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Sunday, September 25, 2022 |
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Jamey Eisenberg, Heath Cummings, and Dave Richard are on CBS Sports HQ to answer your questions and get you the latest up-to-date injury news live until kickoff. And if you want more direct answers to your questions, I've got two more ways for you to win: Go to Twitter and use the hashtag "#AskFFT", where our whole team will be answering questions all morning; and go to the FFT YouTube channel to chat with Adam Aizer, Frank Stampfl and I starting at 11:30. We'll be there right up until kickoff answering as many questions as we can, so make sure you're in the chat early to get your questions in. |
For more Week 2 help, here's the rest of our preview content to get you ready: |
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For the rest of this morning's newsletter, I have updates on the latest injury news as well as answers to your questions in an #AskFFT mailbag -- email me at chris.towers@ViacomCBS.com throughout the week to get your emails included. |
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Quarterbacks |
- Justin Herbert (ribs) is a legitimate game-time decision as he continues to deal with his injury from Week 2. He is reportedly mulling pain-killing injections at the site of the injury to play, and it doesn't sound like the risk is one of re-injury -- it's more of a pain-management issue. If he plays, you're probably starting him, but Herbert carries some risk as a result of the injury, for sure. He's not the obvious top-five QB he typically is. If he doesn't play, Chase Daniel is a downgrade for the entire offense.
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Running backs |
- J.K. Dobbins (knee) is expected to make his debut today after rehabbing his reconstructed knee. He's been practicing for a few weeks, but I still expect Dobbins to have his reps limited, so I'm not viewing him as a must-start Fantasy RB just yet -- he should get there eventually, but for now he's more of an RB3 as he knocks the rust off.
- Alvin Kamara (ribs) looks like he's going to play after missing last week's game. It's not clear if he's going to be limited as a result of the injury -- his role in Week 1 wasn't quite what we expected due to the injury. I'm not treating Kamara like a top-12 RB this week, but I'm starting him where I have him.
- James Conner (ankle) is still looking like a game-time decision, but Sunday morning reports indicate he is trending toward playing. Maybe he has a lesser role than usual -- maybe Eno Benjamin takes on a few more snaps to help keep Conner fresh -- but Conner is still an RB2 in my rankings if he plays.
- Josh Jacobs (illness) joined the team in Tennessee Saturday after missing the flight Friday. It's not clear yet if he's going to play, but the fact that he did ultimately travel seems to indicate he will. If he doesn't, Brandon Bolden and Zamir White would likely both see a bigger role, with White likely handling rushing downs and Bolden getting a bigger role in the passing game -- I'd rather use Bolden if it came to it.
- Leonard Fournette (hamstring) looks like he's going to play, after following the same practice trends as last week.
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Wide receivers |
- We'll start with the Buccaneers receivers, just like last week. Chris Godwin (hamstring) is out, as is Mike Evans (suspension). Julio Jones (knee) is a game-time decision, while Russell Gage (hamstring) is expected to play -- I think the same is true of Breshad Perriman (knee). The Buccaneers added Cole Beasley from their practice squad, and I get the feeling he's going to play a decent role off the bat. Gage is the only one of this group I would trust in my season-long lineups, but even he is more of a low-end WR3 for me. There just isn't enough certainty beyond him to trust anyone.
- Keenan Allen (hamstring) looks like he has a chance to play, though it's not a great sign that he missed Friday's practice after being limited the first two days of the week. If he plays, you're definitely starting him, but there's risk between his injury and Herbert's.
- Michael Pittman (quad) is not on the injury report for the Colts, so his absence is just a one-week thing. Alec Pierce (concussion) is also expected to make his return, so that gives Matt Ryan his top two WRs back. Pittman is a must-start option.
- Gabe Davis (ankle) is expected to play against the Dolphins. He's going to test it in warm-ups to make sure, so don't lock in your lineup until you see inactives, but he's a WR3 if he does play.
- Jerry Jeudy (ribs/sternum) looks like he's got a pretty good chance to play, per Sunday morning reports. Whether he'll play his typical role remains to be seen, and the risk of re-injury makes him a risk, but I'm expecting he'll be pretty involved -- I'm still viewing him as the 1b to Courtland Sutton's 1a in this offense. Both are in the WR2/3 range of my rankings.
