NFL Player News

The Bills haven’t officially taken the field for Thursday’s practice, but head coach Sean McDermott announced ahead of time that Harris would be a DNP for the second-straight day. It seems unlikely Harris, who was carted off the field with a neck injury last week, will play in Week 7 barring any unexpected developments. In addition to his neck injury, he also needs to clear concussion protocol if he’s to have any chance of playing.

The Falcons’ offensive coordinator nearly parroted Bijan Robinson’s comments earlier this offseason about the Falcons’ plans to use him like the 49ers use Christian McCaffrey. Robinson is “going to play running back first and foremost,” but it sounds like there will also be plenty of attempts to get him more involved in the passing game. As a rookie, Robinson caught saw the third-most targets (86) and caught the sixth-most passes (59) of any running back last season. He finished as the RB16 in fantasy points per game but could trend closer to a high-end RB1 in an offense that’s expected to be much better with Kirk Cousins now at the helm. Any additional work in the passing game will only raise what is already a very high fantasy ceiling for Robinson entering this season.

During an interview at the American Century Classic Celebrity Golf Championship Tournament, Rodgers said his Achilles felt good throughout the offseason and during OTAs, appearing unconcerned about the injury with camp just around the corner. After playing just four snaps last season, Rodgers and the Jets hope the veteran quarterback can make it through a full season. His availability could elevate a Jets team that finished 7-10 behind the combined efforts of Zach Wilson, Trevor Siemian, and Tim Boyle. The Jets’ defense ranked third in yards allowed last season, while their offense ranked 31st in yards and 29th in points per game. The Jets have the potential to contend for a berth in the postseason, even with Rodgers leading an offense that’s close to league average. Everything appears to be trending in the right direction for the Jets heading into training camp. We’ll see how things unfold once the pads are put on.

Titans tight ends focused on their physiques this offseason; Wyatt reported in June that Chig Okonkwo likewise worked to improve his stability, in order to improve his cutting ability. A wise move, given Whyle’s incremental encroachment on Okonkwo’s 2023 role before a Week 13 knee injury landed Whyle on injured reserve. Okonkwo remains the team’s No. 1 tight end but Whyle did perform more efficiently last year, earning targets at a 25.9 percent rate while averaging 1.62 yards per route run. Okonkwo finished respective per-route averages of 18.4 percent and 1.31. Whyle will have to fully unseat Okonkwo to become re-draft relevant but should be safely stashed on dynasty benches in the meantime.

Graff notes that this may be dependent on whether or not Kendrick Bourne (knee) needs more time to recover from his torn ACL. However, he also says Polk was “a steady, reliable target in minicamp” as the rookie worked in more with the first-team offense. The Patriots drafted Polk with the No. 37 overall pick in this year’s draft. The former Washington Husky totaled 69 receptions for 1,159 and nine touchdowns in his final college season, and while it sounds like his impact in 2024 is somewhat contingent on when Bourne returns, it’s worth noting that the Patriots have one of the worst receiver rooms in the league. It’s possible Polk shows enough in camp to earn a significant role regardless of Bourne’s availability, which could set the stage for a strong rookie season. With that said, expectations should be tempered, as the Patriots have a long way to go before becoming a high-end offense for fantasy purposes.

McDaniel went on to say he has spent “zero time trying to forecast that room because I recognize supreme competition when I see it,” later suggesting he hopes to incorporate De’Von Achane in a more diverse manner in his upcoming second NFL season. Increased passing-game opportunities would help Achane return value on his late-second-round ADP but Mostert’s eighth-round ADP offers substantially more value if he can remain healthy in his age-32 season. Fourth-round rookie RB Jaylen Wright is also likely to factor in, and makes for a high-upside, late-round pick.

The Athletic’s Nick Kosmider writes that Estimé is expected to push Javonte Williams for the starting job in camp. Estimé, who was selected by the Broncos in the fifth round of this year’s draft, is a 5-foot-11, 233-pound bruiser who averaged 6.2 YPC in his three seasons at Notre Dame. Despite missing much of the team’s offseason programs, Kosmider believes he’ll have a chance to unseat Williams, the incumbent, who is a second year removed from a devastating knee injury that ended his 2022 season. Williams averaged just 3.6 YPC last season while totaling 1,002 yards from scrimmage and five touchdowns, but he should still find a role in Payton’s offense — even if it’s a reduced one. We’ll see how things play out in camp, but it will likely take an impressive performance from Estimé for him to be viewed as the Week 1 starter.

Adams, 28, was released by the Seahawks at the end of the 2023 season. The former First-team All-Pro played in 34 of a possible 67 regular season games during his four-year tenure with the team and has played in just 10 games over the last two seasons. A myriad of injuries have plagued Adams in recent years, with a quad tear ending his 2022 season in Week 1, and a concussion and knee strain limiting him to nine games in 2023. Adams earned a PFF coverage grade of 50.7 while playing on 287 coverage snaps. The former do-it-all safety, who once racked up 9.5 sacks in a season, hasn’t recorded a sack since 2020 and is far from the player he once was. Despite this, he should have plenty to offer a Titans secondary that’s undergone a major overhaul this offseason.

Judon reported to mandatory minicamp last month and isn’t considered a risk of holding out of training camp at this time. McKenna did say that “things are progressing in the right direction for an extension,” but it doesn’t sound like anything is imminent at this time. Last season, the Patriots restructured Judon’s contract for the 2023 season to guarantee him $14 million instead of the $2 million he was set to receive. It’s possible the two sides do something similar if they can’t land on a long-term extension, but there’s still time to get a deal done. Judon, who turns 32 in August, is coming off a 2023 that was shortened due to a biceps injury, but the veteran pass rusher totaled four sacks in the four games he appeared in. While the two sides appear to be in good standing with one another, it’s apparent that Judon is hoping to maximize on his value before entering the twilight of his career.

In his first game as a pro, Philips caught 6-of-9 targets for 66 yards while also returning four punts for 62 yards. The fifth-round rookie looked like an immediate impact player out of the slot but has been limited to just 13 games over two seasons due to injury. In addition to injuries, Glennon also points out that Philips lost value when he muffed away his job as a returner last season. Now, rookie Jha’Quan Jackson, who the team selected in the sixth round this spring, has a chance to unseat Philips in the slot and as a returner. Neither player would offer much fantasy upside if they make the Titans’ 53-man roster, but this is a position battle worth monitoring under a new coaching regime.

According to Reed, both O’Connell and Minshew “got off to a rough start in OTAs,” struggling with accuracy and turnovers while offering little in the way of a vertical passing game. Given the profiles of both quarterbacks and what we saw last year, this isn’t all that surprising, as O’Connell and Minshew ranked 17th and 20th in ADOT last season amongst 30 quarterbacks (min. 300 dropbacks). It was reported in June by ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler that O’Connell “probably has the slight edge” over Minshew in the Raiders’ quarterback competition, but that’s to be expected with O’Connell being the incumbent to the newly-signed Minshew. Both quarterbacks are serviceable starters, but neither should be viewed as a long-term answer at the position. Barring an unexpected breakout from either signal-caller, Reed notes that “it wouldn’t be a surprise if both Minshew and O’Connell take the field at some point this year.”