Insider Doug Kyed hears that the Chargers are "optimistic" that RB Austin Ekeler (hamstring) will be able to play in Sunday's opener vs. Washington. It's good news, but Ekeler's practice participation levels on Thursday and Friday will tell the story. Stay tuned.
Chargers RB Austin Ekeler missed Wednesday's practice with a hamstring injury. It's the 1st we've heard of it. Ekeler was at least able to work off to the side with trainers -- but his status for Sunday's opener vs. Washington is now up in the air. Check back tomorrow for another update. It's unclear how L.A. would divvy backfield work between Justin Jackson, Joshua Kelley and Larry Rountree if Ekeler is out.
Jets WR Jamison Crowder tested positive for COVID, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports. Crowder's Week 1 status is "up in the air," Pelissero adds. We'll keep an eye on the situation, but Crowder shouldn't be in your Week 1 plans.
Per Jets HC Robert Saleh, WR Jamison Crowder is day to day with a groin injury. The Jets open September 12 at Carolina, and Crowder's expected to suit up. It’s been a quiet offseason for the veteran WR, but if healthy, he figures to have a home in 3-WR sets. There’s just not much fantasy upside to chase.
The Lions signed K Austin Seibert. It looks like he'll open the season as the starter after Detroit cut Ks Zane Gonzalez and Randy Bullock on Tuesday. Seibert is a weak fantasy option on what figures to be 1 of the league's lowest-scoring offenses.
Eagles TE Zach Ertz says issues with the team have been "mended," according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo. "This is the place I want to be, this is the place I want to retire," Ertz said, speaking publicly for the 1st time since the start of training camp. "I'm moving on from everything that happened this offseason. There have been apologies." This, of course, doesn't mean that an in-season trade is out of the question. But we have to head toward Week 1 assuming Ertz will be an Eagle for the year. That obviously cuts into the weekly upside -- and floor -- for Dallas Goedert, who has moved down our TE rankings. There is room in the offense for both to be fantasy relevant, though.
The Lions released Ks Zane Gonzalez and Randy Bullock. They don't have a K on the roster now. We'll see what they do at the position, but it's not a situation to mess with in fantasy drafts.
Vikings WR K.J. Osborn is the current leader for the #3 role, according to Chad Graff of The Athletic. Dede Westbrook -- who signed just before training camp -- remains limited by his recovery from the ACL tear that ended his 2020 season in October. And Bisi Johnson went down with his own ACL tear during camp. Osborn -- a 5th-round pick last year -- has yet to see a regular-season target but got on the field as a returner in his rookie campaign. He closed out his college career with a 50-547-5 receiving line as a graduate transfer to Miami. Running 3rd among Vikings WRs isn't likely to make him fantasy relevant unless something happens to Justin Jefferson or Adam Thielen. But keep Osborn's name in mind for that possibility.
The Lions signed K Zane Gonzalez. He'll duke it out for the starting job with K Randy Bullock over the next few weeks. Avoid the situation in fantasy drafts.
The Falcons activated EDGE Dante Fowler from the COVID list Monday. He had been out since July 29. Fowler now has some catching up to do in what needs to be a bounce-back season for him. Fowler managed just 3 sacks and 8 QB hits over 14 games after signing a multi-year deal with Atlanta in free agency in 2020.
The Falcons on Thursday placed DE Dante Fowler on the COVID list. His time spent there will depend on the specifics of his situation. We'll see how that progresses, but Fowler doesn't look like a big factor for IDP drafts even at full health.
Eagles GM Howie Roseman said Wednesday that he expects TE Zach Ertz to be on Philly's roster when the season begins, according to ESPN's Tim McManus. We wouldn't expect to hear anything different from Roseman, regardless of where trade talks might be on the veteran player. The fact that Ertz hasn't gone anywhere yet, though, means we should draft as though Ertz will be an Eagle come Week 1. His continued presence would certainly affect Dallas Goedert's fantasy ceiling, but we expect the younger TE to emerge as Philly's clear leader at the position this season. Even if their target counts sit close together, Goedert is the much better bet for a deeper average target depth and for yards after the catch.
