2022 NFL Free Agent Frenzy: Russell Gage, J.D. McKissic, D.J. Chark (3/15)

The NFL opened up its “legal tampering period” on Monday, and the transactions flooded in throughout the day. In case you missed a minute, here is our recap of the first day of free agent frenzy. The action continued on Tuesday, and we’re back to provide a recap and full breakdown on all of the major moves.

How do these moves impact the fantasy football landscape? Our analysts are here to answer those questions and provide detailed breakdowns of every major move.

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NFL Free Agent Signings, Trades, and News: March 15

Russell Gage To Sign With Buccaneers

In a surprising twist, former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Russell Gage does not re-sign with his old team and instead signs with the NFC South rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Gage will be vying for the No. 3 wide receiver role behind Mike Evans and Chris Godwin, but he could easily operate as the clear-cut No. 2 if Godwin returns back slowly from injury.

Any receiver in a Tom Brady-led offense should be a sought-after commodity — so consider me in on Gage in 2022. There are plenty of scenarios where Gage continues his success from the tail-end of last season.
– Andrew Erickson

J.D. McKissic To Sign With Bills

J.D. who? It’s officially Antonio Gibson szn folks.

Gibson‘s strong finish to the season was fueled by J.D. McKissic’s injury. Gibson ran a route on 56% of Washington’s dropbacks and owned a 17% target share in the five games McKissic missed. He also averaged 14.9 fantasy points per game in half-point scoring. In the other 11 games, the Memphis product owned an 8% target share and ran a route on 36% of the team’s dropbacks to go along with 12.1 points per game.
– Andrew Erickson

Antonio Gibson‘s strong finish to the season was fueled by J.D. McKissic’s injury. He ran a route on 56% of Washington’s dropbacks and w/ a 17% target share in the 5 games McKissic missed. Other 12 games, he owned an 8% target share and ran a route on 36% of the team’s dropbacks.

— Andrew Erickson™ (@AndrewErickson_) March 15, 2022

D.J. Chark To Sign With Lions

It seems like ages since Chark burst onto the scene as a second-year breakout receiver (2019) as the WR19. The last two seasons have been mired by poor quarterback play, injuries (ankle fracture, finger fracture, shin, and ribs), and ineffectiveness. Yes, pitiful signal-caller status has played a role for Chark with catchable target rates of 54.5% and 71%, but his 1.40 and 1.48 (per PFF) yards per route run since 2020 also illustrates that some of the blame should be laid at his feet as well.

Chark will slide in opposite Josh Reynolds on the outside while St. Brown works out of the slot. Chark has worked from the slot on 21.9% of his snaps in his career, but his 1.12 and 1.43 yards per route run (per PFF) from the slot in 2019-2020 illustrates that he’s better served operating on the boundaries. St. Brown will still own the inside role. St. Brown exploded in Weeks 13-18 last season. He ranked second in targets (67) behind only Justin Jefferson among wide receivers with a 33.5% target share and 33.8% of the team’s air yards as the WR2 in fantasy football.
– Derek Brown

? @DBro_FFB pic.twitter.com/0STD6tF3ez

— FantasyPros (@FantasyPros) March 15, 2022

Other Newsworthy Transactions

And don’t miss the rest of our takeaways from all of the recent news:

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Welcome to the latest episode of the FantasyPros Football Podcast. The show is hosted by Joe Pisapia (@JoePisapia17) and Derek Brown (@DBro_FFB). Together, they offer insight to help your squads.

Joey P. and Derek Brown break down the D.J. Chark signing and the latest NFL moves.

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