- The Packers have some injury concerns of their own in that game against the Buccaneers, with Randall Cobb (illness) and Christian Watson (hamstring) questionable plus Sammy Watkins placed on IR earlier in the week. Romeo Doubs is a great beat-the-waiver-wire add just in case he steps up this week.
- Michael Gallup (knee) is expected to play Monday night against the Giants, assuming he passes his final tests in warmups. You should be stashing him, but don't start him in his first game back.
- Hunter Renfrow (concussion) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Titans.
- Jakobi Meyes (knee) is not expected to play, per Sunday morning reports. Nelson Agholor and Kendrick Bourne figure to see bigger roles, but I don't think anyone from this passing game is worth using.
- Kadarius Toney (hamstring) is doubtful for Monday's game against the Cowboys. I still have some hope he'll figure it out, but his inability to stay on the field has reportedly been an issue with the coaches, so he has some work to do to prove himself.
- Rondale Moore (hamstring) remains out, with Greg Dortch remaining an interesting PPR sleeper in his absence.
- Kyle Phillips (shoulder) is doubtful for Sunday against the Raiders. Treylon Burks could see an even bigger role if Phillips remains out.
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Tight ends |
- George Kittle (groin) is expected to make his return this week after he was taken off the practice report Friday. He is not expected to face any snap count restrictions, so you have to have Kittle in your lineup.
- Dawson Knox (foot) is questionable, but it looks like he's going to play after upping his participation in practice Thursday and Friday. He's a fringe starter at this point.
- T.J. Hockenson (ribs) was limited in practice all week, and we don't really have any sign of whether he is going to play. He remains a volume-based TE1 if he's active.
- Dalton Schultz (knee) got a limited practice in Saturday, but I'd prefer not to have to rely on him going into Monday Night Football. I'm not sure I trust rookie Jake Ferguson to be worth using if Schultz is out, and the Cowboys don't really have a tight end worth getting excited about -- Tanner Hudson and Daniel Bellinger have combined for four targets in two games.
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#AskFFT Mailbag |
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- Doug: For teams sitting at 0-2, coming off the heels of a good draft with players performing less than their expected output (your Kyle Pitts/Darnell Mooney variety), do you bail on relatively highly drafted players for the waiver-wire hotshots or hang tight?
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It all depends on the player, obviously. With Mooney, I'm not far from giving up hope – the Bears need to show a willingness to operate like a modern NFL offense for him to have any chance of living up to his potential, and they haven't done that through two games – they have the NFL's only two games with 20 or fewer pass attempts. They'll throw more than they have moving forward, but the early returns on this offense are bad enough that it's not unreasonable to have thinning patience with Mooney. |
Pitts is a different question, mostly because I just truly believe he's an elite talent. Maybe Drake London is even better – he's pretty dang good, you know – but I need more than two games before I'm willing to give up on a young player of Pitts' skill set. If anything, London's quick emergence should make Pitts' life easier, and I believe it will moving forward. Even if Pitts has a bad game this week, I'm still going to rank him as a top-10 tight end. |
Which is to say, your preseason expectations should still hold quite a bit of weight. They shouldn't be everything, of course – we have learned new information, And I can't tell you there's an obvious rule when it comes to who deserves your faith and who doesn't. It's an "I know it when I see it" kind of thing. |
- Bill: I'm worried about Wentz vs Eagles defense after seeing the Vikings struggle. I picked up Flacco, but I'm having second thoughts. So, start Wentz or Flacco?
