DFS Alerts
What can the Browns do for You
It appears as though Tyrod Taylor will enter week one as the starting quarterback for the Cleveland Browns. This has major fantasy implications as this revamped Cleveland offense has some talented pieces in place. Whoever’s under center for Cleveland will have solid pass catching running backs Duke Johnson and Carlos Hyde at his disposal as well as a receiving group that includes uber-talented Josh Gordon, new addition Jarvis Landry, and 2016 first round pick Corey Coleman as well as 2017 first round pick David Njoku. We’ll have to keep our eyes on this battle during training camp.
As reported by: Cleveland Plain Dealer
Mixon is not Fiction
Joe Mixon appears to be in much better shape entering this training camp as opposed to his rookie season. He ballooned up to nearly 240 pounds last year and looks to be headed into this training camp in the 220 pound range. This is great news from a fantasy perspective as there is very little competition for Joe Mixon in the Cincinnati backfield. In limited playing time last year, Mixon put up 65 yards per game from scrimmage and scored 4 rushing touchdowns. Running backs who put on weight typically don’t get the results they want whereas running backs that decide to trim down have a solid track record of improvement from one season to the next.
As reported by: Joe Goodberry Twitter Crabtree Lands in Baltimore
Baltimore has added several new pieces to revamp the WR corps that was utterly putrid in 2017. The biggest addition is Michael Crabtree coming over from Oakland. Is Joe Flacco elite? Highly doubtful. But he is still solid enough to turn a number one wide receiver into a nice fantasy asset for us. Crabtree has been a consistent performer in the NFL since being drafted in the first round back in 2009. Even entering the season at the advanced age of 30 years old, Crabtree may still offer upside in DFS lineups now that he is the clear-cut number one wide receiver with an adequate quarterback delivering him the ball.
Two-Eyed Raven delivers Value
Alex Collins looks to have total control of the Baltimore backfield in week 1. He’s coming off a season where he ran for 973 yards and scored six touchdowns on the ground. Baltimore made no major additions to the running back position and the main competition for Collins will be change of pace RB Buck Allen and Kenneth Dixon, who is coming off of a torn meniscus that sidelined him for the entire 2017 season. The price tag never jumped too high on Alex Collins and he could be a solid source of value to crank up the DFS season.
Hogan's (an early season) Hero
With #1 WR Julian Edelman suspended the first four games of the season, all eyes will be on the New England receiving corps to see who can step in and eat up the slack. The odds on favorite is 6’ 1”, 215 lbs. Chris Hogan who has shown a nice rapport with Tom Brady since his arrival in Beantown. On his way to a very solid season in 2017, injuries derailed Chris Hogan. However he had been a big target in the playoffs for Brady, culminating in a massive 6/128/1 stat line in last season’s Super Bowl. The first four games of this upcoming season could be extremely fruitful for Hogan while we await the return of Edelman.
Sneaky Upside for Jets Quarterback
Veteran Josh McCown and first round draft pick Sam Darnold appear to be a locked in a starting quarterback battle for the rights to be under center for the New York Jets in week 1. Darnold was the #3 overall selection in this past draft and showed play-making skills in college. Josh McCown had a surprisingly solid fantasy season with New York in 2017 where he passed for nearly 3,000 yards with 18 touchdowns and ran for an additional 5 scores. With weapons like Robby Anderson, Jermaine Kearse and newly signed Terrelle Pryor, the Jets starting QB could prove to be a big DFS asset throughout the 2018 season.
As reported by: Connor Hughes Twitter Brady's Bunch
Tom Brady and Rob Gronkowski took part in the recent New England Patriots mandatory minicamp. After a tumultuous off-season which saw Rob Gronkowski contemplate retirement and Tom Brady seemingly clash with his head coach, all seems well in New England again. Gronkowski will be a weekly candidate for high-scoring tight end as long as he remains healthy. Meanwhile Tom Brady’s fantasy production has slipped recently and will be without #1 WR Julian Edelman through the first four games this season. Depending on salary, he could be a fade candidate to start the season in DFS.
As reported by: Albert Breer It's Always Sony in New England
Sony Michel has the makings of being a sleeper pick in season-long fantasy and a tournament winning running back in daily fantasy. The New England Patriots have never been afraid of turning over personnel and they did that again this off-season when they let Dion Lewis walk. That opens the door for the dual threat, former Georgia Bulldog that was selected at the end of the first round. Michel had 64 receptions in college and show that big play ability when he lit up Oklahoma for 222 total yards and four touchdowns in the Rose Bowl. He should feel right at home in this New England backfield committee.
A Dolphin's Tale
Miami RB Kenyan Drake is looking to sustain the production he put out last season. When injuries forced Drake into the bell-cow role for Miami he racked up 444 rushing yards and 4.9 ypc in 5 games to go along with 17 receptions. Drake showed he can be a very effective back for fantasy purposes and only has minor obstacles in his way in 2018. Miami’s lone big slash addition in the backfield has been the signing of 35 year old Frank Gore, so the volume should still be there for Drake. If given the opportunity to play all three downs and get goal line opportunities, Drake could have a dynamic beginning of the season, until the wear and tear of lead NFL RB duty slows him down.
