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Los Angeles Chargers Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

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.

Chargers WR Josh Palmer will miss at least four total games (three more) with his knee injury. But HC Brandon Staley hinted Wednesday that Palmer might miss more time. "He'll be out for the four weeks for sure and then we'll just see from there," Staley said. Asked if he's expecting Palmer back this season, Staley replied, "no expectations." We still don't have any details on the type or severity of Palmer's knee injury. We'll keep an eye out for that info, but Palmer is not a must-stash on fantasy benches. His absence will continue to provide a big opportunity for WR Quentin Johnston. He predictably struggled against a tough Jets secondary last week but ran a route on a season-high 95% of pass plays.

Panthers WR D.J. Chark (elbow) is inactive for tonight’s game vs. the Bears. That leaves Terrace Marshall as the No. 3 WR behind Adam Thielen and Jonathan Mingo. Marshall is certainly in play in one-game DFS contests but would be a desperation season-long fantasy start.

Panthers WR D.J. Chark (elbow) missed practice all week and is listed as doubtful for Thursday night's game vs. the Bears. His absence should elevate WR Terrace Marshall into a top-3 role. When Chark missed Week 1, Marshall ran a route on 96% of Carolina's pass plays and drew six targets for a 15.8% share. He turned that action into just two catches for 23 yards, though, and is really only in play in one-game DFS contests. Chark's absence could mean an extra target or two for WRs Adam Thielen and Jonathan Mingo.

Chargers QB Justin Herbert completed 16 of 30 passes for 126 yards with 0 TDs or INTs in Week 9’s victory over the Jets. He also added 17 rushing yards in the contest, but Herbert’s 7.1 fantasy points on Monday night are firmly his lowest in a game this season. Herbert being sacked five times doesn’t help matters either. Fantasy managers should expect him to be able to return much better production than this for the rest of the season, but don’t get too excited. The Chargers’ remaining schedule ranks fifth-hardest for QBs in adjusted fantasy points allowed. Don’t take this as an “abandon ship” warning for Herbert, though. Two of those remaining games are against the Broncos (32nd in pass defense DVOA). It’s just something to be mindful of moving forward.

Falcons HC Arthur Smith announced Monday that QB Taylor Heinicke will start again Sunday against Arizona. It's not a surprise. Heinicke played just OK in the Week 9 loss to the Vikings, completing 55.2% of his passes for 268 yards, 1 TD, and 1 INT. His lone score came on a short throw that TE Jonnu Smith took 60 yards for the TD. Heinicke looks interesting for Week 10, though, if you need a streaming QB. He'll face a Cardinals defense that has been sixth most friendly to QB scoring by our adjusted fantasy points allowed. Arizona also ranks just 31st in pass-defense DVOA. Check back Tuesday afternoon (and beyond) to see where Heinicke settles in our Week 10 QB rankings. QB Desmond Ridder does remain stashable in superflex leagues -- if you can afford the spot. Heinicke's no lock to keep the job the rest of the way if his coach is announcing the starter one week at a time.

Falcons QB Taylor Heinicke completed 21 of 38 passes for 268 yards with 1 TD and INT apiece in Week 9 vs. the Vikings. His 14.7 fantasy points in this contest aren’t remarkable, though they were passable enough to finish as a high-end QB2 this week. Between 2021-22, Heinicke averaged 13.5 fantasy points per game in 25 games played with the Commanders, so these are the sorts of results that are reasonable for fantasy managers to expect. Next week, he’ll face a Cardinals defense that ranks as the sixth-easiest matchup for QBs per our adjusted fantasy points allowed. Heinicke will be in the deep-league streaming discussion for Week 10.

Ravens RB Gus Edwards rewarded you with a pair of TDs if you started him Sunday against the Seahawks. But he totaled just 5 touches in the lopsided victory. Edwards sat tied with RBs Keaton Mitchell and Justice Hill at 4 carries when the first half ended. He then ran for 42 yards on the first play of the second half but never touched the ball again after that. There's been no indication Edwards got hurt in the game. Baltimore kicked a FG at the end of that drive to go up 20-3. So perhaps the Ravens simply chose to rest him after that. Edwards missed Wednesday's practice with a toe issue before putting in full workouts the next two days. His second-half inactivity against Seattle allowed both Hill (13) and Mitchell (9) to finish the game with more carries. We'll watch for any revelation of backfield plans going forward. No Baltimore RB looks attractive for a Week 10 matchup with the Browns. But Edwards should remain helpful to fantasy lineups beyond that.