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I share your concerns about Wentz – he's had some pretty bad stretches so far, especially in the first half of games, where he has averaged 5.9 yards per pass attempt. Wentz has been able to come back from his slow starts so far, but this Eagles defense figures to be quite a bit tougher than the Jaguars or Lions. Wentz has some pretty excellent weapons, but so does Kirk, and Darius Slay was able to take away Justin Jefferson pretty convincingly. However, there are plenty of quarterbacks with questions right now, and I can't say Wentz is one of the riskier ones. It says a lot about the state of the position this week that Wentz is a top-12 option. |
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That's something of an embarrassment of riches, which can be a blessing and a curse – I have one league where I'm 1-1 but I've left the most points on my bench of any team in the league because I'm making these kinds of tough calls every week. It's the worst. At some point, if these guys keep producing, you might want to consolidate and turn two of them into one superstar-level player, if for no other reason than to save yourself the headache of dealing with these kinds of decisions. |
But that's a discussion for a different time. Among these four, I have Wilson ranked 21st, Bateman 24th, London 30th, and Olave 40th. There are certainly things to like about all of them, but they all have competition for targets. I actually feel a bit iffy about having Bateman ranked highest, simply because he isn't playing every snap or running every route for the Ravens, and it's already a pretty low-volume passing game to begin with. He's hit on enough big plays early on to overcome that, but I think there are likely to be some frustrating days in his future. |
- Tom: I have Waddle in my flex (A.J. Brown and Amon-Ra St. Brown starting). Should I replace with Sutton? Both are playing really tough defenses. Also have Lockett, Singletary and Edmonds as options for flex.
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I like both Sutton and Waddle, and if Jeudy is out, it makes it an even tougher call. I'll tentatively give Waddle the edge, and I think that'll hold even if Jeudy is out – the Bills still have a ferocious pass rush, and I'm still not sure I trust Tua Tagovailoa against good pass rushes. |
But the Bills are missing multiple starters in the secondary, including both of their starting safeties, which is going to give Waddle the chance to break one or two of those big plays that are fast becoming Miami's signature. The Dolphins offense is built around two-WR sets, and Waddle and Hill should keep getting funneled targets, so I'm treating both like top-12 options. |
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I do like Curtis Samuel, but I'm sticking with Gibson here. He's had 14 carries in each of the first two games with 12 targets, which is exactly the workload we've been hoping he would end up with. The passing game role from Week 1 didn't translate to Week 2, which is a concern, and the way Samuel has been featured early on, and especially when the Commanders need a touchdown, has been incredibly impressive, but I think Gibson's combined role wins out. |
Rankings Updates |
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- Josh Allen @MIA
- Patrick Mahomes @IND
- Lamar Jackson @NE
- Jalen Hurts @WAS
- Kyler Murray vs. LAR
- Joe Burrow @NYJ
- Matthew Stafford @ARI
- Derek Carr @TEN
- Justin Herbert vs. JAX
- Carson Wentz vs. PHI
- Russell Wilson vs. SF
- Tua Tagovailoa vs. BUF
- Aaron Rodgers @TB
