DFS Alerts
Contrarian RB Play
Although this game projects to be the most popular, it appears that most of the ownership will be concentrated around the receiving corp of Metcalf and Lockett leaving Carson very low-owned for week 3. According to Pro Football Focus, Carson grades out as the 4th best RB behind Mostert, Ekeler and McCaffrey with an offensive grade of 76.3. Carson continues to out-snap Carlos Hyde and has out-touched him 20-7 in last week’s win against NE. His usage makes him an RB1 play in an offense that is one of the fastest and most explosive this year. Not to mention, Carson has caught 3 receptions that converted to 3 TD’s this year. With lots of great RB plays this week, Carson will carry very little ownership making him a great GPP play for week 3.
A.J. Brown (knee) still not practicing Thursday
Brown won’t practice for a second consecutive day this week and appears to be in danger of missing Sunday’s Week 3 matchup against the Minnesota Vikings due to a bone bruise in his knee that’s already kept him sidelined for one game. In his absence, Corey Davis logged 86.2% of snaps, but there was no clear wide receiver two in last Sunday’s win over the Jacksonville Jaguars as Cameron Batson, Adam Humphries, and Khalif Raymond all saw between 40-60% of snaps at the remaining wideout positions. Humphries was at least targeted when he was on the field, but make no mistake, Davis and Jonnu Smith will likely continue to be the primary options in a low-volume passing game for Ryan Tannehill while Brown is sidelined.
As reported by: Turron Davenport via Twitter
DJ Chark (chest, back) won't play Thursday night
Chark wasn’t able to participate in practice on Tuesday and has officially been downgraded to out on the Jaguars’ injury report for Thursday night’s matchup against the Miami Dolphins due to chest and back ailments. The initial reaction is that Chark’s absence would create a massive void in the Jacksonville passing game, but that just hasn’t been the case to this point since Chark hasn’t commanded nearly as much of the target market share through two weeks as he did last season, and he is even trailing both Keelan Cole and Laviska Shenault in air yards thus far. His place on the active roster should be filled by Dede Westbrook, who was inactive in Week 2, but he still may be behind Cole, Shenault, Chris Conley, and Collin Johnson in the pecking order for snaps at the wide receiver position.
As reported by: the Jacksonville Jaguars via Twitter Jack Doyle (knee) returns to practice Thursday
Doyle returned to practice after being held out of Wednesday’s session with an ankle injury that already forced him to miss the Week 2 win over the Minnesota Vikings last Sunday afternoon. It still remains to be seen if Doyle is categorized as a full or limited participant on the Colts’ practice report, but either way, his mere appearance on the practice field is a positive sign for his potential availability for the matchup against the New York Jets this weekend. If Doyle is eventually cleared to play, he wouldn’t have much fantasy value individually in daily fantasy formats, but his presence on the field would cap the projections of Mo Alie-Cox, who produced a stellar stat line on a 67.7% snap rate and six targets in Doyle’s absence.
As reported by: Joel A. Erickson via Twitter Zack Moss (toe) and Dawson Knox (concussion) don't practice Thursday
Moss didn’t participate in practice for a second consecutive day due to a toe injury, and his status for Sunday’s Week 3 matchup against the Los Angeles Rams could be in danger if he isn’t able to put in at least a limited session on Friday afternoon. Moss has played roughly 45% of snaps in a split backfield timeshare with Devin Singletary through two games, so if Moss is unable to give it a go this weekend, Singletary would suddenly become the clear lead running back in the Bills’ offense and an intriguing daily fantasy option in tournament formats on Sunday’s main slate.