Panthers WR D.J. Chark (elbow) is active for today’s game vs. the Colts. He only got in limited practices on Thursday and Friday, so the elbow could certainly be a factor today. Chark would be a high-risk Week 9 fantasy start.

The Chargers have placed WR Josh Palmer (knee) on IR. He’ll miss at least the next four games, giving rookie Quentin Johnston a chance to cement a permanent role. WR Jalen Guyton was activated from the PUP list in a corresponding move. He can be left on waiver wires.

Panthers WR D.J. Chark (elbow) is expected to play vs. the Colts today, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Chark only got in limited practices on Thursday and Friday, so it's safe to assume that he won't be at 100% today. Chark would be a risky Week 9 fantasy start.

Chargers WR Josh Palmer (knee) is out for Monday night's game vs. the Jets. That will pretty much force the Chargers to put rookie WR Quentin Johnston in an every-down role. Palmer's absence obviously makes Johnston a better Week 9 fantasy bet, but he's still a shaky play against the league's top-ranked WR defense. It'll be WRs Derius Davis and Simi Fehoko behind WRs Keenan Allen and Johnston.

Ravens RB Gus Edwards (toe) is not listed on the final Week 9 injury report. He put in full practices on Thursday and Friday and should be ready for his usual role in this weekend’s game vs. the Seahawks.

Panthers WR D.J. Chark (elbow) is listed as questionable for this weekend’s game vs. the Colts. He only got in limited practices on Thursday and Friday. A very fringey fantasy option to begin with, Chark shouldn’t be in Week 9 lineups. If he’s out or limited on Sunday, it could mean more action for WR Jonathan Mingo.

Chargers WR Josh Palmer (knee) did not practice on Thursday. He battled through this injury last week but managed just three catches for 24 yards on a deflated 68% snap rate. Between the knee and a matchup vs. the Jets' top-ranked WR defense, Palmer is shaping up as a shaky Week 9 fantasy play.

Panthers WR D.J. Chark (elbow) returned to a limited practice on Thursday. That should put him on track to play vs. the Colts this weekend, but we'll see how Chark is listed on tomorrow's final injury report.

Ravens RB Gus Edwards (toe) returned to a full practice on Thursday. He'll be ready to rock for this weekend's game vs. the Seahawks.

Panthers WR D.J. Chark (elbow) did not practice on Wednesday. No word yet on whether he's in danger of missing this weekend's game vs. the Colts. Chark's absence would likely elevate WR Terrace Marshall into something close to a full-time role.

Ravens RB Gus Edwards (toe) did not practice on Wednesday. He seemed to make it out of last weekend's game just fine, so this is likely more of a rest day after handling 21 carries in the win over the Cardinals. We'll see if Edwards gets back on the field tomorrow.

Falcons HC Arthur Smith announced Wednesday that QB Taylor Heinicke will start Sunday against the Vikings. It's not a shocking move after the team pulled QB Desmond Ridder from the Week 8 loss to the Titans. Ridder has largely struggled outside of a 329-yard passing effort in the Week 5 win over Houston. Since that game, he has tossed just 2 TD passes vs. 3 INTs across three contests, while also taking a sack on nearly 10% of dropbacks and losing 4 fumbles. Heinicke went an OK 12-of-21 (57.1%) for 175 yards (8.3 per attempt) after taking over against Tennessee. His 9.7 average target depth in that contest -- according to Pro Football Refernce -- was about 2 yards deeper than Ridder's season rate of 7.8. Pro Football Focus credits Heinicke with a career 8.8-yard average depth of target and 9.2-yard aDOT with the Commanders last season. Heinicke's career 63.7% completion rate comes in short of Ridder's (64.8%), and we've seen enough to know he won't bring consistent efficiency. But a daring downfield thrower could boost the fantasy production of Falcons WR Drake London and TE Kyle Pitts ... if Arthur Smith will allow the offense to exploit those skills. (And assuming London's groin injury doesn't linger, of course.) We're not significantly upgrading our outlooks for any Falcons offensive pieces on this switch. But a move away from Ridder at least allows for some optimism. We'll see whether London's able to play this week -- and then how Heinicke fares in his first Atlanta start. The Minnesota matchup looks fairly neutral for Falcons passing.

Chargers QB Justin Herbert completed 31 of 40 passes for 298 yards with 3 TDs in Week 8’s victory over the Bears. After a string of struggles over his last three outings, including throwing 3 INTs in that span, Herbert’s 24 fantasy points are his highest output since Week 3 vs. the Vikings. He’ll be a solid QB1 option in Week 9 vs. the Jets.

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