An MRI confirmed a torn ACL for Ravens RB Gus Edwards, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. So Edwards, like teammates J.K. Dobbins and Justice Hill, will miss the entire 2021 season. That leaves Baltimore with RBs Ty'Son Williams and Trenton Cannon on the active roster and RBs Le'Veon Bell and Devonta Freeman on the practice squad. Williams is a good bet to lead the way in Monday night's opener vs. the Raiders. We'll see where the backfield goes beyond that.
Ravens RB Gus Edwards left practice Thursday after suffering a "potentially serious" knee injury, according to NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that the team fears he tore an ACL. Baltimore actually cut the practice short after Edwards and CB Marcus Peters injured knees on consecutive plays. Both are heading in for testing, and we'll certainly keep watch for updates. If the testing confirms that fear, Edwards would be the 3rd RB the Ravens have lost for the season, following J.K. Dobbins (ACL) and Justice Hill (Achilles'). That would leave Ty'Son Williams and Le'Veon Bell to potentially lead the backfield in Week 1 and beyond. Baltimore also recently signed RB Trenton Cannon, but he's more of a special-teamer. Grabbing Bell off waivers where possible suddenly seems like a solid plan.
Jaguars WRs D.J. Chark (finger) and Marvin Jones (shoulder) aren't even listed on the Week 1 injury report. Both guys are ready to go for Sunday's opener vs. the Texans. They'll join Laviska Shenault as Jacksonville's top 3 WRs.
Jaguars WR D.J. Chark (finger) appeared to be at 100% in Monday's practice, according to The Florida Times-Union's John Reid. HC Urban Meyer was reportedly happy with Chark's pass catching coming off that broken finger. He's set to join Laviska Shenault and Marvin Jones as Jacksonville's top 3 WRs in Sunday's opener vs. the Texans.
Jaguars HC Urban Meyer said Tuesday that WRs D.J. Chark (finger) and Marvin Jones (shoulder) will be ready for the season opener. Chark has been out since undergoing surgery in early August. Jones hurt his shoulder last week. We'll keep an eye on both guys' participation levels when Jacksonville starts releasing practice reports next week.
It was easy to write off Falcons TE Hayden Hurst after the team drafted Kyle Pitts 4th overall and declined the 5th-year option on Hurst's rookie contract (making this the final year on his deal). But Matt Urben of Falcons Wire says to "look for Hurst to be a featured player" in the offense this year, which is expected to deploy multiple TEs as part of the plan to replace WR Julio Jones' production. We'll have to see just what Hurst's role looks like, but we saw HC Arthur Smith use Jonnu Smith and Anthony Firkser simultaneously with last year's Titans. The biggest draw to Hurst is an ADP that will find him undrafted in most fantasy football leagues.
According to multiple reports, the Ravens are assuming RB J.K. Dobbins will miss the season because of the left knee injury he suffered Saturday night. The 2nd-year back is having an MRI to confirm the diagnosis today, but NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that the team believes Dobbins tore the ACL. His loss obviously boosts Gus Edwards, Justice Hill and Ty'Son Williams. Don't be surprised, though, if Baltimore adds another RB as rosters get trimmed down around the league.
Update: Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, Dobbins is officially out for the season with an ACL tear.
The Athletic's Jeff Zrebiec confirms that Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins has a "potentially serious" knee injury. "At this point, anything short of Dobbins being declared out for the season Sunday would have to be considered a win for the Ravens," Zrebiec adds. It's speculation based on reactions from Dobbins, Ravens players and Ravens coaches on Saturday -- but this doesn't look good. We should get a more concrete diagnosis on Dobbins after he gets his MRI on Sunday. If you're drafting in the meantime, we wouldn't consider him until the double-digit rounds.
"The belief among Ravens powers that be is that the [J.K.] Dobbins knee injury is indeed serious," insider Michael Silver tweeted on Saturday night. That's the only update we've seen on Dobbins since he had to be helped off the field and carted back to the locker room after hurting his left knee in Baltimore's final preseason game. Stay tuned.
Ravens RB J.K. Dobbins injured his left knee in Saturday's preseason game. He was in obvious pain and needed assistance to get off the field and into the medical tent. He was eventually carted back to the locker room. We'll update Dobbins' status as soon as we know more.
The Athletic's Daniel Popper believes rookie Josh Palmer has a "stranglehold" on the Chargers' #3 WR job. "The Chargers found a smart and savvy pro-ready player in Palmer," Popper writes. "Jalen Guyton and Tyron Johnson provide more speed than Palmer. But I expect Palmer to see more playing time based on his production this summer." The 3rd-round rookie had a nice debut in the preseason opener, catching 6 balls for 36 yards on just 17 snaps. We'll continue to monitor this situation, but Palmer is worth a look at the tail end of fantasy drafts.
