Cowboys WR Brandin Cooks has a sprained MCL, according to insider Clarence Hill. If that's the case, Cooks seems unlikely to play vs. the Jets this weekend. HC Mike McCarthy said that Cooks will work with the rehab group during Thursday's practice. Fantasy owners should not be counting on him in Week 2 fantasy lineups. Cooks absence would boost Michael Gallup up the WR Rankings.
Cowboys WR Brandin Cooks (knee) did not practice on Wednesday. “I feel good," he told reporters. “If I’m out there, there’s no limitation." It sounds like Cooks should be available for this weekend's game vs. the Jets, but we'll update his status again tomorrow.
Cowboys WR CeeDee Lamb caught all 4 of his targets for 77 yards in Sunday night’s Week 1 win vs. the Giants. No other Dallas offensive player caught more than 2 passes. The Pro Bowl wideout saw a red zone target sail over his head in the second quarter but otherwise didn’t have much involvement in the blowout victory. Fantasy managers hoping for a bigger game from Lamb are assuredly disappointed, but the early blocked FG TD and a 22-yard INT return for a TD in the first half made it so that Dallas didn’t have to push very hard to earn the W. Hopefully, next week’s contest vs. the Jets can be a little bit closer. An intriguing item to remember is that while TE Jake Ferguson had a quiet 2 catches for 11 yards, he led the Cowboys with 7 targets in this contest.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott completed 13 of 24 attempts for 143 passing yards without any TDs or INTs in Sunday night’s win vs. the Giants. The veteran also added another 6 yards as a rusher in Week 1. An early blocked FG TD and a 22-yard INT return for a TD each occurred in primetime action before the end of the first quarter. The fact of the matter is that Prescott didn’t need to have a massive game for Dallas to pull out the victory. Considering how big of a blowout this 40-0 game was before halftime, it isn’t easy to take much away from the contest for fantasy purposes. Prescott and company are set to square off against the Jets in Week 2.
Dalvin Cook is expected to open the season as the Jets' lead back, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. "Dalvin Cook is expected to get the bulk of the carries for the New York Jets at least during the early part of the season," Rapoport adds. "My understanding is that they'll be extremely smart and safe with" RB Breece Hall. No surprises here. Cook figures to be the more reliable fantasy option early in the season. But Hall's touches should climb throughout the year.
Jets RB Dalvin Cook is a "full go" for Monday night's opener vs. the Bills, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reports. "He's fully recovered from offseason shoulder surgery, and the early returns from last week's first practices were positive," Fowler adds. Cook is a full go from a health standpoint, but it's still unclear how big a role he'll be ready for on Monday after signing with the Jets on August 14 and practicing with the team for the first time on August 29. Cook is just a RB3 or flex option in Week 1 fantasy lineups.
Cowboys RB Rico Dowdle just might have an opportunity to help your fantasy football team. Saad Yousuf and Jon Machota, Cowboys writers for The Athletic, call Dowdle "the running back best equipped to handle the Ezekiel Elliott void as a runner." They point to his ability as both a runner and pass protector. Elliott, of course, moved on to New England this offseason after ranking 22nd among RBs in PPR scoring last year. We'd bet Yousuf and Machota aren't projecting Dowdle to lead this year's Cowboys in carries, which Elliott did last year. But we'd also bet Dallas doesn't plan to get Tony Pollard near 300 carries. Last year's Cowboys led the league with 462 RB rushes, so there's work available. Dowdle will compete with rookie Deuce Vaughn for those opportunities behind Pollard. But he outweighs Vaughn by roughly 40 pounds. So it's probably not a direct competition. Both players are going at no-risk levels in ADP. Don't be afraid to take a late shot on Dowdle, who has been with the team since arriving as an undrafted free agent in 2020.
Cowboys HC Mike McCarthy gave his early impression of new QB Trey Lance. “Very hard working. We have a quarterback meeting room area. He’s pretty much kind of taken it over,” McCarthy said via reporter Michael Gehlken. “The grease boards look like ‘A Beautiful Mind.’ We just need to work on the extra things, particularly in the area of footwork.” Lance, who projects as the QB3 behind Cooper Rush, will have plenty of time to refine his game.
RB Dalvin Cook practiced with the Jets for the first time on Tuesday. He signed a little over two weeks ago but still needed to be medically cleared from offseason shoulder surgery and was away for the birth of his first child. ESPN's Adam Schefter confirms that Cook is expected to play in the season opener vs. the Bills. How snaps are split between Cook and RB Breece Hall is one of the biggest fantasy questions of Week 1.
The Cowboys are acquiring QB Trey Lance from the 49ers for a fourth-round pick, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. We've expected a trade at least since San Francisco officially named Lance the caddy to fellow draft bust Sam Darnold. This is a somewhat surprising destination, though, given that QB Dak Prescott's entrenched and signed through 2024. That no team with more of a QB need was apparently willing to give more suggests the league doesn't believe in Lance's long-term upside either. We'll see how a new stop treats him. But any hope of a fantasy payoff for patient dynasty managers is fading.
On Tuesday, ESPN's Mike Reiss tweeted that Patriots RB Ezekiel Elliott saw "a notable uptick in work" in practice behind starter Rhamondre Stevenson. Reiss specified that Elliott received increased usage as a pass-catcher out of the backfield. Granted, this is only one report. We don't want to overreact or make any big takeaways here. The former All-Pro saw a career-low 23 targets with the Cowboys last season and likely won't be too much of a threat to Stevenson in that department. That said, we'll keep an eye on future reports should Elliott continue being utilized as a pass-catcher in practice as it could cut into the point scoring ceiling of Stevenson. He fell a smidge in our PPR RB rankings following Zeke's signing, but we still feel confident Stevenson will be the clear RB1 in this offense. Check back for further updates as we get more information.
