Los Angeles Chargers Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Jon Machota of The Athletic named Cowboys WR Simi Fehoko as the “biggest surprise” in training camp. Machota mentions WR Noah Brown as another strong candidate, but it’s Fehoko who’s mentioned as looking “ready to contribute in year 2.” The Stanford product made only 5 appearances as a rookie and didn’t catch a ball — hardly a surprise as a Round 5 pick on a (then) strong WR corps. Injuries to Michael Gallup and James Washington, plus the trade of Amari Cooper, have given guys like Fehoko a shot to emerge. The 24-year-old goes 6’4, 222 pounds with sub-4.5 speed, so he has some intriguing tools to work with.

Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins (knee) passed his physical and was activated from the PUP list on Monday. ESPN's Adam Schefter tweeted that Dobbins is now "on track" to play Week 1, while NFL Network's Ian Rapoport said Dobbins has "a chance" for the opener. We'll see who proves right there, but Dobbins is clearly trending in the right direction. RB Gus Edwards (knee) remains on the PUP list, which seems to be confirmation that he's behind Dobbins in his rehab.

Reports on Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins' recovery from last August's left knee injury have been mixed. But Pro Football Focus insider Doug Kyed hears that Dobbins is doing "amazing" in his rehab and that "there doesn’t appear to be any concern that he’ll be ready for the season." RB Gus Edwards, meanwhile, is "deemed questionable" for Week 1 as he recovers from his own torn ACL. Both guys remain on the PUP list as of today.

Chargers RB Isaiah Spiller has been the only RB other than Austin Ekeler taking 1st-team reps, according to NFL Network's Taylor Bisciotti. That's a pretty good signal that he's the favorite to emerge as the Chargers' #2 RB. And it doesn't hurt that former #2 Justin Jackson signed with the Lions on Monday. Spiller looks like a solid handcuff-level pick.

Update: Bisciotti later tweeted that RBs Joshua Kelley and Larry Rountree also got 1st-team reps in Monday's practice. "They’re splitting reps and it’s an open competition," Bisciotta tweeted. "RB2 is up for grabs." We still consider Spiller the favorite to win this job.

Daniel Popper of The Athletic says the Chargers have an "open competition" for the 2nd RB spot among Isaiah Spiller, Larry Rountree and Joshua Kelley. "We're not going to know about these backs until they get tackled," HC Brandon Staley said Friday. Fantasy football drafters are treating Spiller as the clear #2 back. We're betting on the rookie seizing that role, too, but it's worth noting the team isn't handing it to him just yet.

Ravens HC John Harbaugh admitted that RB Gus Edwards (ACL) is in question for Week 1. Edwards was recently placed on the PUP list, and his return to practice isn’t imminent. He’s not someone we’re looking to buy the dip on in fantasy drafts.

The Athletic's Daniel Popper expects a "big jump" from Chargers WR Josh Palmer this season. He's coming off a 33-353-4 line as a rookie last year, with 3 of those 4 scores coming over the final 5 games. "On top of solid hands and sharp route-running, Palmer has an outstanding work ethic," Popper writes. "He is regularly the last player on the practice field. He throws with [QB Justin] Herbert after practice more than any other receiver on the roster." Palmer is the favorite for #3 WR duties in Los Angeles this year -- although he'll probably need a Keenan Allen or Mike Williams injury to find reliable weekly fantasy production.

The Ravens have placed RB Gus Edwards on the training-camp PUP list. That's no shock, given Edwards is coming off an ACL tear. He has reportedly been trending toward being ready for the season. We'll watch the status of Baltimore's expected #2 back through the summer.

The Ravens have placed RB J.K. Dobbins on the PUP list to begin training camp. This comes as no surprise, given that Dobbins is working back from an August ACL tear (plus LCL and meniscus damage) and is reportedly not a lock to play in the regular-season opener. This designation has no bearing on his status for that game, however. We'll monitor the 3rd-year Baltimore back throughout camp and the preseason.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that there's "certainly a chance" that Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins is not ready for Week 1 of the regular season and that he might even need "a couple weeks" after that. There reportedly has been no setback with Dobbins' recovery from the ACL tear, but the team plans to not rush him back. Gus Edwards -- recovering from his own ACL tear -- "seems like he should be on track" for the opener. We'll certainly watch the status of each player through training camp and preseason. We haven't been close to drafting Dobbins at cost so far this year, though. Rookie Tyler Badie and ex-Falcons RB Mike Davis could factor in early as well, if Dobbins can't go.

Update: Dobbins responded to the Rapoport report on Twitter by saying, "I might not even go on PUP because that's how good my rehab is going and I'm damn sure going to be ready for week 1." We'll see what's true as we get closer to September.

Jeff Zrebiec considers RB J.K. Dobbins “highly unlikely” to play in the preseason. In fact, Zrebiec considers it “logical” for the Ravens to place Dobbins on the Physically Unable to Perform list at the open of training camp. This all comes after Dobbins sat out the offseason program following an August 2021 ACL tear. “The knee injuries are a little tougher to say what the schedule really is. So, you talk to J.K., he’s the starting running back today, (and) he should have been practicing today, but he’s got work to do still,” HC John Harbaugh said in June. Consider Dobbins a high-risk low-end RB2 until we gain more clarity on his health.