As reported by: Chris Brown via Twitter Other tagged players: Dawson Knox Sammy Watkins (concussion) won't practice Thursday
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid disclosed to reporters that Watkins is currently in the NFL’s concussion protocol and won’t participate in practice on Thursday afternoon. Following last Sunday’s Week 2 win, Watkins insisted he was fine after being knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter, but apparently, he began experiencing symptoms sometime in the past few days, and Reid even admitted that Watkins is still dealing with a sore neck from the collision. It’s a bit too early to be concerned about Watkins missing Monday’s night’s matchup with the Baltimore Ravens, but if he is unable to suit up, Mecole Hardman and Demarcus Robinson could see a substantial increase over their usual target opportunities after both logged at least a 65% snap rate in Week 2 with Watkins healthy for a majority of the contest.
As reported by: Herbie Teope via Twitter Jamison Crowder (hamstring) and Breshad Perriman (ankle) don't practice Thursday
Crowder and Perriman won’t participate in practice for a second consecutive day, and head coach Adam Gase even admitted to reporters that it’s “doubtful” Crowder will be able to play in Sunday’s Week 3 matchup against the Indianapolis Colts due to a hamstring injury. Meanwhile, Perriman remains week-to-week and has already essentially been ruled out for this weekend’s contest, which leaves Chris Hogan as the Jets de facto number one receiver with both Perriman and Crowder expected to be sidelined. Following Perriman’s exit in last Sunday’s loss, Hogan, Braxton Berrios, and Josh Malone surprisingly saw nearly 70% of the targets from Sam Darnold while, for reasons unknown, Chris Herndon only ran a route on 64.2% of passing plays and saw just four total targets.
As reported by: Ralph Vacchiano via Twitter Other tagged players: Breshad Perriman DJ Chark (chest, back) officially listed as questionable for Thursday night
Chark didn’t participate in practice on Tuesday and has officially been listed as questionable on the Jaguars’ injury report for Thursday night’s matchup against the Miami Dolphins due to chest and back ailments. There’s optimism Chark will be able to suit up for the Week 3 contest, but he hasn’t commanded nearly as much of the target market share through two weeks as he did last season and is even trailing both Keelan Cole and Laviska Shenault in air yards thus far. That all could change given the small sample size, but It may be best to take a wait-and-see approach with Chark in daily fantasy formats on Thursday’s single-game slates, especially with Jacksonville essentially utilizing a four-man rotation at wide receiver to begin the 2020 season.
As reported by: Mark Long via Twitter Jalen Reagor (thumb) won't play Sunday, expected to miss multiple weeks
The hits keep on coming for Reagor and the Philadelphia Eagles as the promising rookie wide receiver has been diagnosed with a torn UCL in his right thumb, and he’ll need surgery to repair the aforementioned ligament. Additionally, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport is reporting that the Eagles are expected to place Reagor on injured reserve, which would force him to miss at least the next three weeks. Reagor managed to lead all Eagles’ wide receivers with an 85% snap rate in last Sunday’s Week 2 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, so there will certainly be plenty of opportunity for J.J. Arcaega-Whiteside and John Hightower to run additional routes opposite of DeSean Jackson on the outside. Reagor’s absence could also force head coach Doug Pederson to utilize more 12-personnel than he already does, which would open up an even higher percentage of the target market share for Dallas Goedert and Zach Ertz and limit the playing time of Greg Ward, who has only played 29.7% of snaps to date.
As reported by: Zach Berman via Twitter George Kittle (knee) limited in practice Wednesday
Kittle is set to return to practice on Wednesday, and according to 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan, will be a limited participant after missing Sunday’s Week 2 win over the New York Jets due to a knee injury. ESPN’s Adam Schefter originally reported last week that Kittle was expected to return in Week 3 to face the New York Giants, but given recent concerns over the condition of the turf at MetLife Stadium, it’s becoming more possible that the Niners hold out their All-Pro tight end at least one more game even if he feels he’s healthy enough to play. If that situation comes to fruition, Jordan Reed and Ross Dwelley would assume the vast majority of the tight end responsibilities once again, though Reed ran 18 routes to Dwelley’s 10, a gap that will likely only increase following Reed’s two-touchdown performance in last week’s contest.
