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.
Lions WR Jameson Williams (ankle, illness) is out for Sunday’s game vs. the Vikings. We’ll see if he can make it back for next week’s Wild Card game. Williams’ absence will free up some snaps for WRs Josh Reynolds, Kalif Raymond, and Donovan Peoples-Jones.
Lions WR Jameson Williams set career highs with 7 targets and 4 receptions in Saturday night's win over the Broncos. They produced just 47 yards for a non-descript fantasy outing. But Williams' 72.2% route rate also marked a career high. That continued a positive trend for the second-year wideout since the bye. Williams' rate dipped to 48.7% in Week 14. But before that he had topped 60% in three straight games. His 54.6% coming off the Week 9 bye was also a season high to that point, following rates below 50% in three of his first four appearances this season. Williams now has just one career game with more than 2 receptions and has never put up more than 53 receiving yards in a game. So this isn't enough to make him a Week 16 starter in most fantasy football leagues. But the former 12th overall pick might be cheaply available in dynasty leagues without trade deadlines, given the still-disappointing production vs. his draft capital. Williams will be just 23 when his third NFL season begins.
Lions WR Josh Reynolds (back) is questionable for Saturday night’s game vs. the Broncos. He was added to the injury report on Thursday and limited again in Friday’s practice. Reynolds’ absence could mean a snap boost for WR Jameson Williams, but Williams would still only be in play in DFS tournaments.
Lions QB Jared Goff threw for 236 yards, 2 TDs and 3 INTs in Sunday’s comeback win over Chicago. Goff struggled for most of the afternoon before leading a pair of TD drives late in the fourth quarter. His scores went to Jameson Williams (32 yards) and Amon-Ra St. Brown (7 yards). Goff's rest-of-season schedule looks neutral, with only one truly favorable matchup (at Chicago, Week 14) remaining. On the plus side: Goff also has just one outdoor matchup left on the schedule.
The Browns traded WR Donovan Peoples-Jones to the Lions in exchange for a sixth-round pick. Peoples-Jones turned in a promising 2022 season, catching 61 of 96 targets for 839 yards and three TDs. But he's been mostly invisible so far this year, totaling just eight receptions on 18 targets. He joins a Lions offense still searching for a consistent No. 2 WR behind Amon-Ra St. Brown. WR Josh Reynolds has been good in spurts this year, but WR Jameson Williams has continued to disappoint. We'll see what kind of role Peoples-Jones can carve out, but he's unlikely to emerge as a reliable fantasy option this season. The 24-year-old is set to hit free agency in March. The Browns, meanwhile, are left with WRs Marquise Goodwin, Cedric Tillman, and David Bell behind Amari Cooper and Elijah Moore.
Lions WR Jameson Williams recorded a deep ball TD in Sunday’s win over Tampa Bay. Williams still saw only 3 targets (6.8%) and ran a total of 9 routes. But his long-range score – which included a nice mid-air adjustment – was a thing of beauty. Call it a step in the right direction for the enigmatic WR. For now, though, his usage isn’t reliable enough for fantasy managers. Detroit catches the Ravens in Week 7.
Lions WR Josh Reynolds hauled 4 of 5 targets for 76 yards and a TD in Week 5’s win vs. the Panthers. Rookie TE Sam LaPorta delivered quality production as well, logging 47 receiving yards and 2 TDs on 3 catches in the contest. Fantasy managers excited for the return of WR Jameson Williams from suspension don’t have a lot to celebrate (2 catches, 2 yards). Still, this Lions’ passing game is chock full of reliable players, even without WR Amon-Ra St. Brown in the lineup. Hopefully, the Lions will have their full complement of weapons back next week vs. the Buccaneers.
Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (abdomen) is inactive for today’s game vs. the Panthers. He didn't practice all week and was listed as doubtful, so he wasn’t particularly close to playing. We’ll see if he can make it back for Week 6. St. Brown’s absence leaves 26.7% of Detroit’s targets up for grabs. Josh Reynolds is the best bet to lead Lions WRs in targets today, with Kalif Raymond, Jameson Williams, and Marvin Jones behind him. TE Sam LaPorta should also benefit from St. Brown’s absence. But we’re expecting a run-heavy attack from the Lions today against a leaky Panthers run defense.
Lions WR Jameson Williams is expected to play a "limited role" in his 2023 debut vs. the Panthers today, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. "Maybe around 20 snaps," Pelissero adds. 20 snaps would be about one-third of the game. We'd expect most of Williams' snaps to come in passing situations, so he could still rack up some production today. But he'd be a desperation fantasy start in season-long leagues. Maybe you take a shot on him in a DFS tournament lineup.