Chargers HC Brandon Staley said Thursday that QB Justin Herbert won't play at all in the preseason. That's not necessarily good or bad news. It does mean that we won't get to see him at all in the new offense until the regular season. We have Herbert below the top tier (or top 2?) in our QB rankings. With just 1 year behind him and a new coaching staff in place, there's more risk than we see in the QBs above him. But Herbert, of course, also showed us plenty of upside as a rookie.
Jaguars WR D.J. Chark had surgery to repair a "minor" break in his hand, HC Urban Meyer announced. Meyer expects Chark to be ready for the start of the season. We'll see when he's able to get back on the field. But Chark will now miss valuable practice reps in a new offense and with a new QB. We nudged him down the WR rankings -- and nudged Marvin Jones up.
Ravens RB Gus Edwards has been activated from the COVID list. He missed the first 10 days of training camp after contracting the virus. We'll keep an eye on Edwards, but he should be ready to rock come Week 1 as the 1B to J.K. Dobbins' 1A.
Eagles WR Jalen Reagor could use a strong training camp after a lackluster debut season, but it doesn't sound like things are going particularly well for him. The Athletic's Bo Wulf says Reagor has been "underwhelming" so far and hasn't capitalized on any extra opportunity afforded by DeVonta Smith's knee sprain. "Travis Fulgham, Quez Watkins and John Hightower have each made more splashy plays since Smith's absence, and J.J. Arcega-Whiteside and Greg Ward have been steadier," Wulf writes. He adds that it's "hard to imagine" Reagor not claiming a starting spot come the regular season, but we'd obviously like to hear better things about the 2020 first-round pick. Reagor belongs in the later rounds of drafts -- where his ADP has been so far -- until something changes.
Tori McElhaney of The Athletic reports that Falcons TE Hayden Hurst has shed 18 pounds vs. last year's playing weight (down to 250). Hurst -- who had his 5th-year option declined by the team this offseason -- still appears headed for a significant role in the offense. McElhaney writes: "Because of [Arthur] Smith's scheme, there are just as many opportunities for Hurst as [Kyle] Pitts. And if training camp is any indicator, we'll see both of them on the field together a lot." That's worth keeping in mind as you navigate reserve TE territory in best-ball drafts. Hurst sits just 27th among TEs in current FFPC best-ball ADP.
Ravens RB Gus Edwards has COVID and will miss the 1st 10 days of camp, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Edwards’ absence is good news for Justice Hill and any other Baltimore RB hoping to raise his profile. It can’t hurt J.K. Dobbins’ standing either. We’re not adjusting our fantasy outlook for Edwards or Dobbins at this point, though
The Ravens and RB Gus Edwards have agreed to a 2-year, $10 million extension, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. He's now signed through the 2023 season and is the league's 15th-highest-paid RB in terms of average annual salary. It's a well-deserved raise for a guy who's averaged 5.2 yards on 414 carries over his first 3 NFL seasons. Edwards has ranked 19th, 20th and 28th in Elusive Rating those 3 years. He'll continue to play a bigger role for the Ravens than J.K. Dobbins owners would like to see.
New Jaguars HC Urban Meyer didn't like WR D.J. Chark's 2020 film. "I just didn't like his size. His strength, I just thought, was way below average, way below what we expect from our receivers, and he was told that," Meyer said. "He's a big guy that played little last year, and that can't happen." Chark responded by putting on 7 pounds this offseason. "I love the challenge," Chark said. "I love talking to Coach Meyer. He's a competitor. He's going to push me." And how does Meyer feel now? "I love where he's at." We'll see exactly how Chark fits into Meyer's offense this summer, but the QB upgrade in Trevor Lawrence gives Chark a shot to have a nice bounce-back season.
Ravens OC Greg Roman believes RB J.K. Dobbins can be a "viable weapon in the passing game ... That's something we're working on diligently every day -- a threat out of the backfield." We don't doubt that Dobbins can be an asset as a pass-catcher. He tallied 71 receptions over 3 seasons at Ohio State. The question is whether the Ravens will actually get him more action in that department. Dobbins saw just 24 targets last year -- and Ravens RBs combined for just 50. That number checked in at 51 back in 2019, QB Lamar Jackson's first full season as starter. For perspective, 17 RBs topped 51 targets by themselves last year. So file this under "believe it when we see it." If Dobbins truly did take on a significant passing-game role this season, though, he'd be a strong bet for a RB1 finish.
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