As reported by: Matt Barrows via Twitter Kenny Golladay (hamstring) returns to practice Wednesday
According to Lions’ head coach Matt Patricia, all players on the offensive side of the ball are expected to practice in some capacity on Wednesday, which means the Golladay will participate in his first practice since missing each of the first two games with a hamstring injury. Even if Golladay is only listed as a limited participant, it still puts him firmly on track to returning for Sunday’s Week 3 matchup against the Arizona Cardinals as long as he manages to log a full session before the end of the week. His likely presence in the wide receiver corps will relegate rookie Quintez Cephus back to his originally projected WR4 role after logging a 76.8% snap rate and accumulating a respectable 13 targets through the first two weeks of the season. This leaves Golladay, Marvin Jones Jr., and Danny Amendola as the primary wideouts in three-wide receiver sets for quarterback Matthew Stafford moving forward.
As reported by: Dave Birkett via Twitter Sterling Shepard (toe) placed on injured reserve
Shepard suffered a turf toe injury in the first half of Sunday’s loss to the Chicago Bears, and the results of an MRI he underwent on Monday must have not been promising as the Giants have placed him on injured reserve, effectively ruling him out for at least the next three weeks. His place on the active roster will be filled by Devonta Freeman, who officially signed his new contract on Tuesday evening and figures to be the leading candidate to eventually lead the Giants’ backfield committee following the loss of Saquon Barkley for the season. As for Shepard’s absence, Damion Ratley should continue to see the largest increase in snaps and routes run on the outside opposite of Darius Slayton whereas Golden Tate will likely dominant slot routes and see higher than the 60.3% of snaps he played in Week 2 as he works his way back from a hamstring injury.
As reported by: Mike Garafolo via Twitter Devonta Freeman will sign with Giants, pending COVID-19 testing and physical
According to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network, the Giants and Freeman have agreed to terms on a contract pending Freeman’s successful passing of a physical and intake COVID-19 testing. As long as everything goes to plan, Freeman could reportedly participate in practice as early as Wednesday, which could potentially put him on track to at least play a limited role in the offensive gameplan come Sunday’s Week 3 matchup against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday afternoon. This should keep Dion Lewis in the backup running back role once Freeman is up to speed, while Wayne Gallman would likely remain as the third-stringer to provide depth at the position after being a healthy inactive for this past week’s loss to the Chicago Bears.
As reported by: Mike Garafolo via Twitter Other tagged players: Saquon Barkley Henry Ruggs III (knee) officially active for Monday Night Football
Ruggs was able to return to practice on Saturday and is now officially active for Monday night’s Week 2 matchup against the New Orleans Saints despite battling a knee injury that kept him limited the entire week. There have been no reports of a potential snap count for Ruggs, and he would have easily led the Raiders’ wide receiver corps in routes run in Week 1 if he wasn’t forced to exit briefly with the aforementioned knee injury. He’ll still be a viable option in daily fantasy formats for tonight’s single-game slate, especially if Las Vegas is forced into a more pass-heavy game script, and Ruggs is able to maintain a similar 17.9% target share that he amassed in last Sunday’s win over the Carolina Panthers.
As reported by: the Las Vegas Raiders via Twitter Henry Ruggs III (knee) expected to play Monday night
Ruggs was able to return to practice on Saturday and is now officially expected to play in Monday night’s Week 2 matchup against the New Orleans Saints despite battling a knee injury that kept him limited the entire week. Ruggs would have easily led the Raiders’ wide receiver corps in snaps in Week 1 if he wasn’t forced to exit briefly with the aforementioned knee injury, so he’ll still be a viable option in daily fantasy formats for tonight’s single game slate, especially if Las Vegas is forced into a more pass-heavy gamescript, and Ruggs is able to maintain a similar 17.9% target share that he amassed in last Sunday’s win over the Carolina Panthers.
As reported by: Ian Rapoport via Twitter