The Patriots are unsurprisingly happy so far to have RB Ezekiel Elliott on board. (Otherwise, why would they have signed him?) Coaches have praised his football intelligence and communication with new teammates. The most noteworthy comment, though, seems like OC Bill O'Brien telling ESPN's Mike Reiss, "I do think he's a three-down back." Elliott's receiving fell way off last year, from 2.8 receptions per game in 2021 to just 1.1 in 2022. He also saw the second-fewest pass-blocking reps of his career, according to Pro Football Focus, trailing only a 2017 season in which Elliott was suspended for six games. This might be a throwaway comment from O'Brien. We'd be shocked if New England actually treated Elliott like a challenger to Rhamondre Stevenson's pass-game snaps. But we'll also keep watching for specifics on the new old guy's role. There remains plenty of separation between Stevenson and Elliott in our 2023 PPR rankings.
Cowboys QB Dak Prescott talked about the growth he's seen from second-year TE Jake Ferguson. “I think he’s close to becoming a big-time guy," Prescott said, per The Athletic's Jon Machota. "As far as a playmaker, he’s there. ... And then you see him make a great catch in that preseason game, with a back-shoulder (catch). I think that just shows you, ‘Hey, you throw it to this guy, he wants to make the play and he expects to make the play.’ I think that’s where he takes this next step from just a playmaker to becoming a big-time player in this league.” Ferguson has taken full advantage of rookie TE Luke Schoonmaker's absence for much of the offseason and is primed to enter the season as Dallas' lead TE. He's a worthwhile late-round target in fantasy drafts.
Per The Athletic’s Saad Yousuf, Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson “has done nothing that would cause him to relinquish” the starting job. Rookie Luke Schoonmaker has enjoyed “some solid moments” since returning from a foot injury, but a big early-season role isn’t likely. Consider Ferguson a deep sleeper to star on your fantasy cheat sheet.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reports that new Jets RB Dalvin Cook is still "at least a week away" from being cleared to practice after undergoing shoulder surgery in February. It sounds like Cook should be ready in time for Week 1, but the missed practice time isn't ideal as he works to settle into a new offense. We'll see when he's able to get on the field. Teammate Breece Hall, of course, remains on the PUP list.
The Jets have agreed to a one-year deal with RB Dalvin Cook. NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reports that Cook is getting "up to $8.6 million ... with the majority guaranteed." He adds that it's the largest annual average of any deal for a RB free agent this offseason. This seems to signal a few things: First, the Jets like Cook much better than any of their current RB backups and were iffy enough on that crew to make a significant upgrade. Secondly, it also indicates they want to make sure not to overwork Breece Hall in his return from the ACL tear. Hall has yet to take the field in training camp, though reports have said they expect him to be ready for the regular season. Even if that holds true, expect Cook to cut way into the available work. That moves Hall down our RB rankings and gives Cook nice contingent upside, in case Hall misses further games. The rest of the Jets' current RBs are no more than end-of-draft fliers. At least one among Michael Carter, Zonovan Knight, and Israel Abanikanda probably isn't making the regular-season roster.
The Patriots are set to sign RB Ezekiel Elliott to a one-year deal worth "up to" $6 million, NFL Network reports. We'll see about the actual details of the contract but doubt the base value is anywhere close to $6 million. Elliott's name is much bigger than his game at this point. The 28-year-old averaged a career-low 3.8 yards per carry last season, ranking 43rd among 48 qualifiers in NFL Next Gen Stats' Rush Yards Over Expected Per Attempt. His usage and production plummeted in the passing game, too. Elliott caught just 17 of 23 targets for 92 yards (5.4 YPC) and 0 TDs. The Patriots have been flirting with free-agent RBs for a while now -- seemingly in large part because depth RBs Pierre Strong and Kevin Harris have failed to emerge. The Elliott signing is more about those guys than lead RB Rhamondre Stevenson. Zeke's arrival adds some risk to Stevenson's 2023 fantasy outlook. But Stevenson was more effective by basically any metric last year -- as a runner and pass-catcher -- and should remain the Patriots' clear backfield leader. Elliott looks more like a Stevenson handcuff than standalone fantasy option. But we'll keep an eye on New England's plans.
Update: Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, the deal carries $3 million in base salary, $1 million in signing bonus, and incentives that can take it to $6 million.
Cowboys WR Jalen Tolbert is “clearly” the team’s No. 4 WR, per The Athletic’s John Machota. Tolbert caught two balls for 29 yards in the preseason opener, and he’s reportedly enjoyed a strong camp. The 2022 Round 3 pick is a name to remember in deep formats.
The Athletic's Joe Person named WR Jonathan Mingo a training camp “riser.” According to Person, the rookie showed he’s “going to be a big part of the rotation with a solid camp.” Mingo should also benefit from the strong showing by QB Bryce Young. See where Mingo stacks up in our fantasy WR rankings.
The Athletic's Jon Machota lists WR Brandin Cooks as one of the Cowboys who has stood out most in training camp. "Coaches and players have talked plenty about the added emphasis this year on the deep ball and Cooks is going to be arguably the most significant factor for that," Machota writes. "His speed is unmistakable and gives [QB Dak] Prescott added confidence in getting the ball downfield and opens things up for other receivers underneath." Cooks won't challenge WR CeeDee Lamb for the target lead. But it sounds like he's the favorite to finish second in targets, ahead of WR Michael Gallup. See where Cooks sits in our updated fantasy football WR rankings.
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