Chiefs K Harrison Butker (ankle) remained sidelined for Wednesday's practice. His status for this weekend's game vs. the Colts is in question, so fantasy owners should have a backup plan in place.
Commanders QB Carson Wentz racked up 337 yards and 3 TDs (plus an INT) on 30-of-46 passing in Sunday's loss to the Lions. He threw TDs to Jahan Dotson, Logan Thomas and Curtis Samuel, who once again led Washington in targets (9). Wentz has topped 40 pass attempts and 300 yards in each game so far. Week 3 brings another matchup with shootout potential: Philadelphia.
After a strong Chiefs debut last week, WR JuJu Smith-Schuster mustered just 3 catches for 10 yards in Thursday night's win over the Chargers. His 3 targets tied for 5th on the team and were just 9% of the team total. He ran a route on 79% of pass plays after posting an 80% route rate in Week 1, so this was just a matter of not drawing targets. Smith-Schuster remains a fantasy starter going forward, but he figures to be inconsistent on a Chiefs offense that is intent on spreading the ball around.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire was again the leader of a 3-man backfield in the Week 2 win over the Chargers. He turned 8 carries into 74 yards, highlighted by a career-long 52-yarder in the 4th quarter. CEH added 4 catches on 4 targets for 44 yards. RBs Jerick McKinnon and Isiah Pacheco combined for just 6 carries and 2 targets. It's worth noting, though, that McKinnon out-snapped Edwards-Helaire 27 to 25 and matched him with 14 pass routes. (Pacheco played just 5 snaps and ran 2 routes.) CEH has looked good and been efficient through 2 games, averaging 7.7 yards per carry, 10.9 yards per catch and scoring 2 TDs. But he's totaled just 15 carries and 7 targets. He still looks like a low-end RB2 or high-end RB3 going forward.
The Chiefs have ruled K Harrison Butker (left ankle) out for Thursday night's game against the Chargers. Matt Amendola is expected to kick in his absence, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport.
Chiefs K Harrison Butker (ankle) missed his 2nd straight practice on Tuesday. He was able to battle through this injury in the opener, but Butker shouldn't be considered a lock to play vs. the Chargers on Thursday night. We'll update his status again tomorrow.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire caught a pair of TD passes in Sunday's win over the Cardinals, scoring from 3 and 4 yards out in the 1st half. CEH handled just 7 carries for the game, but 6 of those came among just 10 RB rushing attempts for the team in the 1st half. Kansas City limited his playing time after the break in a one-sided affair. For the game, Jerick McKinnon matched Edwards-Helaire's snaps and pass routes, according to Pro Football Focus, while rookie Isiah Pacheco led the team in carries. But limiting CEH's 2nd-half exposure only supports his position as backfield leader. It was an undeniably positive start for CEH, who commonly went toward the middle of fantasy football drafts.
Chiefs TE Travis Kelce edged WR JuJu Smith-Schuster for the Week 1 target lead, 9-8, with WR Mecole Hardman checking in 3rd (with 6). It was WR Marquez Valdes-Scantling, though, playing more snaps than any offensive skill player besides Patrick Mahomes. MVS edged Smith-Schuster by 1 route and Kielce by 2, according to Pro Football Focus. Hardman checked in 4th in that category, with the rest of the team far behind. Valdes-Scantling might well remain behind Kelce and Smith-Schuster in target distribution. But his 5.5-yard Week 1 average depth of target suggests he won't merely be the downfield player he was in Green Bay. (MVS' ADOTs with the Packers went 13.8, 16.6, 18.2, 18.2.) Keep MVS in mind more than you would most WRs who open the year with 4 targets and 2 other significant receiving threats in the lineup.
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes delivered 360 yards and 5 TDs on 30-of-39 passing in Sunday's laugher at Arizona. Mahomes largely spread targets around, dealing 9 to TE Travis Kielce, 8 to WR JuJu Smith-Schuster, 6 to WR Mecole Hardman -- with 3 other guys drawing at least 3. RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire snagged 2 of the TD throws, with 1 apiece going to Kielce, Hardman and TE Joe Fortson. It was a soft Cardinals defense, but Mahomes let fantasy football players know we need not worry too much about life after Tyreek Hill.
Chiefs K Harrison Butker was injured on the opening kickoff of today's game vs. the Cardinals. He had to be carted to the locker room and figures to be done for the day. S Justin Reid is handling kicking duties now.
Update: Butker was able to return and nail a 54-yard FG.
Chargers LB Drue Tranquill (back) is active for today's game against the Raiders. He remains a low-end IDP option, though.
The Chargers list LB Drue Tranquill as questionable for Sunday's game against the Raiders. He turned up on the injury report after hurting his back Friday, which doesn't bode well for his outlook in the opener. Tranquill is listed as a ILB starter on the team's "unofficial" depth chart, next to Kyle Van Noy. His absence would leave room for either Kenneth Murray or Troy Reeder, but we wouldn't plan on using either in Week 1 IDP lineups.
Chiefs WR JuJu Smith-Schuster (knee) put in a full practice on Wednesday. It's confirmation that he's ready to rock for Sunday's opener vs. the Cardinals.
The Athletic's Nate Taylor believes Mecole Hardman will open the season as the Chiefs' #2 WR -- behind JuJu Smith-Schuster but ahead of Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Skyy Moore. "Because he’s the fastest in the group and has been in the Chiefs’ system the longest," Taylor writes. We'll be keeping a close eye on the route and target counts in this group early in the season. But Smith-Schuster will be the only reliable Week 1 fantasy starter.
Chiefs WR JuJu Smith-Schuster was back on the practice field Monday. He missed a little over a week with what the team called a "sore knee." But, barring a setback, he should be ready to roll for the start of the season.
ESPN's Field Yates reports that the Chiefs and WR JuJu Smith-Schuster have adjusted the wideout's contract to double his per-game roster bonus from $30,000 to $60,000. Smith-Schuster signed his original 1-year deal before the team traded WR Tyreek Hill to Miami, so clearly he has gained value to the Chiefs simply because of that move. This seems like a relative good-faith gesture: We'll reward you better if you produce. We're not sure there's any projections adjustment needed on this news, though.
Chiefs CB Trent McDuffie sustained a concussion in Thursday night's preseason finale vs. Green Bay. The rookie still has 2 weeks to make it through the league protocol before the regular-season opener. He's expected to start if ready.
Chiefs WR Mecole Hardman played in Thursday night's preseason finale. He suffered a groin injury in practice a little over a week ago but is obviously over it now. Hardman looks like the favorite to open the season as Kansas City's #3 WR. We'll see how long he can hold off rookie Skyy Moore.
Discussing the Chiefs' backfield, ESPN's Adam Teicher writes, "one thing is clear: [Clyde] Edwards-Helaire is atop the depth chart." That's been the feeling out of Chiefs camp and in the preseason, with Edwards-Helaire starting both games. But Teicher adds that, "It certainly seems as if [Jerick] McKinnon and [Isaiah] Pacheco can carve out significant roles, McKinnon as a third-down back and Pacheco more generally." Based on preseason usage, it looks like McKinnon will open the season as the primary pass-catching back. That'd obviously hurt Edwards-Helaire's upside -- although he can still pay off his 6th- or 7th-round price tag.
Chiefs HC Andy Reid didn't sound concerned about WR JuJu Smith-Schuster's sore knee and expects him to be ready for the start of the season, according to insider Herbie Teope. Smith-Schuster has been sidelined since the day after Kansas City's preseason opener but recently "turned the corner" in his recovery, Reid said. We'll keep an eye on JuJu but haven't adjusted his 2022 projections.
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