Tennessee Titans Fantasy Football News | Shark Bites

Titans WR DeAndre Hopkins (ankle) missed his second straight practice on Thursday. We haven't heard anything about this ankle issue, so it's possible that Hopkins is just getting some mid-week rest. But check back tomorrow to see how he's listed on the final injury report for this weekend's game vs. the Chargers.

Titans WR DeAndre Hopkins (ankle) did not practice on Wednesday. He seemed to make it through Week 1 unscathed, so our guess is that this was more of a rest day. Check back tomorrow for another update on Hopkins' status for Sunday's game vs. the Chargers.

Cowboys RB Tony Pollard logged 14 carries for 70 rushing yards and 2 TDs in Week 1’s win against the Giants. He also added a pair of catches on 3 targets for 12 receiving yards. This game got away from the Giants quickly, so fantasy managers should be glad that Pollard got plenty of points before the Cowboys ultimately took their foot off the gas by the fourth quarter. Rookie Deuce Vaughn and Rico Dowdle split backup RB duties, each receiving 6 carries in the victory. Pollard will look to continue his success again in Week 2 vs. the Jets.

Titans WR Treylon Burks drew an uneventful 3 targets in Sunday's loss to the Saints, trailing WR DeAndre Hopkins, WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, and RB Tyjae Spears. But Burks played more offensive snaps than any skill-position player besides QB Ryan Tannehill. His 57 snaps led Hopkins by 8. Burks also ran one more route than Hopkins, despite recently returning from a knee injury. Burks will obviously need to turn the playing-time edge into more targets before we can put him in fantasy lineups. But these numbers make Burks' opener look better than his receiving stats do.

Titans WR DeAndre Hopkins drew a target on 38.2% of QB Ryan Tannehill's 34 pass attempts in Sunday's season-opening loss at New Orleans. He caught 7 of 13 targets for a mere 65 yards. WR Nick Westbrook-Ikhine ranked second on the team in each category, with 7 targets, 4 receptions, and 58 yards. WR Treylon Burks drew just 3 targets, catching two for 18 yards. Hopkins should be an easy start for a Week 2 home date with the Chargers -- and would continue to be if the target distribution remains similar. Burks belongs on fantasy benches until he proves otherwise.

Jaguars WR Calvin Ridley had a big opener in every way. He posted big numbers: 8 catches, 101 yards, and a score. And he saw big volume: 11 targets for a 34.4% share. Ridley got open at will against a shaky Colts secondary and looked explosive after the catch. He's in for a big fantasy season and gets plus matchups the next three weeks vs. the Chiefs, Texans, and Falcons.

NFL Network's Tom Pelissero hears that the Cowboys are looking to get RB Tony Pollard 18-20 touches vs. the Giants tonight. That's more than enough for him to return RB1 production. "We'll also see Rico Dowdle some on third downs, and they do have packages in the game plan for rookie Deuce Vaughn," Pelissero adds.

Titans WR Treylon Burks (knee) put in a full week of practice and isn’t listed on the final Week 1 injury report. It looks like he’s ready for a full workload vs. the Saints on Sunday.

Titans WR Treylon Burks (knee) was a full-go in Wednesday's practice. He'll play in this weekend's opener vs. the Saints -- and is seemingly ready for his usual workload. That puts Burks in the WR4 mix.

The Titans are sending a 2025 seventh-round pick to the Patriots for K Nick Folk, according to NFL Network. That moves last year's No. 8 kicker in total fantasy points to a negative situation. Randy Bullock ranked last among regular kickers in fantasy points per game as the Titans' primary guy last year, despite missing only three FG attempts and going perfect on extra points. You can find the aftermath of this bombshell in our fantasy kicker rankings.

Titans WR Treylon Burks (knee) returned to practice on Monday. He'd been sidelined since suffering what was reported as a sprained LCL on August 16. He now has a little less than two weeks to gear up for the season opener. Burks would be a risky fantasy play in that one, but he remains a high-upside fantasy stash.

The Athletic's Joe Rexrode recently wrote that Titans rookie RB Tyjae Spears "is going to matter" to the offense in 2023. Rexrode shares that Spears "will start the season as the third-down back" and perhaps eventually "warrant some carries and pop up in some creative looks" as part of a tandem with starter Derrick Henry. This is a notable read on the Titans' backfield, considering a second RB has yet to make a strong impression in the Henry era. Since becoming a full-time starter in 2018, Henry has led all NFL RBs in carries (1,464) and stayed above a 77.6% share of Titans RB carries in the last four seasons. Fantasy managers should still treat Spears as a handcuff for now, but there's some late-round intrigue should he emerge with a small pass-catching role. Dynasty managers must also remember Henry is set to reach free agency in 2024. See where the Titans' backs appear in our current RB rankings.

