| | | | Tuesday, August 25, 2020 | | One of the best ways to get ready for your Fantasy football draft is to just get out there and draft. We've done literally dozens of mock drafts since the end of the 2019 season, and each one teaches you something new. You'll want to check out Tuesday's episode of Fantasy Football Today on CBS Sports HQ at noon EST as we break down the results of our latest draft, and then head here to do a mock draft of your own. | | Of course, you'll want to make sure you have all of the right information before you do, and that's why we're here. First up, we've got new articles from the FFT crew, and then the latest on a slew of injuries from around the NFL, plus my ranking of where the rookie class stands with two weeks until the season kicks off. | | As always, feel free to shoot me an email at Chris.Towers@CBSInteractive.com with the subject line "AskFFT" and your question might be featured here throughout this week. | | Here are some stories from the FFT team you may have missed: | ADP Review: Stock watch Rankings: Risers and fallers
Position battle updates 2QB/Superflex Rankings: Top-200 | | And here's what else we've got on tap today: | | 🚑Injuries to watch 📊Rookie rankings update 📰Training camp injuries, news, and notes | | 🚑Injuries to watch | | | | Kenyan Drake was in a walking boot Monday, but took to Twitter to tell everyone "no worries I'm good 🤞🏾." We all know he was speaking directly to Fantasy players with that one, so good looking out, Kenyan. Still, in the wake of Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury saying he "feels like Chase Edmonds is a starting running back in this league," it's worth remembering to keep Drake 's backup on your draft board. This is a great situation for a running back, as Edmonds himself showed with a 126-yard, three-touchdown game in Week 7 last season. It shouldn't impact Drake's value unless it lingers longer than expected. Mike Williams has a sprained shoulder and is week to week. This is a real bummer, because I'd really like to see Williams play a full season healthy and be unleashed. He played through a knee injury in 2019 and still had 1,000 yards, and it sounds like he'll be playing through this one, so the price is so low (135.7 ADP) that he's well worth the risk even now. Tyrell Williams has a torn labrum in his shoulder, though he will try to play through it. "Try" being the operative word here, and my expectation is Williams won't have a significant role even if he does play. It's all lining up for Henry Ruggs and Bryan Edwards to be in the starting lineup for Week 1. Edwards especially has been talked up by Derek Carr quite a bit, and represents a great late-round sleeper. More about Ruggs shortly. | | | | 📊Rookie rankings update | | One mistake a lot of Fantasy players make when considering rookies is to worry too much about their Week 1 role, but that's not why you're drafting a rookie. Well, maybe a few of them qualify, but for the most part, you're looking at their season-long upside. That Week 1 role matters, but we can't lose sight of the big picture. Here's where the top-10 rookies stand after a week of training camp, with an eye on both their season-long upside as well as their chances of being a starting Fantasy option in Week 1: | | | | 1. Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB, Chiefs | | How good can he be? He's a top-six player for Jamey already, and he's not far behind in our other experts' ranks. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: 100%. You're drafting Edwards-Helaire with the expectation he'll be an every-week stud, and nothing in camp has changed that. | | 2. Jonathan Taylor, RB, Colts | | How good can he be? Elite prospect — best in this class, in my opinion — on a team with a great defense, a great offensive line and a quarterback who loves throwing to running backs … there is true No. 1 overall pick upside. Perhaps even higher than CEH's. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: Pretty high. Marlon Mack is going to remain the starter and Nyheim Hines figures to get passing work, but Taylor is in the RB2 discussion even with that. | | 3. D'Andre Swift, RB, Lions | | How good can he be? Borderline No. 1 running back if he gets the passing work. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: Maybe as a flex. He's dealing with a leg injury right now and, while it's not considered serious, it's a lost opportunity to continue his development. | | Here's what Dave Birkett, the Lions beat writer for the Detroit Free Press said about the backfield on Fantasy Football Today Monday on CBS Sports HQ: | | "I see about a 50/50 split workload. I think Swift can emerge as the third-down back, his receiving skills are such that he can be a really effective weapon there. He certainly has to come around on the pass protection. I would expect Kerryon to get more of the running opportunities. Ultimately, you're probably looking at splitting every series, or every other series, or so." | | | | 4. Cam Akers, RB, Rams | | How good can he be? There's top 12 RB upside here as much for the offense he plays in as for Akers' merits as a player, considerable though they may be. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: They got better over the weekend when Darrell Henderson was forced to leave the team's scrimmage with a hamstring injury. Malcolm Brown figures to get the first series of the season for the Rams, but everything else is up for grabs after that. | | 5. CeeDee Lamb, WR, Cowboys | | How good can he be? In Year 1, a top 24 wide receiver. Down the road? There's no ceiling. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: I'm viewing him that way. The Cowboys had 31 wide receiver or tight end games with at least 12 PPR points last season, and Lamb has a chance to take a significant chunk of the 166 targets Randall Cobb and Jason Witten shared. Dak Prescott thinks the Cowboys could have three 1,000-yard receivers in 2020, and I don't see why not. He's not higher only because the running backs have more upside for the season. | | 6. Jalen Reagor, WR, Eagles | | How good can he be? He can definitely be the Eagles best receiver. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: As a WR3, pretty good. He's worked with the first team pretty much exclusively in camp, and Carson Wentz compared him to Julio Jones recently. Yep. | | 7. Zack Moss, RB, Bills | | How good can he be? There's top 24 RB potential here. