Steelers S Minkah Fitzpatrick (hamstring) will miss his third straight game. Pittsburgh has ruled him out again after another week of no practice. Pittsburgh has also ruled S Keanu Neal (rib) out for the game. That should leave Elijah Riley joining Damontae Kazee at safety in the starting lineup.
The Steelers have already ruled S Minkah Fitzpatrick out for Thursday night's game against the Titans, in the wake of his Sunday hamstring injury. Safeties Keanu Neal (97%) and Damontae Kazee (94%) each played season-high snap shares against the Jaguars and figure to be the top two against Tennessee. Neal -- who logged 7 solo tackles in the game -- is the better fantasy bet between them. Neither approaches Fitzpatrick's upside.
Buccaneers S Antoine Winfield Jr. (ankle), S Keanu Neal (toe) and S Mike Edwards (hamstring) are active for tonight's game against the Cardinals. If you waited on any of them, use as planned in your IDP lineups.
Buccaneers S Antoine Winfield Jr. (ankle), S Mike Edwards (hamstring) and S Keanu Neal (toe) are all questionable for Sunday night's game against the Cardinals. Winfield missed practice all week and looks quite iffy. We've knocked him down the Week 16 IDP rankings. Edwards popped up on the injury report for the 1st time Friday. Neal put in 2 limited workouts after sitting out Wednesday. We'll check on all 3 players ahead of the game. But being the 2nd-to-last kickoff of the weekend makes all 3 difficult to wait on -- and probably not worth it in most cases.
Buccaneers S Antoine Winfield Jr. (ankle) and S Mike Edwards (hamstring) are doubtful for Monday night's game against the Saints. That means Tampa Bay will almost certainly miss its top 2 safeties for the game. Keanu Neal and undrafted rookie Nolan Turner are the only other healthy safeties on the active roster. The Bucs could still activate veteran DB Logan Ryan (foot) from IR ahead of the game. Neal has moved up our Week 13 IDP rankings.
Cowboys LB Micah Parsons tested positive for COVID Wednesday. The Saturday night kickoff would seem to make it difficult for him to make it back, but we're not yet seeing Parsons reported as being out for the game. If he does miss the regular-season finale, then LBs Leighton Vander Esch and Keanu Neal should see playing-time boosts. Vander Esch would be our preferred IDP play.
The Cowboys will "essentially" move LB Micah Parsons to DE starting today against the Chargers, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. The shift comes out of need, as Dallas lost DE Randy Gregory (COVID list) and DE Demarcus Lawrence (foot fracture) over the past week. As a result, LB Leighton Vander Esch "should stay on the field in all packages, along with Keanu Neal," Rapoport reports. Neal could see more snaps at safety this week, with S Donovan Wilson (groin) also out. That would leave more playing time available for Jaylon Smith. Vander Esch played just 22% of defensive snaps in the Week 1 loss to Tampa, while Smith played just 25%. Parsons led the group at 78%, with Neal just 1 snap behind. There will obviously be risk in using any of the Cowboys LBs in IDP lineups for Week 2. But Parsons, Neal and LVE all look usable at varied levels. We'd try to hold off on trusting Smith's snap share for now, as the likely 4th guy in order of playing time here. The move also hurts the IDP upside for Parsons by cutting down on his tackle opportunities. We've adjusted them all in our Week 2 LB rankings.
The Cowboys have started rookie Micah Parsons and converted S Keanu Neal at LB in each of their past 2 preseason games. It looks as though that pair will lead the playing time at the position. Jaylon Smith and Leighton Vander Esch did mix in heavily with the 1st-team defense against Houston on Saturday, though. The ascension of the 2 new guys is noteworthy. Smith has been a full-time player and carries 1 of the league's largest cap numbers among off-ball LBs (nearly $10 million), and LVE is a former 1st-round pick who has dealt with injuries the past couple of years. Parsons, of course, arrived in Round 1 of this year's draft. Neal has history with new DC Dan Quinn, having played for him in Atlanta. The exact playing-time breakdown in this crowded corps is likely still working out, so we're wary of over-committing to any Dallas LB in IDP leagues. Parsons looks like the player with the highest upside and makes for a nice LB3 option (if he lasts). Neal could be a worthwhile late flier in deeper drafts. We've updated our projections for the group this week.
Search