Titans HC Mike Vrabel shared on Saturday that he expects TE Chig Okonkwo to return to practice this coming week. The second-year player has been held out due to an undisclosed injury sustained on Tuesday. This news indicates the strong possibility that he'll be healthy to begin the regular season. Despite the free agent addition of WR DeAndre Hopkins, Okonkwo should still carry some quality fantasy value as a low-end TE1/high-end TE2 in 2023. We'll monitor this situation and update as more information becomes available. See where Okonkwo appears in our current TE rankings.

Titans HC Mike Vrabel said Friday after the team's final preseason game that he hasn't seen enough yet to decide who will back up QB Ryan Tannehill. Malik Willis played nearly all of the game against New England. Will Levis has missed the past two games with a minor thigh injury. "As it stands now, with Will's availability, and we'll get him back this week," Vrabel said. "But I thought that Malik took a big step yesterday. Unfortunately, you have the turnovers, but there was a lot of cool stuff that happened after that. ... Malik has to make some better decisions and we'll see where Will's at this week." It seems like Tannehill is the only Tennessee QB worth paying attention to for 2023. We'll see who hits the season as No. 2 for dynasty and superflex purposes.

Titans WR Kyle Philips is expected to miss about six weeks with a sprained MCL, insider Paul Kuharsky reports. That'll knock Philips out for the first few games of the season. He was seemingly in line to be Tennessee's starting slot receiver but wasn't a legitimate fantasy option.

Titans rookie QB Will Levis warmed up ahead of Saturday's preseason game against the Vikings but sat out the contest because of a lower-body injury sustained in practice earlier in the week. The fact that they had him test it ahead of the game points to the issue being minor. Missing the game likely didn't help Levis in his competition with Malik Willis for the No. 2 role. Willis did nothing special with his opportunity, completing 10 of 17 passes for just 85 yards (5.0 per attempt). He threw for 1 TD and 1 INT. Willis also ran for 91 yards on 11 carries. That, of course, would be his primary avenue to fantasy upside if pressed into regular-season duty. Willis has seemed to be trending at least slightly ahead of Levis for the backup job to date. He's an interesting late pick in superflex fantasy football drafts.

Chargers LB Kenneth Murray has looked like a bust through three NFL seasons, after the team drafted him in Round 1 in 2020. The Chargers declined the fifth-year option on Murray's rookie contract this April. But new DC Derrick Ansley is hopeful. “This is really going to be the year, I think, he can break out,” Ansley told The Athletic's Daniel Popper. New LBs coach Jeff Howard also made a point of connecting with Murray early, and they've made a point to simplify Murray's duties within the scheme. The LB, meanwhile, is coming off his first full, healthy offseason since entering the pros. That can only help. And veteran LB Eric Kendricks has reportedly mentored Murray since arriving as a free-agent this offseason. Murray should be so far down IDP draft boards -- likely even going undrafted in many leagues -- that he carries only upside as a fantasy prospect. We've added him to our IDP rankings after initially leaning toward rookie Daiyan Henley as the likely starter next to Kendricks.

Titans WR Treylon Burks suffered merely a LCL sprain in his left knee Wednesday. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reports that Burks "should only miss a few weeks." That seems like good news vs. what could have been, based on reports he left on a cart and wasn't putting weight on the leg. That vague timeline could give him a shot to start the regular season on time. We'll keep watching for more specifics on when Tennessee expects him back. Burks will likely still make sense in WR4 range of fantasy football drafts. Check our 2023 fantasy football rankings to see where he lands.

Titans WR Treylon Burks left the field Wednesday with the help of trainers, who were "holding his left knee," according to ESPN's Turron Davenport. Titans reporter Paul Kuharsky added that Burks was putting no weight on the leg as he got onto a cart to leave the sideline and holding his upper calf. We'll obviously be watching this situation closely for updates.

NFL Network's Stacey Dales reports that the Titans will start QB Malik Willis in the preseason opener against the Bears on Saturday night. But she adds that Willis and Will Levis will alternate "every few series" throughout the game. That setup indicates that Willis is slightly ahead of Levis but that they're clearly competing for the No. 2 role behind Ryan Tannehill. It's a particularly interesting spot because Tannehill is 35 and in the final year of his contract. If Tennessee struggles this year -- which certainly seems possible -- the team could turn to a younger option on a trial basis. Levis has been going well ahead of Willis in superflex drafts this offseason. Tannehill is the only Tennessee QB we're considering outside of superflex best ball tournaments and dynasty leagues. Even he sits low in our 2023 QB rankings, though.