Lions WR Jameson Williams has been activated from the Exempt/Commissioner Permission list. He's set to make his 2023 debut vs. the Panthers tomorrow. The Lions might be forced to play Williams more than they initially wanted with WR Amon-Ra St. Brown and RB Jahmyr Gibbs out. But Williams would still be a risky Week 5 fantasy start. He caught one of nine targets in six games last year.
Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown (abdomen) is listed as doubtful for Sunday's game vs. the Panthers. He didn't practice all week and obviously needs to be on fantasy benches. His absence would leave Detroit's WR corps to Josh Reynolds, Jameson Williams, Kalif Raymond, and Marvin Jones. Reynolds (groin) and Williams (not injury related) are listed as questionable for Week 5 but should play after getting in full practices on Friday. St. Brown's absence figures to mean an even more run-heavy game plan for Detroit -- and potentially a target boost for TE Sam LaPorta.
Lions HC Dan Campbell confirmed that WR Jameson Williams will have a limited role in his 2023 debut vs. the Panthers on Sunday. "If he does play, he can’t play 60 plays," Campbell said. "That’s not smart. So we can’t do that to him. So we’ll see where it goes. It’s all about improvement, no different than the rest of the team. Every week we just got to get a little bit better. He just needs to get a little bit better and we’ll take it from there." Williams' big-play ability makes him an exciting stash on fantasy rosters. But he's not a viable Week 5 starter. We'll keep a close eye on how his usage evolves.
The NFL announced new guidelines on gambling rules Friday, and one of those changes will return Lions WR Jameson Williams to the field earlier. The league reduced the suspension to two games for a first-time offender betting on non-NFL events while in the workplace. Williams had been suspended six games for that offense. Instead, he'll now be reinstated after missing four. That will make Williams eligible to play in Week 5. We'll see about his initial role. Williams barely played as a rookie, coming off a January ACL tear. He continued to deal with injury and shaky performance this year in training camp and preseason. But the former first-round pick brings the speed to turn any touch into a big play. Williams is worth stashing in most fantasy formats, and we'll watch for word on Detroit's plan for him.
Lions HC Dan Campbell said there's "a good chance" WR Jameson Williams (hamstring) will miss the final two preseason games. Detroit was obviously looking to get Williams reps this summer after a lost rookie season. He played 51 snaps in the preseason opener. Now it sounds like we won't see Williams again until after he serves his six-game suspension to open the season. It'll be at least a week or two beyond that before Williams will be a bankable fantasy play. He's only worth drafting in best-ball leagues or redraft leagues with deep benches.
Lions WR Jameson Williams exited practice on Wednesday with an apparent right hamstring injury. Williams walked to the locker room with team trainers, and we’ll pass along an update when we learn more.
Lions WR Jameson Williams got back on the practice field on Sunday after going down with a leg injury on Monday. It was a "jog through" practice, per HC Dan Campbell, so Williams might not be full speed quite yet. We'll see if the second-year WR can string together a few healthy weeks leading up to the start of the regular season. He's suspended for the first six games for violating the league's gambling policy.
Lions WR Jameson Williams suffered a leg injury on Monday and is expected to miss the next couple of days, HC Dan Campbell said. This obviously doesn't sound like a serious issue, but Williams could use all the reps he can get after playing just 78 snaps in his 2022 rookie campaign. He, of course, is suspended for the first six games of this season for violating the league's gambling policy. We'll let you know when Williams gets back on the practice field.
Speaking at a youth football camp, Lions WR Jameson Williams said he’s back to his pre-torn ACL playing weight of 185 pounds. (Williams tore his left ACL in January, 2022.) He credits a new workout regimen and diet. “I’m really eager because it’s been a lot of stepping stones, and I’m just ready to get everything cleared up and just play ball,” Williams said via MLive. Of course, he'll miss the first six games while serving a suspension for gambling. He’s the WR49 in FFPC best ball drafts.
Lions WR Jameson Williams is one of five players to be suspended for violating the NFL's gambling policy. Williams, along with Lions WR Stanley Berryhill, have been suspended six games. Lions WR Quintez Cephus, Lions S C.J. Moore, and Commanders DE Shaka Toney are suspended indefinitely. We'll see if Williams appeals this ruling, but fantasy drafters should work under the assumption that he'll miss the first six games of the 2023 season. Williams, of course, appeared in just six games as a rookie last year after tearing an ACL in January of 2022. This suspension will make him tough to roster in standard redraft fantasy leagues and just a late-round option in best ball. Williams' absence leaves Amon-Ra St. Brown, Marvin Jones, Josh Reynolds, and Kalif Raymond as Detroit's top 4 WRs. Jones and Reynolds pick up a bit more fantasy appeal with this news.
Update: The Lions released WR Quintez Cephus and S C.J. Moore.
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