Mark Andrews

"Jamison HensleyAug 25, 2026, 06:00 AM ETCloseJamison Hensley is a reporter covering the Baltimore Ravens for ESPN. Jamison joined ESPN in 2011, covering the AFC North before focusing exclusively on the Ravens beginning in 2013. Jamison won the National Sports Media Association Maryland Sportswriter of the Year award in 2018, and he authored a book titled: Flying High: Stories of the Baltimore Ravens. He was the Ravens beat writer for the Baltimore Sun from 2000-2011.Multiple AuthorsAT THE END of one of the Baltimore Ravens' offseason workouts, first-year coach Jesse Minter rolled out two 16-pound medicine balls onto the practice field to get his point across.In an impromptu battle between the offense and defense, rookie guard Olaivavega Ioane used all his strength to throw the medicine ball farther than outside linebacker Zion Young. All of the defensive players were forced to do pushups. The offensive players' celebration was capped by rookie wide receiver Ja'Kobi Lane doing a cartwheel into a backflip.Throughout spring practices and training camp, the 43-year-old Minter has sprung on his players what he calls "At our best, when our best is needed" periods. The contests, which are kept secret until announced to the players at the end of practice, have included a relay featuring rookies carrying weights in both hands, a competition of one-handed catches and a race in which players push blocking sleds."You never know what play is going to be the biggest play of the game," Minter told his players. "Every situation, you've got to be ready. When your number is called, you step up and make the play."Minter's mantra -- "Be The Best" -- is displayed in massive silver lettering next to the doors that lead to the Ravens' practice field. It's a variation of a saying by basketball coaching legend John Wooden, and it has become the foundation for this new era in Baltimore.Minter was hired to replace John Harbaugh, who was fired after 18 seasons, because the Ravens have struggled over the past decade to be their best when their best was needed. In eight seasons with quarterback Lamar Jackson, Baltimore dominated in the regular season but repeatedly underachieved in the playoffs because of critical mistakes and turnovers.The Ravens believe Minter can elevate Baltimore to a championship level because of his competitive drive, his ability to connect with players and his cool demeanor.Unlike Harbaugh's intense, alpha-type leadership, Minter's coaching style has been described by Ravens players as calm and collected. His father, Rick, and his best friend, Ravens safeties coach P.J. Volker, can't remember a time when Minter has lost his temper.Throughout the spring workouts and training camp, no one has heard Minter raise his voice to the players. When Minter is unhappy with how practice is going, he huddles up the team so everyone can hear his message. Minter believes NFL teams win when there is a partnership between players and coaches."He's very [focused on] connecting the team right now," wide receiver Rashod Bateman said. "I think that's something that we needed."One of Minter's biggest changes was how Baltimore conducted training camp. Instead of sticking with Harbaugh's scorching afternoon practices, Minter moved the start of practices to the morning to avoid the heat and players wearing down.Minter has also regularly cut practices short, something that rarely occurred under Harbaugh. During a practice in the middle of training camp, Minter ended practice 30 minutes early because the team had reached its goal of 100 snaps that day. This is a major shift in philosophy from Harbaugh, who wanted his players to take pride in being one of the NFL's hardest-working teams and would run as many reps as possible during the allotted practice time.The Ravens' players say the positive vibes stem from Minter's encouraging words. When there is a mistake, he is known to put his arm around the player to address the correction and then urge him to move on to the next snap. In discussing the changes under Minter, some in the organization have noticed less anxiety around the team."It's kind of a pressure cooker that we live in on a daily basis, and he tries to take a lot of that out of it by maximizing our opportunities when we're out there -- understanding that we have to work hard, but at the same time, he takes care of us and puts us in positions to be successful and does not put everything on our plate every single day," Ravens safety Kyle Hamilton said. "It's little things each time, and I can see us slowly crescendoing throughout the season."THOSE CLOSE TO Minter believe others mistake his mild-mannered temperament for not being competitive. Their suggestion: Ask Minter about the toughest moment of his football career.As the defensive coordinator for Georgia State in 2014, he watched his defense allow 69 points to rival Georgia Southern. Georgia State gave up 613 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns in a game that still bothers Minter."I've always felt like you can come up with answers and solutions," Minter said. "And it was just what we were trying to get accomplished wasn't translating to the players. And that was a major 'Come to Jesus' moment, I would say."Volker, who has known Minter since they were college teammates at Mount St. Joseph University, knew Minter couldn't wait for another shot at Georgia Southern."We went into the lab in the offseason," Volker said. "And I'll never forget, he circled the date on the calendar. It was Dec. 5, and we were going to have the guys ready to play. And we were."Minter spent that offseason devising a defense that would shut down Georgia Southern's triple-option offense. He also recruited players to fit that scheme.That next season, Minter enjoyed one of his most satisfying wins as Georgia State defeated Georgia Southern, 34-7. Minter's defense held Georgia Southern to a season-low 203 yards of total offense. Georgia Southern coach Willie Fritz acknowledged after the game he was "outcoached.""That's a day I'll never forget," Minter said.IN WHAT WOULD later become a full-circle