Denver Broncos Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

CBS' Josina Anderson reports that Jets QB Zach Wilson tore the meniscus in his right knee, in addition to the bone bruise. He'll reportedly get a "trim" and is expected to miss 2-4 weeks. The longer end of that would obviously extend into the regular season. We'll see exactly when the Jets expect Wilson to return, but this is all much better than the initially feared ACL tear. If Wilson does miss regular-season games, Joe Flacco should be in line to start.

Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News reports that Jets QB Zach Wilson did not suffer ligament damage in the knee he injured Friday night. Wilson is reportedly dealing with a bone bruise, with further evaluation looking into whether he suffered meniscus damage. We'll certainly be watching for updates, but it seems like the injury isn't nearly as bad as initially feared.

Jets QB Zach Wilson is believed to have suffered an MCL sprain, per SNY’s Connor Hughes. He’ll have an MRI on Saturday, but HC Robert Salah told the media last night that Wilson's ACL is "intact." An MCL sprain would likely make the young QB questionable for Week 1. “He was in good spirits,” HC Robert Saleh said postgame. “He was fine. Frustrated, obviously. Again, he’s as good as you can be in this situation.” Fantasy owners can plan for a short-term absence right now, but we’ll see if anything additional comes from Wilson’s MRI.

Update: Via "sources," ESPN's Dianna Russini tweeted last night that "the early thought" is that Wilson "could" have suffered a PCL injury. We should know more later today.

Jets QB Zach Wilson left in the 1st quarter of Friday night's preseason opener with a leg injury. He made an awkward move at the end of the scramble and went down without any contact. Wilson headed back to the locker room with trainers. We'll update his status as soon as we know more.

Update: Wilson has a knee injury, the Jets announced.

Broncos TE Greg Dulcich has had his early training-camp time limited by a hamstring injury that he suffered during offseason work, according to Nick Kosmider of The Athletic. The rookie made it back to team drills last week, but Monday found him back on a side field. "Hamstrings are so weird; they are very difficult to get through," HC Nathaniel Hackett said. "As he goes through that, we're just making sure we're doing things the right way."

Broncos WR Tim Patrick tore his right ACL in Tuesday's practice, insider Mike Klis reports. Patrick will miss the entire 2022 season. The timing of the injury at least gives Patrick a good chance to be ready for the start of the 2023 campaign. He signed a 3-year, $34 million extension last November. We had Patrick projected for 85 targets, so this opens up a lot of potential volume for Denver's other pass catchers. WR Jerry Jeudy, WR Courtland Sutton, TE Albert Okwuegbunam and TE Greg Dulcich all get boosts in the rankings. But the biggest winner is WR K.J. Hamler, who has a clear path to the #3 job if he can make it back from last September's torn ACL and dislocated hip.

Broncos WR Tim Patrick was carted to the locker room during practice on Tuesday. Per multiple beat writers, Patrick grabbed his knee after catching a deep ball. We'll keep you posted when we learn more.

Broncos TE Greg Dulcich participated in individual drills on Monday for the first time in training camp. He had presumably been sidelined with the core injury he suffered this spring. Insider Mike Klis predicted on the Draft Sharks podcast that, although TE Albert Okwuegbunam would open the season as Denver's starter, that Dulcich would lead the group in fantasy points by season's end. We'll see if the rookie can start pushing for a role.

Bengals HC Zac Taylor said Monday that RB Samaje Perine has a “leg up” in the competition to be the 3rd-down back. Taylor also called Perine a "security blanket" while acknowledging that 2nd-year RB Chris Evans could still earn the role. The main takeaway here is that the team doesn't want to put too much on Joe Mixon's plate, despite his 3-down skill set. A Mixon injury would almost certainly lead to a timeshare.

Broncos WR K.J. Hamler has been activated from the PUP list. He spent the offseason rehabbing the torn ACL and dislocated hip he suffered last September. We'll see how Hamler fares in practice and if he's ready come Week 1. His deep speed should mesh well with QB Russell Wilson, but Hamler will struggle for reliable fantasy value if he's the #4 WR behind Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton and Tim Patrick.

Bengals RB Samaje Perine was activated from the PUP list on Wednesday. He operated as Cincinnati's #2 RB last season but will need to hold off 2nd-year RB Chris Evans for that job this summer.

