Washington Commanders Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Commanders WR Terry McLaurin tied WR Curtis Samuel for the team target lead (8) in Sunday's win over the Packers. That marked the 1st time this season that McLaurin didn't trail Samuel, coinciding with the 1st start for QB Taylor Heinicke in place of Carson Wentz. McLaurin caught 5 balls for 73 yards and a TD, 1 of 2 Heinicke threw. Samuel also caught 5 balls for 53 yards and added 26 rushing yards on 5 carries. Washington heads to Indy in Week 8.

Commanders RB Brian Robinson Jr. carried 20 times in Sunday's win over the Packers but managed pedestrian 73 yards (3.7 per rush). Robinson added 2 catches for 13 yards on 2 targets, his first 2 of the season. RB Antonio Gibson chimed in 59 yards on 10 carries (5.9 per rush) and went 3-18-1 receiving on 4 targets while playing just 6 fewer snaps than Robinson. J.D. McKissic got on the field for just 12 snaps, catching neither of his 2 targets and rushing 12 time for 4 yards. Washington gets matchups with the Colts and Vikings the next 2 weeks, neither of which has boosted RB production so far this season.

Chargers RB Austin Ekeler delivered a big receiving line in Sunday's loss to the Seahawks. He caught all 12 of his targets for 96 yards and 1 of QB Justin Herbert's 2 TD passes. Ekeler added a 9-31-1 rushing line, handling 75% off the team's RB carries for the game. WR Mike Williams posted a strong 7-86-1 receiving line on 9 targets before hurting his right ankle. TE Gerald Everett added 5-63 receiving on a matching 9 looks.

Panthers LB Frankie Luvu (shoulder) is active for today's game against the Buccaneers. He missed the past 2 with the injury. CB Jaycee Horn (ribs) is inactive. CB Donte Jackson (ankle) is active.

Commanders TE John Bates (hamstring) is active for today’s game vs. the Packers. He figures to split TE duties with Cole Turner. Avoid the situation in fantasy lineups.

Panthers LB Frankie Luvu (shoulder) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Buccaneers. He finished the week with a full practice and seems on track to play.

Falcons LB Mykal Walker (groin) is off the injury report after putting in 2 full practices to close out the week. Go ahead and get him back into IDP lineups.

The Saints have ruled CB Marshon Lattimore (abdomen) out for Thursday night's game against the Cardinals. It'll be the 2nd straight game he has missed. CB Bradley Roby filled in against the Bengals and allowed a 129.5 passer rating on balls thrown his way, according to Pro Football Focus. Lattimore's absence is good news Arizona WR DeAndre Hopkins, who will make his season debut after serving a 6-game PED suspension.

Cardinals TE Zach Ertz tied WR Rondale Moore for the team lead with 10 targets in Sunday's loss to the Seahawks. He caught a team-high 7 passes for a team-leading 70 yards. Moore caught 6 balls for 49 yards. WR Marquise Brown garnered 9 looks, catching 5 for 68 yards. RB Eno Benjamin and WR A.J. Green combined for the remaining 7 targets.

Falcons QB Marcus Mariota went 13-of-14 passing for 129 yards and 2 TDs in Sunday's win over the 49ers. He also ran for 50 yards and a TD on 6 attempts. The San Francisco matchup looked worse ahead of time than any other opponent before the Week 14 bye. So Mariota is potentially usable at any point during that stretch.

The Saints have ruled CB Marshon Lattimore (abdomen) out for Sunday's game against the Bengals. CB Paulson Adebo (knee) and S Marcus Maye (rib) are questionable. Lattimore's absence will be good news for Ja'Marr Chase.

Commanders TE John Bates was knocked out of Thursday night's game vs. the Bears with a hamstring injury before seeing a target. That left TE duties to Cole Turner, who finished with 2 catches on 2 targets for 23 yards. We'll see if Bates and/or TE Logan Thomas (calf) make it back for Week 7.

NFL Network reports that Commanders RB Brian Robinson will start tonight's game against the Bears and serve as the "lead back." That's not a shocking move after he led Washington in carries in his 1st appearance last week. But it's good to get confirmation that Robinson will likely lead the position in playing time. We'd still bet on J.D. McKissic leading Commanders RBs in targets. Antonio Gibson is now rendered to mere handcuff status (and far from a "must keep"). Robinson still doesn't sit high in our Week 6 rankings, but the news raises his floor if he makes sense for your lineup.

Panthers LB Frankie Luvu (shoulder) put in a full practice Wednesday. That bodes well for his chances of returning after missing Sunday's loss to the 49ers. We'll watch to confirm that.

49ers WR Deebo Samuel mustered only 2 catches for 20 yards in Week 5. He added a score, but the story here was strong coverage from CB Jaycee Horn, who eventually departed in the 3rd quarter with a hip injury. Samuel handled only 2 carries (for 12 yards) and witnessed a sharp decline in his backfield snaps. Starting in Week 1, his RB snaps have gone: 9, 11, 8, 8, 1. Samuel will look for more in a positive Week 6 matchup at Atlanta.

Commanders rookie RB Brian Robinson checked in 3rd among the team's RBs in playing time in his 1st NFL action Sunday, but he immediately claimed the lead in carries. Robinson rushed 9 times for 22 yards in Sunday's loss to the Titans, tripling Antonio Gibson's 3 carries (for 6 yards). Gibson added 3 catches for 33 yards among 4 targets but also trailed J.D. McKissic in playing time and targets. McKissic caught 5 balls for 37 yards among 7 looks, which ranked 2nd on the team. Gibson looks like no more than a handcuff going forward -- and a weak one at that. Washington's running game hasn't been very good so far, and Gibson would still have to share receiving work with McKissic even if Robinson were to go down again. As for the rookie, we'd bet on his role growing from here. We'll see just how much receiving work he can claim. No Washington RB looks truly attractive for fantasy use at the moment.

Saints CB Marshon Lattimore left in the 4th quarter of Sunday's game against the Seahawks with an abdominal injury. We'll see about his status leading up to a Week 6 meeting with the Bengals.

Falcons LB Mykal Walker left Sunday's loss to the Buccaneers early in the 2nd half with a groin injury. "Right now, I'm feeling good," he said after the game, per D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "I should be ready to play next week." Walker did add that he was headed for further testing of the injury Monday. We'll see about his status leading up to Sunday's matchup with the 49ers.

Chargers RB Austin Ekeler racked up 173 yards on 16 carries in Sunday's narrow victory at Cleveland. He added 4 catches fore 26 yards, scoring TDs on a run and a reception. That makes 5 TDs over the past 2 games for Ekeler, who even ceded a 5-yard rushing score to RB Joshua Kelley against the Browns. Kelley totaled 49 yards on 10 rushes, plus 33 more on 2 receptions. RB Sony Michel barely played, getting on the field for just 2 snaps.

Panthers LB Frankie Luvu (shoulder) and S Xavier Woods (hamstring) are inactive for today's game against the 49ers.