This week's FF headlines!
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Welcome back! We’re still in the thick of training camp buzz. As always, you should take the hype from this time of year with a large grain of salt, but don’t discount it entirely. What I tend to look for is buzz that seems to be sustained around a certain player or situation. Sometimes where there’s smoke, there’s fire.
News & Notes:
Detroit Lions cancel practice over Jacob Blake shooting — ‘Football is not important today’
“RB David Montgomery suffered a groin strain, and he is undergoing further testing. Team said he was not carted off, he walked off the field on his own.”
Bruce Arians on WR Chris Godwin sitting out of three practices recently: "That's for me to know and nobody else to find out."
Raiders WR Tyrell Williams has a torn labrum — will try to play through it.
RB Sony Michel is back at practice going through individual drills. Has a chance to be activated off of the PUP list.
WR Mike Williams could miss 4-6 weeks with a sprained shoulder. Initial reports suggested 2-4 weeks.
RB Kenyan Drake has been seen in a walking boot. Drake says he’s fine.
Rookie WR Brandon Aiyuk has been sidelined with a mild hamstring strain.
Rookie RB D’Andre Swift will be returning to practice after sitting out last week with a minor leg injury.
RB Darrell Henderson suffers "mild" hamstring injury.
Camp Buzz/Hype/Fluff:
“The problem with defending Hollywood Brown: Even if you do a good job, he still might get really wide open.” (video)
“Each day, [QB Teddy] Bridgewater makes throws that look as good as any Carolina Panthers quarterback has made in their relatively short history. He has developed a particular chemistry with both Christian McCaffrey and DJ Moore. Bridgewater throws with touch and anticipation, hitting his targets in stride. This allows them to go seamlessly from pass catching to running.”
“[WR] JJ Arcega-Whiteside is looking like the player the Eagles thought they drafted in the RZ today. Has caught 3 TDs in tight spots in back of end zone. He caught 27 of 39 RZ targets at Stanford. Had only two RZ catches as a rookie.”
“[WR] Quez Watkins has elite speed but he has been at his best so far in the red zone. He has 5 TDs in the RZ, tied with Zach Ertz for most on the team"
Sam Darnold and TE Chris Herndon's chemistry has "blossomed" this summer.
Sad trombone music: “The starting Jets offense, working against the backups, had six possessions. They scored 0 points, turned it over three times (INT, two fumbles), punted three times and picked up five total first downs.”
“[QB] Gardner Minshew and [TE] Tyler Eifert have had a solid connection all of training camp”
Rookie WR Gabriel Davis has “routinely stood out.”
Rookie WR Devin Duvernay has “gotten open downfield as much as any wideout this summer.”
“Mike Evans as RB Ronald Jones races to the corner of the end zone for a 30-yard TD: ‘Is that live?’ Bruce Arians: ‘F—k yeah we’re live.’”
QB Tua Tagovailoa “looks like a completely different player in Week 2 of Miami Dolphins training camp. Swagger increase. Arm strength increase. Reading the defense better. Firing to the sidelines and the middle of the field with uncanny accuracy.”
WR Greg Ward “is the Zach Ertz of the Eagles WR core. Both are players Wentz trusts and loves to throw the ball too. Both have 21 targets so far in camp -- most on the team.”
RB Raheem Mostert “proved that he is far and away the best back on the team. Mostert not only ran with power, but he showed he’s comfortable catching the ball out of the backfield. World-class speed gives Mostert a chance to score every time he touches the ball, but Mostert’s patience and vision are better than anyone else in the backfield. He’s a big-time talent.”
WR Preston Williams has been impressive in training camp and "potentially better than ever." He is also “Destroying everyone in his path and is having the best camp of every Fins player” according to some guy on Reddit who I’m willing to believe because I have Preston Williams rostered in Dynasty.
Coach Rivera refers to RB Bryce Love as "multi-dimensional," "every-down back," "explosive" and "dynamic.” On the other hand, RB Antonio Gibson is seeing “a fair amount” of first-team reps. And: “Steven Sims Jr. motions as if to take the jet sweep. Surprise, surprise Antonio Gibson is trailing takes the hand off, cuts up, stutter steps a defender in his path and gets to the end zone. He’s a cheat code.” We all know how this is going to end: 2,000 yards for Adrian Peterson.