- Jameis Winston @CAR
- Trevor Lawrence @LAC
- Kirk Cousins vs. DET
- Tom Brady vs. GB
- Justin Fields vs. HOU
- Jared Goff @MIN
- Marcus Mariota @SEA
- Baker Mayfield vs. NO
- Daniel Jones vs. DAL
- Jimmy Garoppolo @DEN
- Joe Flacco vs. CIN
- Mac Jones vs. BAL
- Ryan Tannehill vs. LV
- Cooper Rush @NYG
- Matt Ryan vs. KC
- Geno Smith vs. ATL
- Davis Mills @CHI
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- Christian McCaffrey vs. NO
- Jonathan Taylor vs. KC
- Saquon Barkley vs. DAL
- Austin Ekeler vs. JAX
- Leonard Fournette vs. GB
- Joe Mixon @NYJ
- Dalvin Cook vs. DET
- Aaron Jones @TB
- Derrick Henry vs. LV
- D'Andre Swift @MIN
- Javonte Williams vs. SF
- David Montgomery vs. HOU
- James Conner vs. LAR
- Alvin Kamara @CAR
- Antonio Gibson vs. PHI
- Josh Jacobs @TEN
- Cordarrelle Patterson @SEA
- AJ Dillon @TB
- Ezekiel Elliott @NYG
- Miles Sanders @WAS
- Darrell Henderson @ARI
- Jeff Wilson @DEN
- James Robinson @LAC
- Nyheim Hines vs. KC
- Dameon Pierce @CHI
- Damien Harris vs. BAL
- Rhamondre Stevenson vs. BAL
- Michael Carter vs. CIN
- J.D. McKissic vs. PHI
- J.K. Dobbins @NE
- Chase Edmonds vs. BUF
- Breece Hall vs. CIN
- Clyde Edwards-Helaire @IND
- Cam Akers @ARI
- Tony Pollard @NYG
- Devin Singletary @MIA
- Travis Etienne @LAC
- Jamaal Williams @MIN
- Rashaad Penny vs. ATL
- Raheem Mostert vs. BUF
- Melvin Gordon vs. SF
- Tyler Allgeier @SEA
- Sony Michel vs. JAX
- Alexander Mattison vs. DET
- Kenneth Walker vs. ATL
- Zack Moss @MIA
- Kenneth Gainwell @WAS
- Mark Ingram @CAR
- Eno Benjamin vs. LAR
- Jordan Mason @DEN
- Rex Burkhead @CHI
- Kenyan Drake @NE
- Khalil Herbert vs. HOU
- Ameer Abdullah @TEN
- Rachaad White vs. GB
- Samaje Perine @NYJ
- Amari Rodgers @TB
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- Cooper Kupp @ARI
- Davante Adams @TEN
- Justin Jefferson vs. DET
- Stefon Diggs @MIA
- Ja'Marr Chase @NYJ
- Amon-Ra St. Brown @MIN
- Deebo Samuel @DEN
- Tyreek Hill vs. BUF
- Tee Higgins @NYJ
- A.J. Brown @WAS
- Jaylen Waddle vs. BUF
- Brandin Cooks @CHI
- Keenan Allen vs. JAX
- Michael Pittman Jr. vs. KC
- Mike Williams vs. JAX
- Michael Thomas @CAR
- D.J. Moore vs. NO
- Christian Kirk @LAC
- CeeDee Lamb @NYG
- Garrett Wilson vs. CIN
- Curtis Samuel vs. PHI
- Marquise Brown vs. LAR
- Rashod Bateman @NE
- Elijah Moore vs. CIN
- Adam Thielen vs. DET
- Courtland Sutton vs. SF
- Allen Robinson @ARI
- JuJu Smith-Schuster @IND
- Drake London @SEA
- Terry McLaurin vs. PHI
- D.K. Metcalf vs. ATL
- Jerry Jeudy vs. SF
- Tyler Lockett vs. ATL
- Russell Gage vs. GB
- Darnell Mooney vs. HOU
- DeVonta Smith @WAS
- Brandon Aiyuk @DEN
- Gabe Davis @MIA
- Treylon Burks vs. LV
- Sterling Shepard vs. DAL
- Tyler Boyd @NYJ
- Robert Woods vs. LV
- Allen Lazard @TB
- Greg Dortch vs. LAR
- Cole Beasley vs. GB
- Corey Davis vs. CIN
- Chris Olave @CAR
- Jarvis Landry @CAR
- Jahan Dotson vs. PHI
- Zay Jones @LAC
- DJ Chark @MIN
- Robby Anderson vs. NO
- A.J. Green vs. LAR
- Nico Collins @CHI
- Kyle Phillips vs. LV
- DeVante Parker vs. BAL
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- Travis Kelce @IND
- Mark Andrews @NE
- Kyle Pitts @SEA
- George Kittle @DEN
- Darren Waller @TEN
- Tyler Higbee @ARI
- Dallas Goedert @WAS
- T.J. Hockenson @MIN
- Gerald Everett vs. JAX
- Zach Ertz vs. LAR
- Logan Thomas vs. PHI
- Irv Smith vs. DET
- Cole Kmet vs. HOU
- Dawson Knox @MIA
- Albert Okwuegbunam vs. SF
- Dalton Schultz @NYG
- Hunter Henry vs. BAL
- Evan Engram @LAC
- Mike Gesicki vs. BUF
- Tyler Conklin vs. CIN
- Hayden Hurst @NYJ
- Noah Fant vs. ATL
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Flex Top-150 |
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