The final week of the NFL Preseason isn’t quite as irrelevant as it used to be when the exhibition season lasted four weeks and pretty much every team rested its starters in Week 4.
It’s not as if we got an avalanche of interesting fantasy developments in Week 3 of the 2024 preseason. A lot of teams kept their fantasy-relevant players on ice. But still, there were a few interesting nuggets. Let’s dig in.
In case you missed last week’s preseason recap, these were my top takeaways from Week 2 of the preseason. And once again, a hat tip to Nathan Jahnke of PFF for his invaluable snap-count data.
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Fantasy Football Draft Advice: NFL Preseason Takeaways
Fantasy Football Draft Advice: Running Back
Tony Pollard was on the field for 11 of the 18 snaps that Titans starting QB Will Levis played and was in for Tennessee’s entire first drive, scoring on a 1-yard TD run. Tyjae Spears entered the game on the Titans’ second series and played seven snaps with Levis. Titans head coach Brian Callahan has talked about the two RBs being interchangeable pieces, but it appears that Pollard is 1a and Spears is 1b for now.
If you draft fleet-footed Dolphins rookie Jaylen Wright, realize that the best-case scenario is delayed gratification. Wright played behind Jeff Wilson Jr. in the Dolphins preseason game against the Buccaneers, meaning that Wright is currently fourth on the depth chart behind De’Von Achane, Raheem Mostert and Wilson. On the bright side, Wright had a productive game against the Bucs, with 7-36-0 rushing and 4-41-0 receiving on six targets.
For the 12 snaps that Panthers QB Bryce Young played against the Bills, Chuba Hubbard was on the field for 10 of them, Miles Sanders for only two. Rookie Jonathan Brooks could very well take over this backfield at some point, but until Brooks is deemed sufficiently healed after last November’s ACL tear, Hubbard should be at least flex-worthy in medium-sized and larger fantasy leagues. Sanders isn’t roster-worthy.
It’s still hard to get a read on who’s going to be the top backup behind 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey, but Jordan Mason is making a strong case. He played 21 of a possible 24 snaps with starting QB Brock Purdy and had eight carries for 42 yards and a touchdown against the Raiders, along with a 7-yard reception. Mason’s primary competitor for the backup gig, Elijah Mitchell, recently began practicing again after a hamstring injury but didn’t play vs. Las Vegas.
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