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New England Patriots Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Shark Bites are the latest fantasy football news & NFL updates. Draft Sharks has been in business since 1999. And when we started, redraft was the dominant form of fantasy football. Check out what we've learned about this most basic form of fantasy football along the way.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson is not listed on the Week 6 injury report. He was limited in practice all last week and listed as questionable for the Saints game with a thigh injury. Stevenson wound up playing but set season lows with a 50% snap rate, eight carries, and two targets. At least he's healthier heading into this weekend's game vs. the Raiders, but it's tough to consider Stevenson more than a RB3 or flex at this point.

Patriots WR Tyquan Thornton (shoulder) has been designated to return from IR. He'll practice this week and is eligible to play on Sunday vs. the Raiders. New England could use Thornton with WRs JuJu Smith-Schuster and Demario Douglas in concussion protocol. But Thornton showed nothing last year or this offseason to make him a legitimate fantasy option right now.

Patriots LB Ja'Whaun Bentley left Sunday's loss to the Saints with a shoulder injury. We'll watch for more details and whether he's expected to miss more time.

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 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 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.

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 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 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.

Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson missed Friday's practice with an illness and is listed as questionable for this weekend's game vs. the Eagles. Stevenson is expected to play, according to The Boston Herald’s Doug Kyed. But you'll need to check back Sunday to confirm that he's active. Patriots-Eagles doesn't kick off until 4:25 pm ET, but we should get an update on Stevenson on Sunday morning.

Patriots WR Tyquan Thornton (shoulder) has been placed on IR. He'll miss at least the first four weeks of the season. The second-year receiver was sidelined during the spring with a soft-tissue injury and then hurt his shoulder in mid-August. He's not worth rostering in redraft. JuJu Smith-Schuster, DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne, and Demario Douglas figure to open the season as New England's top four WRs.

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