moment, Minter's first NFL coaching job came compliments of Harbaugh.In 2017, the Ravens had an opening for a defensive assistant. Rick Minter, Jesse's father, called Harbaugh, who had been Rick's special teams coordinator at the University of Cincinnati 20 years earlier.Rick Minter told Harbaugh: "He's smart, he's good looking. He can communicate. He sees the big picture."As Rick Minter put it, "I sold him on him being like John."But Jesse Minter quickly stood out to players by how much he listened. He often sat next to safety Eric Weddle in meetings and picked his brain about schematics and other ideas."Early on, you knew he was a bright coach," Weddle said. "He thought outside the box. I just drew a great appreciation of him, his personality, his demeanor."In 2018, Minter was part of the staff, which included defensive coordinator Wink Martindale and linebackers coach Mike Macdonald, to overhaul Baltimore's scheme. It was during this time that Minter gives Martindale credit for valuing his input and empowering him to build more confidence in himself."I just think he was very thorough and thinking things through strategically as well as breaking down opponents," Martindale said.Eight years later, after being defensive coordinator at Michigan and with the Los Angeles Chargers, Minter is back with the Ravens as the fourth head coach in their history. He takes over in Baltimore just months after Macdonald became the first defensive playcalling head coach to win a Super Bowl.Weddle believes Minter and Macdonald are "cut from the same cloth.""They're just very, very similar in a lot of ways," Weddle said. "And I expect to have the same impact in Baltimore as Mike has had in Seattle."IN MINTER'S INITIAL videoconference interview for the Ravens' head coaching job, he laid out his vision for the team's franchise QB to team officials."Creating a partnership with Lamar as myself as a head coach is the very first priority," Minter told them. "Creating an environment where he feels like the system is helping him become the best player he can be. That he's learning a system of offense and not a collaboration of plays."Minter will be judged on whether he can help Jackson, one of the top players in the NFL, advance to his first Super Bowl.Since Jackson became the Ravens' starting quarterback in the middle of 2018, he has produced the second-best regular-season record among quarterbacks (76-31), ranking behind only Kansas City's Patrick Mahomes. But Jackson has managed only three victories in the postseason, where he has totaled 13 touchdowns and 11 turnovers.Minter wasted no time building a rapport with Jackson. Within a week of hiring Declan Doyle as Baltimore's offensive coordinator in late January, they flew to visit Jackson in South Florida. Minter and Doyle told Jackson that working with him was one reason they both wanted to coach in Baltimore."It definitely meant a lot to me," Jackson later said.After a season when then-offensive coordinator Todd Monken accepted blame for Jackson's regression, the QB has been more engaged than ever. He participated in a majority of the Ravens' voluntary workouts in the spring. Jackson also initiated text conversations with Minter, something team sources said didn't happen often with Harbaugh.Early in training camp, Minter pulled Jackson to the side and talked to him about watching film together. He told Jackson he could give him a defensive coordinator's perspective on playcalling and disguised coverages."Man, he's a cool dude," Jackson said. "I just told him on the field today, I'm like, 'Every time I come in the building, you're always smiling.'"WHEN THE RAVENS unveiled their new uniforms in April, Minter addressed thousands of fans for the first time and revealed a recent message that he had delivered to players."We love and honor and respect all those before us," Minter said. "Thirty years, two Super Bowls, eight division titles, 16 playoff appearances ... but it's our time now."Minter has never felt that he has to revamp the Ravens' culture. He wants to put his stamp on the team.His vision is to create an atmosphere in which everyone is striving for the best version of themselves. He acknowledges it's a cliché, but it can work if the players buy into it."He just brings a positive mentality and an optimistic outlook on every individual in the building," offensive tackle Ronnie Stanley said. "He just pumps belief into the players."Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey is the only player remaining from the time when Minter was a defensive assistant coach. At the first veteran minicamp this spring, he joked with Minter that he can't call him "Jesse" anymore and suggested he refer to him as "ball coach."Minter responded, "Just call me Jesse.""I think Jesse -- it's hard to put into words -- but he has a very welcoming type [of] energy, like, 'Just come up to my office, meet, talk to me [and] I'll help you whatever way I can,'" Humphrey said. "Then, like a flip side of that is he has no problem addressing things directly with the person in front [of him] to where it doesn't get overboard. I think that's a great trait to have."Minter's return to Baltimore has coincided with the Ravens repeatedly flopping in the biggest games. Baltimore's late-season disappointments have been headlined by Zay Flowers' fumble near the goal line in the 2023 AFC Championship Game, Mark Andrews' dropped 2-point conversion attempt in the 2024 AFC divisional round and Tyler Loop's missed 44-yard field goal attempt in the 2025 season finale.It goes back to that environment Minter yearns to create in which players are applying their best effort on every play."If you asked every single player in the National Football League right now, they have intentions of trying to help their team get to the Super Bowl," Minter said. "So, this is a group that is, I would say, really hungry -- not thinking about the end goal yet. I think they know that that's what we all want to do, but [there's] a willingness to go day by day and focus on the process and build this thing up so that when those moments happen, we'll be at our best.""

