NFL Player News

O’Connell in a Tuesday presser appeared ready to move on from Josh Dobbs after his Monday night meltdown against the Bears. Dobbs threw for 185 yards, one touchdown, and four picks, appearing out of sorts throughout. O’Connell said the team would choose a starting quarterback for Week 14 (after the team’s bye) based on which signal caller could best get the ball to Justin Jefferson, who is returning from a hamstring injury. “We’re going to make sure that whoever is playing quarterback is aware and understands the intent behind plays where either Justin is the primary [target], or based upon coverage, based upon the defensive look, how to quickly and efficiently get to the right place to go with the football,” O’Connell said. That puts rookie QB Jaren Hall and Nick Mullens firmly in play to take over for Dobbs in Week 14 against the Raiders. Both QBs should be monitored in superflex formats.

Yes, it’s only seven-on-seven drills, but for a player coming back from a late-season ACL tear who is hoping to be ready in time for Week 1, it’s a step in the right direction. The Chiefs remain optimistic that their QB1 will be ready to go at the start of the season, and Mahomes himself has said he’s hopeful he’ll be a full participant in training camp. With nearly two months to go until training camp begins, Mahomes has plenty of time left to continue his recovery before the real work begins. In the event he isn’t ready for Week 1, Justin Fields will likely start in his absence.

Proche is a sixth-year vet who spent last season with the Titans. The former sixth-round pick has caught 34 passes for 364 scoreless yards in his career and also has 68 punt returns to his name. The veteran receiver could catch on to the Eagles’ roster as a special teams contributor, but given the current depth of the Eagles’ receiver room, it’s hard to imagine him having any role in the passing game if he were to ear a spot.

Brissett has been away from the team while hoping for a new contract ahead of this season. Despite his decision to stay away from voluntary activities, Brissett is expected to attend this week’s mandatory minicamp to avoid any fines the team may levy against him should he not report. Brissett is due $4.88 million base salary this season and is in the final year of the two-year deal he signed last offseason. The 33-year-old vet is hoping for an increase in pay after playing his way into a starting role last season, and has already been named the starting QB for this season. It’s possible that when Brissett reports to minicamp, he keeps his activity to a minimum, but we’ll see whether his decision to report helps his negotiations before training camp begins. Brissett profiles as a mid to low-end QB2 in fantasy next season, but could provide plenty of spike weeks to elevate rosters in 2QB/Superflex leagues.

Smart. Henderson was viewed as a potential passing game contributor as a rookie last year, but veteran RB Rhamondre Stevenson continued to lead the way on passing downs throughout the year. Over the course of the playoffs, Stevenson out-snapped Henderson 54-to-6 on third down and 20-to-17 in the two-minute drill. If Henderson has meaningfully improved pass protection and receiving, he could challenge Stevenson for that role in training camp. Henderson adds that after being tested “physically and mentally” by playing through consecutive extended seasons, at Ohio State and with the Patriots, he has been “refreshed as a full participant in the team’s voluntary offseason program.”

ESPN’s Mike Reiss spoke with Brown this week after the Patriots placed TE Julian Hill (knee) on season-ending injured reserve. Brown complimented Raridon’s long speed, athleticism and acceleration, while noting that he has “pretty good ball skills.” Brown believes that there is “so much more to kind of be captured from his college tape.” Raridon has been a dynasty darling in rookie drafts thus far. Hill’s injury could allow Raridon to compete for the TE2 role this season and potentially contribute to the Patriots’ offense down the stretch. He is worth keeping an eye on this summer.

Fellow Jaguars RB Chris Rodriguez (undisclosed) has not been present at any of the open OTA sessions thus far due to an apparent injury. We do not know if he will participate at mandatory minicamp this week. While Rodriguez rehabs whatever is ailing him, Tuten is earning praise. Jaguars head coach Liam Coen said he likes the way Tuten is running, compared to this time a year ago, and added that Tuten “looks like he is more in tune with the scheme now than as a rookie.” Shipley believes that Tuten could use minicamp to further solidify himself on the depth chart. Tuten’s current range of outcomes is quite wide. Beating his current half-PPR RB26 ADP is possible, particularly if he continues to shine while Rodriguez remains sidelined.

Kaye thinks Hubbard “will probably take the lion’s share of the touches out of the backfield early on.” Where his workload goes from there is likely dependent upon RB Jonathon Brooks’ (knee) health. The Panthers spent a second-round pick on Brooks in 2024. They would undoubtedly like to begin getting meaningful contributions from him this season. That said, Hubbard led the backfield in touches in 2023 and 2024, and has been a steady contributor for them. Hubbard may be a smarter pick in re-draft than he is in best ball, because managers can move on from him if need be. The backfield’s rotation in training camp could help clarify things.

If things go well for Brooks this summer, Kaye believes Brooks “will probably be used similarly to Rico Dowdle in the first two weeks of last season.” Dowdle played on 29.9 percent of the backfield snaps, totaling nine carries and four targets during that span. If Brooks “proves that he can stay durable and handle a consistent workload during the first month of the season,” the team could adjust the rotation after the Week 5 bye. Kaye opines that Brooks should not just be limited to passing downs and thinks it would “be fair to expect Brooks to even up his looks” with RB Chuba Hubbard eventually. Banking on a productive season from Brooks, 22, is not without risk, but his current ADP also looks like a decent buy-low opportunity.

Responding to readers on social media this week, Kelly said he believes Coleman is the Dolphins’ best rookie wide receiver, and linked to an article of his from May 8th. In the piece, Kelly argues that Coleman should be the team’s front-runner for the starting slot role. If Coleman can pull it off, he may only get on the field when the Dolphins are in three-wide receiver sets, so he may only end up being a WR5/matchup-based FLEX. Still, Coleman is worth keeping an eye on in training camp next month.

Speaking to reporters after practice last week, Bieniemy said that he wants Walker to understand “that we just have to become a better player when the ball is not in our hand.” That means Walker has to do “a great job protecting the quarterback” and be a “great” route runner on the perimeter. Bieniemy complimented Walker’s abilities as a rusher and said Walker is “doing a heck of a job” in practice, but Walker’s ticket to an elite season likely requires passing game participation. As a Seahawk last year, Walker ceded passing down snaps to RB Zach Charbonnet. The Chiefs already had RB Brashard Smith in-house and bolstered the backfield by adding more running backs with intriguing receiving skillsets. They signed RB Emari Demercado, “one of the better third-down backs in the NFL over the past couple of years,” and drafted RB Emmett Johnson in the fifth round. Walker has the highest upside of the bunch, but a run-centric workload could keep him in the RB2 ranks this season.