Eagles insider Howard Eskin hears that there's now a "great chance" TE Zach Ertz will be on the team for the "start of the season." That last part is noteworthy because it leaves open the possibility of an in-season trade. Still, Ertz sticking around for any number of games would hurt TE Dallas Goedert's fantasy value. In their 7 shared games together last year, Ertz out-targeted Goedert 45 to 42. We'd expect that to swing in Goedert's favor in 2021. But his chances of finishing near the top of his position in targets would be slim with Ertz to contend with.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that the Jets and WR Jamison Crowder have agreed to a renegotiated contract that will keep him with the team through this season. (Crowder would then hit free agency in spring 2022.) This would seem to be bad news for the 2021 outlook of 2nd-round pick Elijah Moore, who stands near-identical in size. But HC Robert Saleh says Moore can play any of the WR positions. So the biggest losers here might be Denzel Mims and Keelan Cole. Corey Davis clearly signed for starter money in free agency, and the Jets would have little reason to retain Crowder if they didn't view him as the top option in the slot. The upgraded WR corps lowers the target ceiling, though, for a wideout who has depended on volume to drive his fantasy value. The Jets offense will be interesting to track throughout the summer, given the bevy of changes to personnel and staff.
A source tells Jets insider Ralph Vacchiano that the team is asking WR Jamison Crowder to take a "significant" pay cut from the $10 million he's slated to make this season. Crowder has no guaranteed money left on his contract and could be released if he doesn't agree to that pay cut. The Jets, of course, drafted a natural Crowder replacement in Ole Miss WR Elijah Moore this spring. We'll see where this goes. For now, both Crowder and Moore are just late-round fliers in fantasy drafts.
Chargers RB Austin Ekeler aggravated a neck issue Sunday and appears in doubt for Thursday night's game against the Chiefs. ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that Ekeler will need further testing on the area, which had experienced "stingers" in recent weeks. The short turnaround for Week 15 obviously makes things more difficult. The Chargers might get Melvin Gordon back from his knee injury for that game. If not, they'd have to turn to rookie Justin Jackson as the backfield starter. Jackson hit Sunday still available in 57% of ESPN leagues.
NFL Network's Ian Rapoport hears that Titans QB Marcus Mariota (elbow) is not expected to play against the Jaguars today. He "has not experienced enough improvement" in that throwing elbow, according to Rapoport. So QB Blaine Gabbert gets another start in a brutal matchup. Your best bet is to avoid Tennessee's passing game today.
Titans HC Mike Vrabel said Wednesday that QB Marcus Mariota is "feeling good" and is "good to go" for this weekend's game against the Texans. Mariota was spotted throwing in the portion of practice open to the media. He said afterward that his elbow is feeling ok but that there's "still a little tingle," per insider Terry McCormick. We'll be on the lookout for more updates on Mariota's status over the next few days. For now, he looks like a risky Week 2 fantasy play.
Saints CB Marshon Lattimore is inactive for today's game against the Panthers because of the ankle sprain that limited him to just 1 day of practice this week after costing him the Week 12 game. Lattimore's absence brightens the outlook for Panthers lead WR Devin Funchess and dings the Saints' team D.
Titans QB Marcus Mariota said Wednesday that his injured hamstring feels "a lot better." He did more in practice on Wednesday than he did last week, but he still wasn't a full-go. "As the days go on, hopefully I’ll feel better and better," Mariota said. "It is just taking it one day at a time and hopefully I’ll be able to go. Hopefully towards the end of the week I’ll get more on my plate and hopefully I’ll feel comfortable to try and play on Monday.” We'll continue to track Mariota's progress and hope to have a good idea about his status by Sunday morning.
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