"Good morning, New York Giants fans! The Giants head into the last week of training camp with the traditional preseason matchup against the New York Jets set for Friday night.He was more aggressive playing for defensive coordinator Wink Martindale but regressed under Shane Bowen. He seems reenergized with his new defensive coordinator Dennard Wilson. “This is fun,” Banks said. “I’m having a great time with it. I wouldn’t say I’m more confident because I feel I’m always a confident dude. I guess you can see it in my play more.”The new coaching staff “gave me a reset,“ he said, and “let me be me.” Asked what that means, Banks said, “Let me go out there and play my game. Let me go out there and do what I do best.” This means increased usage as an aggressive press corner in man coverage.23. New York Giants. If the Giants are sure that both WR Malik Nabers and RB Cam Skattebo will be ready for the start of the season, this group could be ranked higher. But Nabers is still in the process of returning from a torn ACL and Skattebo is dealing with an ankle injury, so while the early reports are encouraging, the longer-term prospects are at least a little murky.Nabers is the real key because he’s far and away the Giants’ most dangerous weapon. They’ll piece together the rest of the receiving corps with Darius Slayton, Darnell Mooney, Calvin Austin and rookie Malachi Fields, and maybe what’s left of Odell Beckham Jr. New York is also hoping for a leap from TE Isaiah Likely, a John Harbaugh transport from Baltimore who often thrived in limited action behind Mark Andrews.Loser: Tyrone Tracy Jr., RB, New York Giants. Over the last two weeks, Tyrone Tracy Jr.‘s stock has plummeted. In the New York Giants’ preseason opener, he missed a block that allowed Minnesota Vikings safety Jay Ward to crush quarterback Jaxson Dart on a sack. In this week’s game against the Miami Dolphins, Tracy lost a fumble before halftime. He finished with six carries for 26 yards. Devin Singletary outperformed him, logging eight carries for 40 yards and a touchdown.While this may seem like an overreaction, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Giants move on from Tracy. Big Blue signed Narris Harris, a 6’1”, 232-pound ball-carrier who can split early-down touches with Cam Skattebo. Singletary may have played his way into the No. 3 spot. Tracy is the most dynamic pass-catcher of the group, but if the Giants believe he’s a liability in pass protection, they may cut or trade him.Feels like Arvell Reese will get a weekly #BaldyBreakdown this yearDefensive line (6). Starters: D.J. Reader, Shelby Harris, Chauncey Golston. Backups: Darius Alexander, Bobby Jamison-Travis, Leki FotuWhat we have seen: This is going to be the priority of the personnel department and coaching staff over the next two weeks. We’re including Golston here because he has flashed at 5-technique. Could he legit hold up as a starter in the base run defense? That’s a tough ask. I think the Giants will be looking for depth at this position. There are questions about Alexander against the run that have emerged, so until he firms up there, the Giants have more work to do. The waiver wire and/or trade market should factor here.In: Malik Nabers, Darius Slayton, Darnell Mooney, Malachi Fields, Calvin Austin III, Braxton Berrios Out: Odell Beckham Jr., Isaiah Hodgins, Beaux Collins, Dalen Cambre, Jalin Hyatt, Xavier Gipson, Ryan Miller, Gunner Olszewski (IR)It may feel wrong to not see Beckham on the 53-man, and I don’t make the choice lightly. The fan favorite has looked sharp in camp and still clearly has something left. He made a couple Dolphins defensive backs look silly in one-on-ones and showed off some wiggle after the catch on his first reception Saturday. However, he also dropped what would have been a touchdown reception. It’s a mistake a player fighting for a spot can’t make. Berrios has made a ton of catches during camp and offers more special teams flexibility, so I ultimately decided to give him the final spot.That’s six losses that could have gone the other way against teams with winning records. The Giants held fourth-quarter leads in five of the six -- and final-minute leads in three. They lost four games where they held a win probability of at least 90% in the fourth quarter. The rest of the league lost just 15 such games combined. The Giants are just the fourth team to lose four of those games in a season, joining the 2013 Buccaneers, 2009 Steelers and ... 2015 Giants, who also got their head coach fired (or forced out), with Tom Coughlin’s tenure ending.Dennard Wilson’s defense will be tested to begin the campaign, as the Giants start their season against the Cowboys and Rams before the schedule briefly softens. Over the full season, the Giants project to face the league’s eighth-toughest schedule by the FPI’s algorithm, which could dampen their chances of making it to the postseason. I believe they have a legitimate shot at surprising the league and becoming a last-place team that jumps into the playoffs in 2026, but so much will depend on whether the offensive standouts stay healthy for much (or all) of the year.From Big Blue ViewThis week’s opponentBBV mailbagHave a Giants-related question? E-mail it to bigblueview@gmail.com and it might be featured in our weekly mailbag.BBV on social media"

