NFL Player News

Verse (6’4/254) worked his way up from the lower levels of college football, attending Albany for his first two seasons before transferring to Tallahassee to play for the Seminoles in 2022. He wasted little time making an impact at the FBS level, posting the eighth-highest PFF pass rush grade in the Power Five (88.6) with 17.0 TFL and 9.0 sacks, though he produced an elevated 27% missed tackle rate en route to being named First Team All-ACC. The Dayton, Ohio native would go on to exceed even those lofty standards this year, creating the second-most pressures in the nation (62) with a sterling 91st percentile pass rush grade that ranked fifth overall. An ACC quarterback’s worst nightmare, Verse was responsible for an 11.7% pressure rate (4th in P5) and 21.8% Win Rate (2nd in P5) in passing situations. Verse performed the full range of tests at the combine. He ran a 1.59s 10-yard split (95th%) and 4.58s 40-yard dash (9.78s) at 254 pounds, which are breathtaking times for his size. His 31 bench reps were five more than the next closest edge in the 2024 group, and second among all Combine defenders, for an extraordinary 9.60 Relative Athletic Score. He explodes into contact and unleashes a furious bull rush that can stagger even the most rooted OTs, which sets up a devastating push-pull move. Verse will sometimes lose sight of the ball carrier and over-pursue, leaving himself vulnerable to cutbacks. Still, he has a captivating power-edge profile with verified athleticism that bears a resemblance to Boye Mafe. After watching Aaron Donald retire this offseason, the Rams wasted no time retooling their pass rush by making Verse their first round-one pick since Jared Goff in 2016.

Ulbrich was asked if Rodgers’ status as the Jets’ QB1 was on a week-to-week basis, to which he said, “No, he’s our quarterback.” We shouldn’t expect Ulbrich to say anything different. This is, after all, Aaron Rodgers, who we are talking about here. Regardless of what Ulbrich says, there’s little reason to believe Rodgers is locked in as the Jets’ starter for the team’s final five games of the season. The Jets are 3-9, and a significant portion of the blame has justifiably fallen on the veteran quarterback’s performance. Barring an unexpected change, Rodgers will get the start in Week 14 against the Dolphins, but this is situation is probably more week-to-week than Ulbrich will ever admit.

Quarterback Josh Allen attempted only 17 passes but Hollins was on the receiving end of one of two Allen passing scores, with the quarterback himself catching the other. Hollins should continue to return sporadic fantasy utility as the downfield threat in one of the league’s top offenses.

The low target and yardage totals were overshadowed by a highlight play in the third quarter, where Cooper made a stunning catch before lateraling the football to quarterback Josh Allen for the touchdown. The play will go down in history as a contributor to the only time a quarterback has thrown a touchdown, caught a touchdown, and rushed for a touchdown in the same game. Cooper continues to work his way into the offense after being acquired near the trade deadline, with his next opportunity to return meaningful counting stats coming against the Rams in Week 14.

While the 41.2% target market share from Josh Allen feels impressive, Shakir managed just 30 yards through the air on a night both teams were forced to fight through lake effect snow in Buffalo. Shakir continues to be the most reliable pass-catcher for Allen but is never going to play more than a standard slot snap rate considering his diminutive size. Up next for Shakir and the Bills are the Rams in Week 14.

10 players registered counting stats in the box score under receiving, with Knox amassing the most yardage of the bunch. Even quarterback Josh Allen got in on the receiving fun, taking a lateral from wide receiver Amari Cooper to the house from seven yards out. Either way, Knox is unlikely to return usable counting stats consistently even with Dalton Kincaid still nursing a knee issue.

Davis saw additional usage with the Bills in complete control in blizzard-like conditions, with a 65-yard touchdown scamper from starter James Cook aiding in that endeavor. Davis is unlikely to see bankable weekly volume but carries solid per-touch upside in one of the league’s top offenses.

The highlight of Cook’s evening came on a 65-yard touchdown run down the right sideline in the second quarter, which paved the way for Ray Davis to notch 11 carries of his own. Cook needed only 14 carries to surpass 100 yards on the ground after his long touchdown run, something that fantasy managers have grown to understand of Cook in Buffalo in that he is never really counted on for massive volume but always carries game-breaking upside. Cook’s next chance to return a viable fantasy week comes against the Rams in Week 14.

Allen became the first quarterback in NFL history to throw a touchdown, rush for a touchdown, and catch a touchdown in the convincing win. The receiving touchdowns go down without a reception after Allen completed a pass to Amari Cooper, who lateraled the football back to Allen after being held up at the seven. Allen did the rest as he dove to the front pylon. He would then achieve history in the fourth quarter, hitting the trifecta on an eight-yard touchdown plunge in driving snow. All and the Bills have rattled off seven consecutive wins to remain one game back of the Conference-leading Chiefs.

It was a game to be forgotten by the 49ers in what became swirling blizzard-like conditions due to lake effect in Buffalo. Furthering the dismay for the 49ers was the departure of running back Christian McCaffrey five minutes into the second quarter, who appears likely to miss the remainder of the season with a PCL injury. That could bring back the consistency to Kittle’s game the rest of the way, with his next opportunity to return a usable fantasy score coming in Week 14 against the Bears.

Samuel struggled mightily with the rest of the team in the face of blizzard-like conditions in Buffalo. The 49ers managed just 239 total yards of offense while largely struggling to move the ball, due in part to the weather and due in part to being seemingly overmatched in every area of the field. Samuel’s next chance to return a usable fantasy score will come in Week 14 against the reeling Bears.