NFL Player News

Pacheco was never really at risk of missing Sunday’s contest. Despite being listed with two injuries, Pacheco was a full participant and will be good to go. Jerick McKinnon (groin), on the other hand, is listed as questionable.

Dehner noted that Gesicki could be a mismatch for slower safeties and small slot corners while operating out of the slot. He named Gesicki as his fantasy breakout candidate for the Bengals. Gesicki’s career has been on the ropes for the past two years, with both Mike McDaniel’s Dolphins and the Patriots failing to find a role for him. Before McDaniel arrived in Miami, Gesicki strung together two productive seasons as the Dolphins’ big slot. He topped 700 yards in back-to-back seasons and even caught 73 passes in 2022. Gesicki ran over 60 percent of his routes from the slot in those two seasons. A return to his pseudo-receiver role bodes well for Gesicki’s fantasy outlook, though fantasy managers should still treat him as a flier and a TE2 in early drafts.

According to a report released by the California Highway Patrol, Addison was found asleep behind the wheel of his Rolls Royce, blocking a lane of traffic on I-105. After the police conducted an investigation for DUI, they decided to arrest Addison and released him from custody a few hours later. The Vikings said they are aware of the arrest and “are currently gathering information regarding the incident.” It’s a bad way for Addison to close out the offseason before reporting to training camp on July 23, as he looks to build on a rookie season that featured 70 catches for 911 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Pitts logged positional top-six perimeter (26.4 percent) and slot (58.5 percent) rates, with a bottom-four in-line rate (14.9 percent) last year, per PFF, so the news comes as affirming rather than breaking. While his slot rate is already sky-high, increased opportunities against linebackers and safeties would be positive. Perhaps the biggest item of note in Ledbetter’s report, HC Zac Robinson expressed excitement over Pitts’ blocking potential. Improved run-blocking would allow the Falcons to keep Pitts on-field for the position’s high-value play-action snaps, keeping defenses guessing about his role pre-snap. Fantasy managers should monitor Pitts’ reported run-blocking development through training camp.

This has long been the expected outcome for Higgins, who signed his franchise tender last month. The sides never appeared remotely close to a deal, and it seems all but certain Higgins will be allowed to reach free agency and walk next March.

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 will show 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.