On Tuesday, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reported that the Patriots have cut RB Kevin Harris. The 2022 sixth-round pick saw minor involvement as a rookie, tallying 18 carries for 52 rushing yards and a single TD in five games. The team also released veteran Ty Montgomery. These moves come two days after New England traded fellow 2022 rookie Pierre Strong Jr. to the Browns, leaving the depth behind RBs Rhamondre Stevenson and Ezekiel Elliott as somewhat of a question mark. It's unclear who will be the depth behind the aforementioned pair, though the RB3 on the Patriots' depth chart is probably not fantasy-relevant without injury, anyhow.
The Athletic's Chad Graff wrote recently that Patriots rookie WR Demario Douglas "might end up" as the team's WR3 after strong camp performances. The sixth-round pick from Liberty has received "more snaps with starters in recent practices" than incumbent wideout Tyquan Thornton, per Graff, and is reportedly a threat to diminish the playing time of veteran Kendrick Bourne. It isn't easy to make the case for Douglas in redraft leagues. We don't have much hope for the fantasy prospects of the Pats' pass-catchers in 2023. However, this news presents managers in dynasty leagues with an intriguing dart-throw candidate to target in a trade or off the waiver wire. Consider stashing Douglas on your bench or taxi squad.
Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald says Patriots rookie WR Kayshon Boutte is making a "late surge for a roster spot." That's a good way to encapsulate his current fantasy standing. We've seen other positive recent reports on Boutte's performance, including from Kyed. And the sixth-round pick started his college career with intriguing upside before being derailed by injury. That upside makes him worth a stash in dynasty leagues. But that he's fighting for a roster spot on a time with a questionable-to-weak WR corps should temper any excitement.
Beat writer Doug Kyed writes that the Pats are “managing” RB Rhamondre Stevenson’s load in training camp. Second-year RB Kevin Harris saw some first-team reps on Monday. Harris is a deep sleeper to monitor, but keep in mind that New England hosted RB Zeke Elliott over the weekend.
Demario Douglas has been the only Patriots rookie WR to get work with the first-team offense in camp so far, according to The Boston Herald's Doug Kyed. “He’s a smart kid,” HC Bill Belichick said Friday. “He picks things up well, learns quickly, so all things that work in his favor, but we’ll see how it goes when things get more competitive next week.” WRs Tyquan Thornton and Kendrick Bourne are reportedly off to slow starts in camp, opening up more opportunity for Douglas. The sixth-round rookie is still much more of a dynasty stash than redraft target, but we'll continue to keep an eye on him.
Evan Lazar of the Patriots' official website writes that TE Hunter Henry has been QB Mac Jones' "favorite target" in camp so far. "The duo has shown great chemistry heading into year three," Lazar adds. MassLive's Mark Daniels agrees, calling Henry the Patriots' best player through one week of camp. Meanwhile, TE Mike Gesicki is off to a slow start, failing to catch a pass in competitive 7-on-7 or 11-on-11 drills. It's too early to make any sweeping conclusions about this TE corps -- or offense in general. But Henry is certainly out to an early lead on Gesicki.
Commanders RB Antonio Gibson said Wednesday that he anticipates being in the “JD [McKissic] role” this season, playing on third downs and the two-minute drill. McKissic averaged just 4.4 carries but 5.8 targets per game in Washington over the last three years. We're expecting Gibson to get more rushing work than that, but anything close to that level of usage in the passing game would be golden. Gibson is one of our 2023 Fantasy Football Sleepers.
Vikings WR K.J. Osborn is an intriguing option for fantasy managers seeking value at the end of drafts. He's coming off a strong finish last year, too. Over the last four weeks of 2022, Osborn saw an uptick in usage as the Vikings’ WR2 ahead of now-departed Adam Thielen. In that stretch, he averaged 8.2 targets per game (19.5% target share), 87.5 receiving yards, 0.5 TDs per game, and 18 PPR points per game. In each of the last two seasons, Osborn has received at least 80 targets and recorded 600+ receiving yards. He’s primarily been the team’s WR3 in that span, but the Vikings ranked eighth in 11-personnel grouping (three-WR sets) in 2022 under first-year HC Kevin O’Connell. Rookie Jordan Addison is the favorite to be the Vikings' WR2 entering this year, but the top three wideouts, including Justin Jefferson, should all spend plenty of time on the field. Addison also missed all of OTAs this offseason due to an undisclosed injury. We're not overly concerned about Addison's health yet, but it speaks to how close Osborn really is to an impact role in an offense that ranked t-10th in PFF team passing grade. You won't find Osborn listed toward the top of our current WR rankings, but he's worthwhile keeping an eye on during training camp.
Patriots WR Kayshon Boutte was “outplayed” in OTAs by fellow rookie WR Demario Douglas, per The Athletic’s Chad Graff. No surprise, then, that Graff doesn't expect the LSU product to make New England's 53-man roster. Douglas arrived 23 picks after Boutte, whose struggles we detailed around the NFL draft. We’ll see how the WR competition heats up when players put on pads. Both WRs remain miles from redraft relevance. And per our Dynasty Trade Value Chart, Boutte doesn’t move the needle at all in a perspective deal.
Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson is preparing to take on a big workload this season. “Damien [Harriis] is out of here now, so I’m kind of the guy,” Stevenson said. “Just trying to make sure I’m ready for the end of the season this year... Taking care of my body, just trying to be proactive.” Stevenson averaged 12.4 carries and 4.1 catches per game last year -- and that spiked to 14.9 carries and 4.7 catches in nine healthy games with Harris out or limited. With only Pierre Strong, Kevin Harris, James Robinson, and Ty Montgomery behind him on the depth chart, Stevenson could dominate New England's backfield work this season. He sits aggressively high in our RB rankings.
Per Ben Standig of The Athletic, Commanders HC Ron Rivera wants to get RB Antonio Gibson more touches in 2023. Rivera mentions how the fourth-year back meshes with what new OC Eric Bieniemy "wants to do with the offense" moving forward. Though Gibson is coming off a season that set career lows in carries (149), rushing yards (546), and rushing TDs (3), he did log a 46-353-2 line as a pass-catcher in 2022. It's possible Bieniemy sees Gibson as someone who could play a role similar to what Jerick McKinnon did for the Chiefs last year. Should that be the case, Gibson could be an absolute steal in PPR leagues as the receiving complement to teammate Brian Robinson. It'll be worth keeping an eye on this storyline as the offseason unfolds and we get into training camp.
The Patriots selected WR Kayshon Boutte with the 10th pick of Round 6 in the NFL Draft. It's a discouraging spot for Boutte, who opened his LSU career looking like a future star. A sophomore-year ankle injury derailed him and continued to impact Boutte through his final season. He followed that with disappointing testing at the Scouting Combine. We like the potential of a fully healthy Boutte -- check his dynasty value report -- but the draft fall suggests the league doesn't believe there's a ton of upside. Don't expect an exciting spot in our dynasty WR rankings.
The Raiders have agreed to a one-year, $2.75 million deal with TE Austin Hooper, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo. The deal has a max value of $3.5 million. That's obviously not enough to guarantee a top role at the position. But Hooper's a better bet for receptions than new teammate TE O.J. Howard. Even so, he has averaged just 2.4 catches per game over the past two years, with two different teams. Neither Hooper nor Howard is likely to make a big fantasy football impact this year.
QB Jacoby Brissett is reportedly expected to sign a deal with the Commanders. The terms of the deal are unknown as of this writing. The journeyman signal-caller adds some veteran competition into the mix to battle with incumbent QB Sam Howell. Newly-minted OC Eric Bienemy will have an effective bridge option in place should Howell not win the starting QB job outright in training camp. Brissett spent last season as the Browns' starter in the absence of suspended QB Deshaun Watson, tallying 2,608 passing yards with 12 TDs and six interceptions. Though he doesn't offer a ton of fantasy appeal, Brissett exceeded 15 fantasy points in five of his 11 starts in four-point per passing TD scoring last season. We'll have to keep an eye on how this potential training camp battle shakes out over the summer to get a good idea of how much Brissett will matter for fantasy purposes. He maintains modest superflex league appeal in dynasty leagues if nothing else.
UPDATE: Brissett's contract is a one-year deal worth up to $10 million (with $8 million guaranteed).
LSU WR Kayshon Boutte ran a decent 4.5-second 40-yard dash Saturday at the NFL Scouting combine. He didn't have a great day otherwise, though. His 108-inch broach jump rated just 32nd percentile for the position, according to Pro Football Focus' Marcus Mosher. And Boutte's 29-inch vertical rate an even worse second percentile. It was a rough day, but Boutte is still a productive early draft entrant who broke out as a freshman in the SEC. Look for a full breakdown as our Dynasty Fantasy Football Value series gets rolling.
Commanders RB Antonio Gibson had surgery on Thursday to repair a fractured foot, HC Ron Rivera said. Gibson was on the injury report with a foot from Week 13 on, although it's unclear exactly when the fracture occurred. Rivera said the "hope" is that Gibson will be ready for the start of offseason workouts. We'll track his rehab.
Commanders RB Antonio Gibson (knee, foot) has been placed on IR, knocking him out for Sunday's finale vs. the Cowboys. Gibson had a few solid fantasy outings this season but was generally disappointing, finishing with 546 rushing yards and 3 TDs on 3.7 yards per carry and a 46-353-2 receiving line. He sits 30th among RBs in PPR points per game. Gibson turns 25 in June and is signed with Washington for 1 more season. He looks like no better than a RB3 in early 2023 fantasy drafts.
Commanders RB Antonio Gibson (knee, foot) didn't participate in practice on Wednesday. Fellow RB Brian Robinson (knee) also sat out. Hopefully, the pair can get back into action soon. Be sure to check back tomorrow regarding their health ahead of Week 18 vs. the Cowboys.
Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson got just 8 carries in Sunday's win over the Dolphins, trailing RB Damien Harris by 1 in the latter's return from injury. Stevenson managed 42 yards (a solid 5.3 per carry) and caught 2 of 9 targets for 9 yards. That makes 2 straight games of less than 50 total yards but his 1st time all season with a single-digit touch total in a game he didn't leave early. Stevenson will be tougher to like against the Bills in Week 18, for those playing through the end of the regular season. Harris went 9-32 rushing against the Dolphins, with 3 catches for 18 yards among 3 targets.
Patriots RB Rhamondre Stevenson (ankle) is active for today’s game vs. the Dolphins. We’re not worried about the ankle, but RB Damien Harris’ return is at least a slight ding to Stevenson’s fantasy value. RB Kevin Harris is a healthy scratch today.
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