Big money WR on the mend
Allen Robinson appears ready to be “a full go” when the club reports for training camp on July 19. Robinson suffered a torn ACL in Week 1 of the 2017 season. When healthy for Jacksonville, Robinson racked up 153 receptions and 20 TD’s in 2015/2016 combined. Blake Bortles never developed into a solid passing QB but Trubisky has the potential to breakout this season. If so, then it will be Robinson who spearheads this Chicago receiving corps. Robinson is still only 24 years old and still has room to grow headed into his 5th NFL season.
As reported by: Jeff Dickerson ESPN More weapons, more production on tap for this Bears QB
When asked about how Mitch Trubisky has grown this offseason, teammate Kyle Long answered: “My little boy is becoming a man. Mitch—they’ve taken the training wheels off of Mitch’s little bike. So he going to be able to do some things creatively and get to showcase his skills.” Signs are pointing to a breakout season from the 2nd year QB out of North Carolina. Enough physical skills to warrant being drafted 2nd overall, Trubisky now has improved weapons around him including standout WR Allen Robinson and play-making TE Trey Burton. Also a head coach, Matt Nagy, that guided the Chiefs to 28.6 points per game when he took over play calling duties from Andy Reid last season in Kansas City.
As reported by: Twitter Mike Gillislee, Kenny Britt, Alan Branch inactive for NE; Dannell Ellerbe active for PHI
No real surprises here. For those playing Super Bowl contests, Gillislee won’t factor into the Patriots backfield mix and Kenny Britt isn’t going to steal any snaps from Cooks, Hogan, Amendola or Dorsett.
Tom Brady (hand) active and will start Sunday, as expected
Brady is active and will start, as expected, in today’s AFC Championship game against the Jacksonville Jaguars after previously being listed as questionable on the New England Patriots’ injury report with a laceration on his right hand that required several stitches. Reports have surfaced that Brady will “probably” wear a glove on his throwing hand to protect the injury, but the team is not expecting it to affect his performance this afternoon. According to ESPN’s Ed Werder, the Patriots have made any alterations to the offensive gameplan and Brady will be able to take snaps under center, something that was in doubt earlier in the week. Additionally, Rex Burkhead is active, but he hasn’t been able to participate fully in any practices since sustaining his knee injury, a major concern for his effectiveness and potential workload in Sunday’s contest. It’s obviously impossible to predict what the Patriots or head coach Bill Belichick will do on a game-to-game basis, but it seems awfully difficult to imagine Dion Lewis losing his lead-back role with Burkhead returning from such an extended absence and appearing to be less than fully healthy. The problem now arises that Lewis is priced appropriately across the industry, and if Burkhead eats into his volume from the last three games, even marginally, it may end up being enough to prevent him from reaching salary-based expectations in daily fantasy formats this afternoon.
As reported by: the New England Patriots via Twitter
Adam Thielen (back) will play Sunday
Thielen will play and is expected to be active for tonight’s NFC Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles after previously being listed as questionable on the Minnesota Vikings injury report with a back issue. Thielen was able to fully participate in two practices this week, so he should likely be ready to go for Sunday’s contest. The Vikings did shake up the wide receiver corps a bit for the Divisional Round, as Jarius Wright worked as the team’s primary slot receiver, a role that had previously been occupied by Thielen. who logged a season-low 16 snaps from the slot last week. The reason for the drastic change in slot routes for Thielen was that Wright seemingly surpassed Laquon Treadwell on the depth chart, so it seems likely that he, Thielen, and Stefon Diggs will be the primary wide receivers utilized in three-wide sets for Minnesota this evening. More reps on the outside will actually be a bump to Thielen’s projected fantasy value in this matchup with the Eagles defense, and he makes for a logical pivot off of the highly-owned Diggs at the wide receiver position.
As reported by: Andrew Krammer via Twitter Rex Burkhead (knee) will play Sunday; Mike Gillislee (knee) will be inactive
Burkhead will play, as expected, in today’s AFC Championship game against the Jacksonville Jaguars after previously being listed as questionable on the New England Patriots’ injury report with a knee injury that had kept him sidelined since Week 15, a total of four weeks, while Mike Gillislee will be inactive due to a knee injury. Burkhead hasn’t been able to participate fully in any practices since sustaining the injury, a major concern for his effectiveness and potential workload in Sunday’s contest. It’s obviously impossible to predict what the Patriots or head coach Bill Belichick will do on a game-to-game basis, but it seems awfully difficult to imagine Dion Lewis losing his lead-back role with Burkhead returning from such an extended absence and appearing to be less than fully healthy. The problem now arises that Lewis is priced appropriately across the industry, and if Burkhead eats into his volume from the last three games, even marginally, it may end up being enough to prevent him from reaching salary-based expectations in daily fantasy formats this afternoon.
As reported by: Ian Rapoport via Twitter Other tagged players: Mike Gillislee