NFL Player News

Kuntz (6'8/245) was clearly quarterback Hayden Wolff’s favorite target in this one, which led to Kuntz being the beneficiary of a five yard touchdown for ODU’s first offensive touchdown of the day. Kuntz’s eight receptions on the day tie a season-high that he has reached on two other occasions this season, as the former Penn State tight end has now caught 43 passes for 443 yards and three touchdowns. He and the Monarchs will face Florida International in Week 10.

Morris, like other Atlanta coaches this offseason, emphasized Robinson as a centerpiece of the team’s new offense under OC Zac Robinson. “In as simple of a form as you can possibly make it,” Morris said, “it’s ‘get the ball to Bijan as much as you can in as many ideal situations that you possibly can.’” It’s clear the new Falcons regime will do everything it can to feed Robinson, who totaled 1,463 yards from scrimmage and eight touchdowns as a rookie. Unlike former head coach Arthur Smith, Morris’ staff seems intent on seeing what they have in Robinson. Tyler Allgeier likely won’t have much of a role in the Falcons backfield unless Robinson misses time in 2024.

Saylors in 2024 led the UFL in rushing yards (537), averaging five yards per carry and scoring five touchdowns for the Battlehawks. Saylors led the UFL in yards after contact per rush. He also caught 24 passes for 264 yards. It will be an uphill battle for Saylors to crack the Giants roster this summer. For now, Devin Singletary and Tyrone Tracy are expected to lead New York’s backfield.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that the contract is the richest for a No. 34 overall pick in league history, although the exact values have yet to be released. McConkey’s agent, Chris Cabott of Equity Sports, reportedly confirmed the deal to Rapoport late Monday afternoon. The contract reportedly bests the No. 34 overall quarterback premium from a year ago, at least as far as guaranteed money is concerned. McConkey has every opportunity to lay his claim to a healthy target share for an offense that saw its top four skill position players from 2023 walk in the offseason.

Washington wasn’t on many draft radars this offseason, but the Falcons went out and selected the former Illinois Illini with the No. 187 overall pick in this year’s draft, giving him a chance to make the 53-man roster this offseason. In addition to the praise heaped on Washington by London, Falcons beat writer, Daniel Flick, noted that Washington also took first and second-team snaps during the middle of OTAs, and had the chance to catch passes from Kirk Cousins and rookie first rounder Michael Penix. Washington still has a long way to go to break camp with the 53-man roster. We’ll see how things shape up next month once the pads come on for training camp.

There’s a good chance this is a negotiation tactic by Aiyuk, who skipped out on mandatory minicamp amidst his contract dispute with the team. The veteran wide receiver is set to play out 2024 on the fifth-year option the 49ers exercised earlier this offseason, but he appears steadfast in his desire not to play without a long-term extension. Aiyuk caught 74 passes for a career-high 1,342 yards last season and found the end zone seven times. The 2020 first-rounder has strung together back-to-back 1,000-yard seasons and has been a focal point of the offense. However, the lack of movement on an extension, coupled with their selection of Ricky Pearsall in the first round of this year’s draft, could be spelling the end of Aiyuk’s time in the Bay Area. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports that the 49ers ‘have made efforts’ to extend Aiyuk, “but the sense is things have stalled.” We’ll see what comes of this situation in the coming weeks, but with training camp a month away, it’s fair to say Aiyuk is a legitimate threat of a holdout if he and the team can’t agree to terms on an extension.

While Quinn and the coaching staff won’t commit to a starting quarterback at this point in the offseason, we know Daniels has handled the majority of first-team reps, and he’s left coaches impressed with his effort on and off the field. In an article published by ESPN’s John Keim, quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard said Daniels is “a student of [the game]” while adding that Daniels “loves talking about it, loves watching it, loves playing it, loves practicing it.” Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury also credited Daniels for having a high football IQ. With OTAs and minicamp now over, the next stop for Daniels is training camp, which is scheduled to begin in about a month. Given his draft capital, reps with the first team, and high praises thus far, it would be a surprise if Daniels wasn’t under center for the Commanders in Week 1 when they take on the Buccaneers. Fantasy managers looking for a reliable quarterback at a discount can look to Daniels, whose rushing upside helps make for a strong fantasy floor and a potentially high-end QB1 ceiling if he’s able to put everything together early in the season.

Surtain is entering his fourth season as a pro and is coming off arguably his worst year. The former No. 9 overall pick earned a PFF coverage grade of 64.7 last season while allowing 56 receptions for 701 yards and three touchdowns. It was the most receptions and yards he had ever allowed in a season, while opposing quarterbacks also enjoyed a 93.9 passer rating when targeting the Broncos’ CB1. The bill will soon come due for Surtain, who had his fifth-year option picked up earlier this offseason. While it’s possible he will play out this season without an extension, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him ink a new deal next offseason if the Broncos view him as part of their long-term plans.

This one shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Thornton, a former second-round pick of the Patriots in 2022, has been slowed by injuries and offered little offense upside when healthy. Through 22 career games, he’s caught just 35 passes for 338 yards and two scores, with most of that production coming in his rookie season. In addition to playing under a new coaching staff, Thornton is also set to compete against rookies Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker. Polk is already locked into a roster spot as a second-round pick, and the Patriots used a fourth-round pick on Baker, which should all but secure his spot. Outside of one or two depth options, the Patriots’ wide receiver room feels fairly in place. It may take a camp injury or two for Thornton to stick on the roster come cut day.

Kaboly went on to add, “Freiermuth might not have dropped a pass all month” and reiterated his “instant connection” with Russell Wilson — something he mentioned earlier this offseason. Playing in an offense that, outside of George Pickens, looks thin at receiver talent, Freiermuth has a chance to be a key contributor for the Steelers in 2024. Add to that the fact that offensive coordinator Arthur Smith targeted his tight ends 173 times from 2021-2023, the third most of any team in the league, and it’s possible this year is setting up to be the best of Freiermuth’s career. Injuries limited him to just 12 games last season, but in 2022, he caught 63 passes for 732 yards and two touchdowns. Currently going as a fringe TE1/TE2 in fantasy drafts, Freiermuth could turn into a solid value for fantasy managers who opt to wait on the position in drafts.

After redshirting in his 2022 rookie campaign, Austin caught 17 passes for 180 yards and one touchdown for the Steelers last season. The speedy fourth-round pick “continued to get better from the first day to the last” throughout the offseason, per Kaboly, and will have a chance to compete for a starting job on a wide receiver depth chart that is wide open after Pickens. Austin earned five-plus targets in three of his first four games to start last season, but was targeted just nine times in his final 13 games — a brutal footnote on his sophomore season. Even if he earns a “big role” in 2024, expectations should be tempered in an Arthur Smith/Russell Wilson led attack.