Spencer Rattler is expected to be New Orleans' starting quarterback in Week 8. (Source: Mike Triplett on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Dennis Allen told reporters that the rookie is expected to be the starter for Sunday's game against the Chargers. Derek Carr (oblique) still needs more time to recover, which is bad news for Chris Olave (concussion), Alvin Kamara, and the entirety of New Orleans' offense.
The Los Angeles Rams have reached out to other teams about trading eighth-year WR Cooper Kupp. They are hopeful for a second-round pick in return. (Source: Dianna Russini on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Kupp has not returned since Week 2 as he's been dealing with an ankle injury, and at 2-4, the Rams appear to be sellers headed into the trade deadline. It will be interesting to see if and where he will get traded, how that will impact that team's WR room, and how it will impact WR Puka Nacua's target share once he returns.
Carolina Panthers RB Miles Sanders is believed to be available for trade ahead of the NFL's looming trade deadline on Nov. 5, 2024. (Source: Jordan Schultz on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Sanders has played just 35% of the Panthers' snaps this season and saw a season-low 23% of the snaps in Week 6 (down 15% from the previous week). With rookie RB Jonathon Brooks likely to return soon and RB Chuba Hubbard emerging as a strong starter, Sanders is only continuing to fall out of favor, though his contract ($15 million dollar hit between the next two seasons) likely would make him difficult to move. He has an out in his contract after the 2024 season.
The New York Jets received trade calls from various teams for WR Garrett Wilson after their recent acquisition of star WR Davante Adams, though they have no intentions to deal away their former first-round pick. (Source: Adam Schefter, ESPN)
Fantasy Impact: Unsurprisingly, the Jets are "not planning to trade Wilson," according to ESPN's Adam Schefter, with WR Mike Williams being the much more likely trade candidate in The Big Apple. While New York could likely acquire solid compensation for the budding receiver, they are likely to want to keep him around, even with contract conversations expected to start soon. Not much should change going forward as the Jets continue to try to win now.
Thu, Oct 17th 12:05pm EDT
By Ari Koslow
The Chargers, Steelers and Saints have reportedly inquired about a trade for Jets WR Mike Williams. (Source: Dianna Russini on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Williams was back at the Jets facility on Thursday. The Steelers and Saints were both teams who had shown interest in Davante Adams as well. Williams is likely to remain in his deep threat role wherever he ends up.
The Jets worked out three kickers on Wednesday, which could be a sign that Greg Zuerlein might lose his starting job in the near future. (Source: Mike Garafolo on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Zuerlein has been in a really bad slump for the Jets recently, and it looks like they may be looking for a change. They worked out Matt Coghlin, Riley Patterson, and Cade York on Wednesday, and it remains to be seen if they will sign any of those guys. It looks like the days for Zuerlein are numbered, so fantasy managers should avoid starting him for the foreseeable future.
Recently acquired Buffalo Bills WR Amari Cooper is not participating in the team's Wednesday walkthrough but will have his first practice on Thursday; his status for Sunday's Week 7 contest is undecided, says head coach Sean McDermott. (Source: Matthew Bové on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Cooper was traded on Tuesday, giving him just a handful of days to get up, move, learn the playbook, practice, and play. While plenty of players do this, and WR Davante Adams is expected to for the New York Jets, realistically this is a tall task for anybody. It's likely that he will be out there, even if it's on a simplified version of what Buffalo runs, but it would be unsurprising if they have him sit an extra week to learn, especially with WR Khalil Shakir healthy again. His availability should remain monitored closely.
Wed, Oct 16th 12:36pm EDT
By Josh Collier
Buccaneers RB Rachaad white could be the head of a three-man rotation in the Tampa Bay backfield once he makes his return, per Greg Auman of Fox Sports. Both Bucky Irving and Sean Tucker put up impressive numbers in Week 6 and should demand snaps as well. (Source: Greg Auman on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: There is still a chance White misses another week as he is dealing with a foot injury. If he makes his return in Week 7, expect him to start in a three-man rotation
Las Vegas Raiders WR Davante Adams, who requested a trade, could remain with the silver and black despite the public expectation that a trade will go down, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. (Source: Adam Schefter, ESPN)
Fantasy Impact: Schefter highlighted three key reasons why Adams could remain in the Silver City. Firstly, the Raiders have not received the type of interest that may be expected for the level of talent Adams provides. As well, Vegas' desire to move off of Adams' contract as well as its request for a second-round pick and additional compensation may not be met openly by other organizations. Lastly, Schefter alluded to Adams' confidence in QB Aidan O'Connell under center, which could be understood given his support of the Year 2 QB taking over as the starter in the second half of last season, his rookie year. Given these factors, there is a potential for Adams to remain in Las Vegas despite the public expectation he will be traded, even if it is just for the rest of the 2024 season.
Gardner Minshew II is being benched and will not start in Week 6. (Source: Ian Rapoport on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Minshew has been struggling as the starter for the Raiders over the first five weeks of the season, and the team is now making a change. They are going to start Aidan O'Connell in Week 6 and will presumably keep him in the lineup for the foreseeable future. It remains to be seen what kind of an impact this will have on players like Brock Bowers and Jakobi Meyers moving forward.
