NFL Player News

Sanders got the start with Tommy Tremble out for this game and easily played more snaps than backup tight end Jordan Matthews. He simply couldn’t command targets with four Carolina receivers seeing at least four looks. Given the dismal state of the Panthers’ passing attack, Sanders isn’t on the fantasy radar heading into Week 2.

According to PFF, Downs has logged 1,561 slot snaps and 448 perimeter snaps over the course of his career. Per Colts coach Shane Steichen, the plan this offseason was to get Downs “some reps on the outside” in spring practices “and see where that goes.” Moore opines, “gone are the days of Downs being used as only a slot receiver.” It would be nice to have Steichen declare this with equal enthusiasm, but come training camp, we will find out for sure whether he is graduating from an overwhelmingly slot-based role. With nominal WR1 Alec Pierce (ankle) still sidelined, there is also a path for Downs to supplant him as the top player at the position. Downs has a real chance to beat his current WR4 ADP.

As a 2025 rookie, Egbuka went straight from a championship season at Ohio State to training for the NFL Scouting Combine. From there, he went right into spring workouts and was never really able to take time off. He admits to wearing down in his first season with the Bucs, but he was finally able to take time off earlier this year and now feels like he is “in very good condition, very good shape.” Egbuka picked up hip and hamstring injuries in September and October and went from being the PPR WR10 in Weeks 1-10 to the WR55 in Weeks 11-18. Former Bucs WR Mike Evans returned from injury in Week 15 and QB Baker Mayfield was reportedly playing through multiple injuries of his own. The confluence of events certainly did not help Egbuka, and we find his weariness explanation plausible enough. A big-time bounce-back season for the second-year wide receiver is possible.

Bowman suffered a torn Achilles in late November and is a potential PUP candidate. Darnay Holmes and second-rounder Avieon Terrell are candidates to fill the void if Bowman — who was having a marvelous rookie year before he got hurt — is unable to make it back before the start of the season.

Atlanta “appears to be waiting” on the league to decide how they want to punish Pearce. Cameron Sutton was suspended eight games in 2024 for a similar incident, which Kendall mentions and certainly could serve as a blueprint for how this plays out. Falcons coach Kevin Stefanski said they have not received any communication from the league on this subject. It certainly would be surprising if Pearce weren’t eventually suspended to some extent.

Per Warren, “the Raiders have a lot more confidence in their wide receiver group than those on the outside looking in,” and that should give Jalen Nailor and Tre Tucker a little bit more juice as late-round best ball picks. We’re having a really hard time forecasting where Diggs will land after his respectable 85/1,013/4 receiving line last year off a torn ACL. The Commanders seem to be waiting on Brandon Aiyuk, and only the Ravens and Chiefs have really been mentioned of late as a reasonable landing spot for the veteran wideout.

Zach Ertz was second on the team with 72 targets last year, but after that you have to slide all the way down to John Bates at 16 to find another tight end. Chig Okonkwo is certainly in the TE2 tier at the moment, but this would appear to give him a path to low-end TE1 upside. Keim does say it’s not only Okonkwo who will have a bigger role, and the role may shrink a bit if and when the Commanders finally bring in Brandon Aiyuk or another veteran WR2. Still, Okonkwo’s range of outcomes is much better than it was last year in Tennessee.

Jacory “Bill” Croskey-Merritt was noticeably bigger this spring, per Keim, and Dan Quinn said they’d told the back he needed to add bulk and be a bigger factor in the passing game. Keim doesn’t list a strong No. 2 runner on the depth chart, but we’d expect Rachaad White to have first crack at the No. 2 duties. Bill probably belongs in the RB3/RB4 tier for the moment.

This was just an offseason scope, so we’re not expecting Bishop to miss any real time, but it is noteworthy that he hasn’t been on the field in any portion of practice open to the media this offseason.

It’s not a major surprise given how Carter needed offseason surgery on both of his shoulders and didn’t look anything like 2024 Jalen Carter down the stretch last season. The Eagles likely want to see a healthy season before committing. Carter did not participate in team drills at mandatory minicamp and the Eagles have him under team control through 2027 via the fifth-year option. This could be a standstill to keep an eye on for a while.

Harris figures to be Los Angeles’ third receiver this year, but he played a majority of his snaps on run downs last year and could gain extra playing time over Ladd McConkey if he clearly is the best option in that area. There are still a few veteran free agent land mines in the way of Harris having fantasy value, but the Chargers seem to be trending towards a bigger, more run-focused outfit with the additions of David Njoku and Charlie Kolar. Harris should be an interesting sleeper this year.