Ravens HC John Harbaugh said he’s “hopeful” RBs Gus Edwards and J.K. Dobbins will be ready for the regular season. Harbaugh also said that they're “on track,” so Week 1 is realistic barring a setback. Both guys will be ~1 year removed from ACL surgery come the regular season, so the question is just how much action they see in training camp. Neither player has practiced so far this spring.

The Chargers ran Josh Palmer as their 3rd WR in Tuesday's opening practice of mandatory minicamp, according to Daniel Popper of The Athletic. That puts him ahead of Jalen Guyton, who spent 2021 beating the then-rookie in playing time. Guyton was also reportedly working as a punt-team gunner Tuesday for the 1st time since joining the team. That could be another signal of a lighter offensive role for Guyton. Palmer has stood well ahead of Guyton as the 3rd Chargers WR in ADP throughout draft season. He's a decent option at low-WR6 ADP -- and a good addition to Justin Herbert teams.

Chargers HC Brandon Staley revealed this week that S Derwin James had surgery on the labrum in his left shoulder in February, according to Daniel Popper of The Athletic. The injury originally occurred in the 1st half of Week 3, but James didn't miss any games until weeks 14 and 16 (then for a hamstring issue). The safety has been sitting out of team drills this spring, but Staley calls that "precautionary." James is reportedly back to full health and will be good to go for training camp.

Cowboys WRs Simi Fehoko and T.J. Vasher have gotten a "ton of work" with Dak Prescott this week, thanks to James Washington and Jalen Tolbert being sidelined, according to David Helman of the team website. Helman added that he saw Fehoko "make 2-3 nice snags." It's assumed that Washington and Tolbert will run ahead of Fehoko and Vasher when healthy, but Tolbert was a 3rd-round pick and Washington signed a small 1-year deal. We're betting on Tolbert and Washington being more relevant as well, but neither is guaranteed a starting role. We'll be watching to see how the WR corps sorts out behind CeeDee Lamb.

The Chargers return the same HC and OC from last season. Plus, 6 of last year's top 7 target-getters are back, with TE Gerald Everett replacing TE Jared Cook. “Everyone’s familiar with the terminology, so a lot less stress, at this time of the year anyway, because they’ve had a year to digest everything,” OC Joe Lombardi said. “Justin [Herbert]’s bandwidth is a lot wider for everything, so we can focus on some Football 202 type of stuff, rather than just getting in and out of the huddle. It’s real nice. First and foremost, it’s just familiarity with all of the play calls. Where last year at this time, it was just hearing the play, repeating it in the huddle and just kind of understanding what the play is — that was a lot of calories burnt last year. This year, he has that part down. He can focus on what the defense is doing a little bit more, get his timing down with the receivers and all of that.” The Chargers ranked top 6 in points, yards and yards per play last season and are a safe bet to be 1 of the top offenses in the league again in 2022.

Speaking on the Move the Sticks Podcast, NFL Network’s Bucky Brooks said he believes rookie RB Isaiah Spiller is a “true #1” type of talent. “I would not be surprised to see him emerge as a star-quality player for the Chargers,” Brooks added. The long-time analyst pointed out Spiller’s size and pass-catching ability. (The 217-pounder caught 74 balls across 3 college seasons.) He’s the clear favorite for #2 duties entering the summer, but note that Austin Ekeler’s under contract for 2 more seasons.

Ravens beat writer Jamison Hensley writes that J.K. Dobbins and Gus Edwards “likely won’t be available” for upcoming OTAs. Baltimore opens up OTA workouts on May 24, when both guys will be about 9 months removed from ACL tears. So we're not talking about a setback here; both guys are expected to return for training camp. Adding rookie RB Tyler Badie and veteran Mike Davis in recent days, Baltimore has the bodies to get through the spring. While the backfield looks messy now, we know this team wants to go run heavy — especially without Marquise Brown. In 3 seasons as Ravens OC, Greg Roman’s units have ranked 1st, 1st and 3rd in rush attempts.

Per Gilbert Manzano of the Los Angeles Daily News, Bolts WR Josh Palmer has “proved” he’s “destined to be a top playmaker for [Justin] Herbert in 2022.” We’d call that phrasing a bit aggressive. Still, Palmer came out of the draft as a winner, as L.A. opted against adding a WR. Following a 33-353-4 line as a rookie, the 22-year-old is an enticing late-round flier in deep formats.

The Chargers added Texas A&M RB Isaiah Spiller in the 4th round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He surprisingly ends up as the 9th RB off the board – likely because of his disappointing Combine. The 6’0, 217-pounder ran a 4.64-second 40-yard dash and also bombed the vertical and broad jumps. Spiller led the Aggies backfield in all 3 years on campus, though, racking up 2,993 rushing yards, 25 rushing TDs and 74 catches. You can see Spiller’s underwhelming speed on tape, but he’s a smart back with good vision and contact balance. Spiller has a chance to immediately win the ‘big-back’ role in Los Angeles behind Austin Ekeler. Joshua Kelley and Larry Rountree are underwhelming competitors.