QB Dwayne Haskins and TE Logan Thomas have formed a connection in the red zone. “The interesting thing is, the guy’s really only been a tight end for, what, three seasons now? You see the growth,” Coach Ron Rivera said.
RB Damien Harris “continues to stand out, and it's not just as a runner. He did a nice job picking up a block today and looks comfortable in his route tree. He's been the best back in camp.”
Dirk Koetter expects a "minimum" of 15 weekly touches for RB Todd Gurley.
“Outside of DeAndre Hopkins, there may not have been a more talked about pass-catcher for the Cardinals than [TE] Dan Arnold.”
“Dwayne Haskins still finds [WR] Terry McLaurin a lot. Understandable: chemistry and... he creates separation.”
Adam Schefter says that “If [RB] Dalvin Cook’s contract situation isn’t resolved by the start of the season, drafting him in fantasy would “give him pause.”
“[QB] Joe Burrow and first team offense just started at own 20 yard line with 1:30 on the clock vs first team “D”. He calmly completes 5 of 6 passes ending with a TD to Auden Tate on a great throw between two defenders.” Another take: “Wow. Hell of a first scrimmage drive for Joe Burrow. Goes 6 of 6 for 69 yards, including a third-and-14 conversion to Auden Tate, then a perfect goal-to-go fade to Tate for a TD.” Bengals beat writer says WR Auden Tate has been “early front-runner for offensive MVP of training camp.” Even the Bengals social media team is getting in on the Tate hype.
Well edited WR Jerry Jeudy fluff. (video)
"Perhaps the impact [RB] Zack Moss can have this season has been undersold." Moss has “shown his ability as a pass-catching running back."
“No one looks as effortless when going up against Lions defenders than [TE] T.J. Hockenson. On Friday, he beat the Lions’ best tight end defender in Tracy Walker with relative ease, and he continues to get a ton of wide-open catches during team drills.”
RB Jerick McKinnon “embarrassing 49ers linebackers in training camp.”
Quick video of Derek Carr gushing about WR Bryan Edwards.
WR DeSean Jackson “Might be the toughest player to cover in a practice I’ve ever seen. So quick and such a great route runner. 1on1 DBs have no chance” Another quote: “Carson Wentz to DeSean Jackson is just a money connection.”
WR Van Jefferson “Versus the twos is no contest. This rookie is a pro.” “Crisp in & out of break. Precise. Big target. And especially sweet hands.”
“I’m afraid we’re going to get to the point where we’re overhyping [RB] Ty Montgomery, but he does two or three notable things every day.”
Deep sleeper: Patriots WR Gunner Olszewski has been getting a lot of targets in training camp thus far.
Chiefs GM said RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire is "on pace to have a big year.”
Articles and Analysis:
WR Van Jefferson is NFL's biggest under-the-radar impact rookie.
100 reasons to target RBs catching passes from Phillip Rivers.
Latest ADP for redraft top sleepers and tips to strategize.
QB seasons with 30+ passing TDs since 2017: 3 - Russell Wilson 2 - zero QBs
A case for 5 RBs to fade in 2020.
TE Jordan Akins — The forgotten sleeper in Houston.
Re-evaluating the rookie RB opportunity landscape.
The Fun Stuff:
WR Terry McLaurin picking up where he left off. (video)
Juju Smith-Schuster did an AMA over on /r/NFL.
Checking in with Andrew Luck 1 year into retirement.
Top-3 worst jersey numbers in the NFL.
The Evans vs. Godwin debate.
When NFL writers take shots at one another.
Some clips of RB J. K. Dobbins showing off in practice. (video)
RB Kenyan Drake on Twitter: “The face you’ll make when I help lead you to a fantasy championship this season.”
Move over Sir Isaac Newton.
That’s it for now. Find me on Twitter where I follow over 1,000 analysts + beat writers and retweet all the good stuff.