NFL Player News

Saints GM Mickey Loomis had just $1.4 million in cap space prior to the move. Johnson’s restructure frees up $3.5 million more, allowing Loomis to bolster depth as needed.

Love went down awkwardly with just five seconds remaining in the fourth quarter in Friday’s loss to the Eagles, staying down on the field for a while before being helped off the field by trainers. Love appeared to be in excruciating pain prior to limping to the sideline. Initial testing ruled out an ACL tear while follow-on testing revealed a sprained MCL. Packers nation can breathe a collective sigh of relief after what looked to be a devastating injury. Love will likely require significant time to rehab the sprain but it is not thought to be a season-ending injury. Further word on the expected rehab timeline should be passed by the team in the coming days.

Skowronek should fill a depth role on offense while contributing to special teams and is not in the fantasy discussion for Week 1 barring injury. The elevation likely has a lot to do with rookie Roman Wilson’s absence for Sunday for a team lacking in depth at the wide receiver position.

The team elevated quarterback Sam Hartman from the practice squad in an associated move, who is likely to serve as the emergency quarterback behind starter Jayden Daniels and backup quarterback Jeff Driskel. Mariota began the offseason in a competition with the first-round rookie before injuring his pectoral, prompting the move to injured reserve. Even so, the 30-year-old journeyman was a long shot to earn the starting job over the promising rookie.

This was always thought to be the outcome ahead of their Week 1 game against the Browns, with the roster transaction making it official. Lamb, fresh off a lucrative contract extension, will look to bolster his numbers after finishing as fantasy’s top wide receiver in 2023. That path starts against the Browns on the road.

Gaskin is expected to play primarily on special teams while offering some depth behind Aaron Jones and Ty Chandler. The Vikings carried only two running backs on the 53-man roster through cut downs, making the recent signing of Gaskin and his ability to also contribute on special teams a priority.

Justin Fields is still expected to draw the start against the Falcons but the team can now take the decision down to the wire with the release of inactives an hour and a half prior to kickoff. Kyle Allen should serve as the backup to Fields for as long as Wilson remains out.

The team did designate him for return, meaning the veteran tight end will miss the next four games, at minimum. Carolina’s tight end stable is wide open at present, with Tommy Tremble ruled out and a pair of rookies and converted wide receiver Jordan Matthews left standing on the active roster for Week 1. Either way, expect the offense to flow through recent addition Diontae Johnson and running back Chuba Hubbard against the Saints.

A late addition to the injury report is potentially bad news for the Patriots safety’s availability this week. Peppers was a key part of the New England defense last season as he recorded 78 tackles, two interceptions, eight pass deflections, one force fumble and one fumble recovery. If Peppers were to miss Week 1, it would be a boon to the Bengals offense, which will potentially be short-handed.

Darden is a former fourth round pick by the Buccaneers in the 2021 NFL Draft. He’ll take the open roster spot the Browns had after waiving David Bell earlier this week. Darden is an additional weapon in the return game for Cleveland while Ford Jr. and Ifedi are depth pieces.

The Colts’ starting kicker Matt Gay has missed practice all week due to a hernia. That puts Shrader in line for his first career start in the Colts’ Week 1 matchup with the Texans. While that matchup carries one of the higher totals of the week and Shrader will be kicking indoors, using a kicker with more experience is the practical move for fantasy managers setting lineups in Week 1.