Aidan O'Connell has been named Las Vegas' starting quarterback for Week 6. (Source: Ian Rapoport on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Gardner Minshew won the QB competition in the preseason and has been the starter for Las Vegas all season, but he got benched in Week 5 and will be replaced by O'Connell for the foreseeable future. It's hard to say whether or not he will be an upgrade, but this could be good for players like Jakobi Meyers and Brock Bowers if the 26-year old is able to offer more consistency to the offense.
Justin Fields will start the week getting first-team reps despite Russell Wilson's full participation on Wednesday. (Source: Jori Epstein on X)
Fantasy Impact: Head coach Mike Tomlin stated that Fields is getting the first-team reps to avoid any disruption to his preparation, implying that Fields could be the starter on Sunday's matchup against the Raiders. Tomlin also said that the situation will be evaluated throughout the week and that no official decision has been made yet. If Fields starts in Week 6, he can be considered a low-end QB1 with high upside.
New England Patriots RB Antonio Gibson is set to potentially start in Week 5 with RB Rhamondre Stevenson being benched. (Source: Mike Reiss on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Head coach Jerod Mayo announced that Stevenson was being benched after struggling with fumbles recently (one fumble in all four games), which sets the stage for Gibson to start. He has averaged 5.3 yards per carry, though the number is slightly skewed by a 45-yard scamper in Week 2 (3.9 yards across his other 28 carries). However, he does have two plays of 45+ yards this season (the other as a reception) and has seven targets in his last two games. Miami is roughly middle of the pack in rush EPA allowed, though New England's PFF run-blocking grade is the 10th-worst mark in the NFL through four weeks.
New England Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo talked to RB Rhamondre Stevenson and informed him he was being benched in Week 5 against the Miami Dolphins. (Source: Mike Reiss on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Stevenson has struggled with fumbles recently (one in all four games), an issue that often compounds on itself as defenses get more aggressive at punching the ball out. Whether it's a disciplinary move or more demonstrative, it sets up the stage for RB Antonio Gibson (two 45+ yard plays on 36 touches) to start against Miami. Stevenson started the year hot with 201 yards in Weeks 1 and 2 but has just 66 yards in his last two games.
Michael Mayer is away from the team right now due to a personal issue and has no timetable for his return. (Source: Levi Edwards on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Mayer is not with the team right now. He's dealing with some kind of a personal issue at the moment, although the details of it are unknown at this point. HC Antonio Pierce told reporters that there is currently no timetable for his return, which means that Brock Bowers will have no obstacles to a massive workload in Week 5 and beyond.
New York Jets RB Breece Hall will maintain the team's short-yardage role despite his poor outing versus the Denver Broncos in Week 4. (Source: Zack Rosenblatt on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: While many viewed Hall's dud outing against Denver with concern (10 attempts for four yards), Saleh said he believed it was an outlier after "batting a thousand" in previous goal-line scenarios. Even with the big-bodied Braelon Allen seeing time as the RB2 — and success at that, in limited snaps — Hall will maintain his RB1 role going forward; Allen has played between 32% and 36% of the snaps over the last three weeks (69%-72% for Hall).
Alexander Mattison is expected to receive more reps moving forward, per coach Antonio Pierce. (Source: Vinny Bonsignore on X)
Fantasy Impact: Although Zamir White has been the clear lead back in the Vegas backfield, Mattison is far more efficient and has nine more total yards than White with 30 fewer touches. Until Mattison makes the backfield a more even split, he won't be a reliable starter in most leagues. However, if his efficiency continues and he usurps White in the backfield, he could become a decent RB3/flex option, especially with bye weeks approaching.
Houston Texans RB Joe Mixon, who is dealing with an ankle injury, is expected to be a game-time decision for Week 4 against the Jacksonville Jaguars. (Source: Ian Rapoport on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: Despite missing the first two practices of the week, Mixon returned as a limited participant on Friday and earned a questionable tag entering the weekend. It seems possible that he may play, though NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport described it as an "uphill climb." For now, Mixon may remain on benches, but his status should be monitored closely as he prepares for a favorable matchup. If he plays, he is startable while Cam Akers and Dare Ogunbowale take a massive hit in value, even if Mixon is limited.
New Orleans Saints WR Chris Olave, who came up with a late-week hamstring injury, is expected to play versus the Atlanta Falcons in Week 4, according to NFL Network reporter Ian Rapoport. (Source: Ian Rapoport on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: ESPN's Jeremy Fowler said the team wanted to monitor his injury pre-game and that he would be closer to a game-time decision, and while that may still be true, the expectation may be that he will play as long as there is not a pre-game setback or flare-up. For now, Olave (half-PPR ECR WR22) can be trusted in lineups in a mostly neutral matchup in an offense that has largely looked potent with its star wideout seemingly ready to break out at some point soon.
Jacksonville Jaguars WR Gabe Davis, who is dealing with a shoulder injury, is set to play against the Houston Texans in a Week 4 divisional showdown. (Source: Adam Schefter on Twitter)
Fantasy Impact: The Jaguars' offense has been a bottom-tier unit so far in 2024, ranking fifth-worst in dropback EPA while averaging just over 13 points per game and scoring fewer points in each game compared to their last so far through three weeks. As a result, the passing offense as a whole has stumbled not providing much room for a splash-play savant like Gabe Davis, who was already unreliable in an effective and trustworthy environment in Buffalo. With eight catches for 123 yards this season, there are better WRs to turn toward in fantasy right now, but with 13 targets over the last two games, Davis is worth monitoring if the Jags ever get their feet under them.