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: To start the season, I expected it will be pretty tough to depend on Moss, but he'll be in the flex conversation, in his role as the goal-line back in what may otherwise be a pretty even timeshare. | | 8. Henry Ruggs III, WR, Raiders | | How good can he be? Think peak Mike Wallace, DeSean Jackson, Will Fuller — or what A.J. Brown and Stefon Diggs managed last season. That's the high end of possible outcomes, but Ruggs has that kind of big-play ability. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: He might have upside to be a top 12 WR every week, but since he's a rookie playing with a quarterback who hasn't exactly aired it out in the past, Ruggs will need to be more of a flex option until he proves he's more than that. | | 9. Jerry Jeudy, WR, Broncos | | How good can he be? There's a chance he's a better player than Courtland Sutton, who was WR19 last season. At least, eventually. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: Jeudy seems almost certain to be no better than the No. 2 option in this passing game, so you'll want to let Drew Lock prove he can sustain multiple viable receivers before getting him into your lineup. | | 10. Brandon Aiyuk, WR, 49ers | | How good can he be? Funny enough, Deebo Samuel's 2019 season might actually be a pretty good comp. Chance of being a Week 1 starter: That will depend on the health of his hamstring after he left practice over the weekend. It's not expected to be a significant injury, and Aiyuk was trending toward being one of the 49ers two starters at WR. You probably won't need to rely on him in Week 1, but given how people are talking about him at camp, and the apparent connection he already has with Jimmy Garoppolo, he could be in your lineup by Week 2. | | Others to consider: Joe Burrow, J.K. Dobbins, Joshua Kelley, Laviska Shenault Jr., Justin Jefferson, Michael Pittman Jr., Bryan Edwards, AJ Dillon, Antonio Gibson | | You'll have to exercise patience with this group, though it wouldn't surprise me if Burrow was a starting-caliber player from Day 1. Dobbins, Kelley, Dillon and Gibson are waiting for an injury, while Shenault and Edwards especially have a chance to be the No. 2 options in their passing games. | | Leave for deep leagues: KJ Hamler, Chase Claypool, Van Jefferson, Denzel Mims, Ke'Shawn Vaughn, Darrynton Evans, Justin Herbert, Devin Asiasi, Antonio Gandy-Golden, Cole Kmet | | Vaughn and Evans are probably the two guys who might get drafted in a standard 12-team league among this crew, but neither appears to have locked up the No. 2 job on their teams, so they aren't must-draft players. | | 📰Training camp injuries, news, and notes | | | | Injury report | | D'Andre Swift missed this weekend's practices with a leg injury. There haven't been many details, but it's not presently expected to keep him out of action. Darrell Henderson has a hamstring injury, and coach Sean McVay hopes he'll be ready for Week 1. That helps Akers' chances of making an impact, and could make Malcolm Brown a Week 1 flex option. A.J. Green (hamstring) is still sidelined, but John Ross (personal) and Tee Higgins (hamstring) returned Sunday. Green has already lost a week of work with Burrow, and it's not like he got much work with Zac Taylor's offense last year either. I'm starting to worry quite a bit. Diontae Johnson (leg) has missed five days of practice in a row. The Steelers haven't given many details, but this is a bad sign for a popular breakout candidate. He's still worth drafting with a mid-round pick, but temper expectations early. Darrynton Evans (leg) has not practiced since Friday. Evans hasn't exactly blown the roof off the place either, so fullback Khari Blasingame might end up the backup to Derrick Henry. Yikes. | | | News and notes
| | Patriots WR N'Keal Harry returned after missing three days of practice. It's been a disappointing camp for the 2019 first-rounder, though he did have his best day of camp yet Monday. I'm still holding out hope, but in the "he's my sixth receiver, let's see what happens" kind of way. … Bills GM Brandon Beane called Devin Singletary the starter Sunday, but matchups could dictate usage between him and Moss. This one could be pretty close to an even split. … Eagles WR J.J. Arcega-Whiteside has been working with the first-team offense at times in camp, and could fill the big-bodied Alshon Jeffery role. That's why they drafted him, after all, though he has a lot to prove after a deeply disappointing rookie season. … Washington TE Logan Thomas impressing and could be the team's starter. Thomas is a converted quarterback, so he's still learning the position, but he does have ideal size and speed. A sleeper to watch for a hot start. … Auden Tate is drawing positive reviews in camp and seems to have the inside track to be the No. 3 WR for the Bengals — maybe No. 2 if Green can't get on the field. Not worth drafting, but worth watching, because he flashed at times last season. … Mike Davis seems to be the backup to Christian McCaffrey. He won't be relevant unless there is an injury to McCaffrey, but he would be very relevant if that happened. ... I'm hesitant to even include this one, because "Best Shape Of My Life" is such a tired camp trope, but people are talking about it, so ... Bears RB David Montgomery lost weight and has said he feels quicker. A breakout season could be coming, though I'd be saying that even if he hadn't lost weight. | | The Fantasy Football Today Draft Guide is here, and I promise, you'll want to have it by your side on Draft Day. We've boiled down everything you need to draft in one place, with consensus expert rankings and auction values, tiers, a round-by-round walkthrough, and Draft Day strategies and rules from Jamey, Dave, Heath and Ben. It's the next best thing to having them next to you while you draft. Head here to sign up for it, because it's absolutely free — which seems like a good value to me. | | | | | | | | 24/7 Sports News Network | | Football Pick'em | Want your sports news and highlights straight without the noise? Stream HQ on Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, and more!
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