reports like this one out of camp. The potential for Love being a later-round value pick is immense. We'll be sure to keep tabs on Love throughout the preseason.
The Athletic's Matt Schneidman calls Packers rookie WR Jayden Reed the “likely” punt returner. That’s in addition to his role in the slot, one he’s looking forward to. "I actually like it, working with space, being able to attack guys, step on their toes and make a move,” Reed said. “It's really helping me out a lot to be able to work in space. I haven't been able to do that in a long time and I'm enjoying it right now.” Reed is one of several fantasy-relevant players on track for a boost in leagues with return yards.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero confirms that Raiders RB Josh Jacobs will not report for the start of training camp Tuesday. Jacobs was spotted boarding a flight to leave Las Vegas on Monday morning and "has told people close to him that he doesn’t plan to return anytime soon," per Pelissero. Jacobs hasn't yet signed his franchise-tag tender, so he doesn't lose any money for skipping camp. But he'd forfeit close to $600,000 for each regular-season game he sits out. We're ultimately expecting Jacobs to report before Week 1 but will continue to keep a close eye on the situation.
Matt Schneidman of The Athletic says he thinks Packers rookie Luke Musgrave "will be the TE1 by Week 1." Schneidman adds: "The Packers think he can be the true No. 1 pass-catching tight end that Robert Tonyan was at times but not consistently enough, someone like Jermichael Finley in his prime perhaps." The Packers reportedly hope Musgrave can develop into a player they can move around the formation as "almost a wide receiver." We like the long-term upside on the athletic rookie. For 2023, though, Musgrave sits low in TE3 territory in our rankings.
"The Raiders are not expected to see [RB Josh] Jacobs until later this summer, if then," ESPN's Adam Schefter tweeted on Monday. Jacobs and the Raiders failed to agree to a long-term contract ahead of Monday's 4 pm ET deadline for franchise-tagged players. Since he hasn't signed the franchise tag yet, Jacobs can't be fined for skipping training camp. "Jacobs will have decisions to make as to when he is willing to report," Schefter adds. NFL Network's Tom Pelissero suggested back in June that Jacobs' holdout could extend into the regular season. We'll continue to keep you updated on the situation, but Jacobs clearly carries elevated risk in upcoming fantasy football drafts.
Raiders beat writer Vincent Bonsignore doesn’t expect the team to extend RB Josh Jacobs prior to Monday’s deadline. Jacobs hasn’t signed his franchise tag, so he’s not subject to fines if he skips training camp. Bonsignore expects Jacobs to show up for the regular season and calls a trade “unlikely.” The 25-year-old finished at RB3 last year, boosted by a massive 393 touches. He'll remain an RB1 when active, but second-year man Zamir White brings plenty of intrigue as a late-round handcuff. Get White starred on your cheat sheet.
Packers beat writer Bill Huber believes the team’s O-line enters training camp in “fine form.” Green Bay’s projected starters — save for LT David Bakhtairi — played together over the final nine games of last season. We’ll keep an eye on the health of Bakhtiari, nearly 32, but this unit looks like a positive for Jordan Love and the run game. Green Bay ranked top-8 last year in pass and run-block win rate, an ESPN metric. See where Love slots in our QB rankings.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero suggested in a recent interview on The Rich Eisen Show that Raiders RB Josh Jacobs could hold out into the regular season. "If there’s not a long-term deal I don’t anticipate Jacobs being there at the start of training camp and I don’t know that he shows up Week 1," Pelissero said. Jacobs was slapped with the franchise tag earlier this offseason, which would pay him $10.1 million this year. Skipping training camp wouldn't cost him any money, but he'd forfeit one-seventeenth of that salary for each game he misses. Jacobs and the Raiders have until July 17 to agree to a long-term deal. Until we have a resolution to this situation, Jacobs carries elevated risk in fantasy drafts. RB Zamir White would be the favorite to take over early-down work if Jacobs holds out into the regular season. RB Ameer Abdullah is still around to handle passing downs.
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