NFL Player News

According to Smith-Schuster, he felt about “60 percent” healthy during this time last season. The veteran receiver was dealing with a knee injury that carried over from his 2022 season with the Chiefs and said he never reached a point of feeling 100 percent healthy. Now, that’s all changed. Speaking Monday at OTAs, Smith-Schuster said he feels like he is in full health, which is good news for the Patriots, who signed him to a three-year, $25 million contract last offseason. Smith-Schuster caught 29 passes for 260 yards and one touchdown in 11 games for the Patriots last season, looking like a fraction of the player he was in 2022 when he went for 78-933-3 with the Chiefs. If healthy, he should be the best receiver in New England’s underwhelming wide receiver room. With that said, it’s hard to imagine him having anything more than WR4 fantasy upside until we get a chance to see him on the field.

The game is set for Thursday, September 4th, and will be carried on NBC and Peacock, our favorite network and streaming app. The defending Super Bowl champions will play host to the division rival Cowboys on a national stage that will also feature newly minted head coach Brian Schottenheimer. It’s a classic matchup that features two teams who could be headed in starkly different directions this season. While the Eagles will begin their title defense, Schottenheimer’s Cowboys are hoping to rebound from a 7-10 season with a roster that still has a lot of question marks heading into training camp.

Standig was careful to qualify his statements by saying it is “hard to assess” a player’s potential when they are playing against “a bunch of guys that are not going to make this team.” However, Standig did offer a “bold prediction” by saying that he could see Croskey-Merritt “getting into the rotation,” if he can prove his rookie minicamp performance was “real,” by maintaining the same level of play “when the veterans show up” for training camp. Overall, this should be viewed as a qualified yet positive report from a sharp beat reporter, though fantasy managers must acknowledge that Croskey-Merritt has not yet proved himself against NFL veterans. It remains to be seen whether he will be fantasy-relevant, but he is off to a decent start for a seventh-round pick. For future reference, Standig adds that Croskey-Merritt curiously goes by “Bill.”

All Round 1 rookie contract values are predetermined by the rookie wage scale. They are also fully guaranteed. Per Mike Florio, the contract’s training camp bonus “has become a device for putting a sizable chunk of the player’s pay in his pockets in future years, early in the season,” and the Bengals reportedly offered Stewart “a lower percentage than the 17th overall pick received in 2024.” It’s an embarrassing revelation. Rookie contract values increase each year, and the training camp bonus rate ostensibly should as well. After all, the deal is fully guaranteed anyway. Stewart has thus far refused to participate in the Bengals’ rookie minicamp and is apparently unlikely to change his mind until the Bengals at least give him the equivalent 2024 rate.

The “variety of arm angles” Ward employs reportedly “drew some attention during the scouting process,” but Callahan is unconcerned. He believes that if there are issues with a quarterback’s ball placement and delivery, “a lot of that usually still goes back to their body positioning and their lower-body work.” Ward spent much of Saturday’s rookie minicamp session participating in drills that emphasize proper pocket navigation, and maintaining one’s base while moving laterally. Any improvements Ward is able to make would be a boon to his fantasy value.

Winning a role on special teams is Restrepo’s ticket to the active roster. The beefy slot receiver could one day earn an offensive role, but for now, establishing himself as a utility player is key. Restrepo delivered middling results, serving as an occasional punt returner during his five-year college career. Overall, he returned 12 punts for 45 yards while forcing eight missed tackles along the way. His 3.8-yard average fails to inspire, but his 0.7 forced missed tackle average is notable.

Smith lands the deals after an ostensibly solid showing at the Raiders’ rookie minicamp last weekend. Head coach Pete Carroll is known for embracing competition across the roster and the Raiders’ inside linebacker depth chart gets murky behind starter LB Elandon Roberts. Free agent signee LB Devin White is coming off a shaky, two-team 2024 season, and second-year LB Tommy Eichenberg was bothered by a knee injury last year, logging just 79 defensive snaps. It’s a good landing spot for Smith. He may be able to work his way into the lineup after spending a year away from the game.

Over the past six weeks, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported that Cook would play for the Bills this season, regardless of whether GM Brandon Beane meets his $15 million annual asking price, and Beane notably told reporters that he received no trade inquiries regarding Cook during the 2025 NFL Draft. Beane is evidently holding firm on his request for Cook to prove his value in the upcoming season, and Cook has very little leverage. Even brief preseason holdouts can sometimes negatively impact a player’s in-season performance. This is, unfortunately, a situation for fantasy managers to keep an eye on when the Bills’ organized team activities begin on May 27th.

Per Fisher, the NFL is “closing in” on a deal with YouTube, which would allow users to stream the contest for free worldwide. Setting some sort of streaming record is undoubtedly the intent, as the NFL aggressively pursues its global viewership goals. Lining up a free showdown between Justin Herbert and Patrick Mahomes is a smart way for the NFL to convert new viewers into eager NFL Game Pass International subscribers. The game is scheduled for Friday, September 5th, so fantasy managers must make note of the kickoff time when announced.

FOX Sports’ Jordan Schultz was the first to report the deal. The former third-round pick worked out with the Steelers on a tryout basis during the team’s rookie minicamp and will now have a chance to earn a spot on the 53-man roster this summer. Sermon ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns on 56 carries last season while averaging an underwhelming 2.8 YPC. Sermon will face an uphill battle to make the Steelers’ roster with Cordarrelle Patterson and free agent signee Kenneth Gainwell presumably set to serve as the RB3 and RB4 behind Kaleb Johnson and Jaylen Warren.

Phillips was a third-round pick by the Ravens back in 2020 and has spent the last two seasons with the Giants. The four-year vet is presumably joining the Commanders on a “prove-it” deal and will likely battle for a depth spot in training camp. Phillips has started 28 of the 47 games he appeared in for his career and appeared in only three games last season after joining the Giants’ practice squad in November.