Broncos WR K.J. Hamler (knee, hip) has been placed on the PUP list to start training camp. He's still rehabbing the torn ACL and dislocated hip he suffered last September. It's unclear if Hamler will be ready for Week 1, but he'll likely need an injury to Jerry Jeudy, Courtland Sutton or Tim Patrick to hit the fantasy radar this year.

The Bengals on Saturday placed RB Samaje Perine on the training camp PUP list. The team didn't reveal his injury, and a player can come off the camp PUP at any point. But it certainly doesn't help him in his competition with Chris Evans to serve as the team's #2 RB. We'll be watching that battle throughout camp.

Broncos insider Mike Klis expects TE Albert Okwuegbunam to open the season as Denver's starter but TE Greg Dulcich to potentially overtake him by the 2nd half of the season. Klis notes that Dulcich has been getting 1st-team reps from the very first day of OTAs -- rare for a rookie. "I think Dulcich will have a few more catches than Albert O when it's said and done [this season], but you might have to be patient to get there. The first 4 or 5 games I think might be Albert O," Klis told us. That prediction surely comes as a surprise for fantasy drafters, who are taking Okwuegbunam as a top-16 TE and largely letting Dulcich go undrafted. The rookie could turn out to be a gem of a late-round pick if Klis is right. We'll keep a close eye on the situation in training camp and preseason action. Check out our entire conversation with Klis, which also hit on Denver's backfield and WR corps.

Denver’s new coaching staff views RBs Javonte Williams and Melvin Gordon as “interchangeable, capable protectors and sure-handed receivers,” per The Athletic’s Nick Kosmider. “It’s kind of a similar situation to what we had in Green Bay with a speedier guy and a downhill guy,” new OC Justin Outten said. “You want to utilize those guys because it is a long season. You don’t want to bang them up. You want to be smart with them, use their strengths, put them out on the field, and make them work. We’re excited to have both those guys.” It’s further confirmation that the plan isn’t to fully unleash Williams in year 2. He still figures to be a highly efficient per-touch player, but hitting his ultimate ceiling likely hinges on whether Gordon misses time.

Cardinals DE Zach Allen revealed recently that he needed post-season ankle surgery after shredding the ligaments in a December game. "I literally had no ligaments in my ankle," he said last week, according to the Arizona Republic. "My tibia was basically floating. So, the tape was the only thing kind of holding it together." Allen said doctors put "some hardware" into the ankle, which has kept him from participating in spring practices. The 4th-year lineman says he expects to be 100% for the start of training camp and that he feels better than he did entering last year's camp. Allen doesn't appear to have high-end sack potential but can be a quality contributor for us on the tackle and pressure fronts -- especially at low draft cost.

Nick Kosmider of The Athletic considers K.J. Hamler the Denver WR that best fits Russell Wilson’s skill set. Hamler suffered a torn left ACL and a dislocated hip in Week 3 of last season. Following a smooth rehab, the speedster could fill a key role alongside one of the league’s best deep ball passers. Kosmider notes that the 3rd-year pro posted a massive 20.1 air yards per target in a limited 2021 sample. Given the crowded WR depth chart, though, Hamler’s best off as a late-round WR7/8 in best ball leagues.

Saints K Wil Lutz was cleared early this week to return to action and hit the practice field Wednesday for the 1st time in 10 months, according to the team website. Lutz missed all of last season with a core-muscle injury that required surgery. We'll watch for setbacks, but he should be ready to reclaim the New Orleans kicking job.

Ryan O'Halloran of The Denver Post says he has "flipped" to believing rookie TE Greg Dulcich will be ahead of Albert Okwuegbunam on the depth chart come Week 1. O'Halloran adds that "both players will have significant roles" but that praise from Broncos coaches since the draft factors into his expectation. This, of course, is just 1 beat writer's early opinion, well ahead of Dulcich's 1st training camp with the team. We're not altering fantasy outlooks at this point, but this is just 1 of multiple indications that a role competition is coming this summer.

Jets QB Zach Wilson — listed at 214 pounds — added weight over the offseason. "He looks beefy -- in a good way," HC Robert Saleh observed. Wilson took 44 sacks last year, 3rd-most league wide. So the added weight could be particularly helpful for his season-long durability. A much-improved supporting cast makes Wilson an enticing QB2 target.