"Chig Okonkwo earns a larger role: The Washington Commanders’ new tight end is expected to play a larger role in Washington than he ever did with the Tennessee Titans. Carnell Tate sees an increased snap share: Tate played 100% of the Tennessee Titans‘ offensive snaps while Cam Ward was on the field. Save on PFF+ for 5 Days Only: Get a full year of PFF+ for just $89.99 before the limited-time offer ends Aug. 25. PFF's fantasy football recap focuses on player usage and stats, breaking down all the vital information you need to achieve fantasy success in 2026. The PFF+ Early Bird Sale is back for five days only, giving you the chance to lock in a full season of PFF+ at a special limited-time price. Through Aug. 25, get a full year of PFF+ for just $89.99. One subscription gives you everything you need to draft smarter, build winning fantasy rosters, find betting edges and stay ahead all season long. From exclusive player grades and Premium Stats to fantasy tools, betting dashboards and expert analysis, PFF+ is built on the same data and insights trusted by NFL teams. Las Vegas Raiders @ Houston Texans Tre Tucker is the Raiders' top receiver: Tucker was among the Raiders' wide receivers who didn’t play in this game, suggesting he is the top wideout on the pecking order. Tucker was the Raiders' top wide receiver last season once the team traded Jakobi Meyers. He was their Z receiver, while Tyler Lockett played in the slot, and Dont’e Thornton Jr. and Jack Bech both played X. The Raiders shook up the wide receiver room, adding free agent Jalen Nailor as their X receiver, not re-signing Lockett and moving Bech to the slot, where many anticipated he would play when coming out of college. That is how Las Vegas used its three receivers in the first preseason game. It was debatable which of the wide receivers was considered their top option, with Tucker having the earlier ADP on ESPN and Nailor having it on Yahoo!, and experts being divided on which wide receiver to rank higher. The fact that Tucker rested with the starters while Nailor played into the second quarter suggests that Tucker should be the top option, and the one ranked higher. It was also notable that sixth-round rookie wide receiver Malik Benson took Tucker’s spot at Z, rather than Bech. Nailor left the game before the rest of the players who started this game, and when that happened, Bech started seeing more playing time outside. This suggests that even if Tucker were to suffer an injury, Bech wouldn’t see an increase in playing time. That will make it very difficult for Bech to find fantasy value this season. Thornton missed multiple practices with an undisclosed injury. He missed the first preseason game and was able to do some agility work early in the week. However, Benson has played well enough in training camp to suggest he might be ahead of Thornton on the depth chart at this point. The Raiders signed veteran wide receiver Noah Brown this past week to add depth to the wide receiver room. He also primarily plays on the outside. Considering Tucker appears locked in as the Z receiver and Benson appears to be a player on the rise, Las Vegas made this move either because they it wasn't entirely happy with Nailor or with Bech. We could see Brown cutting into either player’s playing time at some point this season. If you wanted to spend a late-round pick on a Raiders wide receiver, Tucker appears to be the clear option at this point. The Texans adjust without Jayden Higgins: Their up-and-coming second-year wide receiver tore his ACL in practice and will miss the season. Last season, Houston had Nico Collins as its X receiver, Higgins and Xavier Hutchinson in a rotation as the Z receiver and Christian Kirk in a rotation with Jaylin Noel in the slot. Houston allowed Kirk to leave in free agency, while Tank Dell, who tore his ACL, MCL and LCL in 2024, is expected to be ready to play sooner rather than later. Dell also primarily played the Z receiver role in the past, so Hutchinson was seeing more time in the slot, as was Higgins. Houston was without most of its receivers for this game. Collins was among the starters who rested, while Dell is still being eased back into action. Noel returned to practice this week after missing nearly three weeks due to hamstring and finger injuries. Although he returned to practice, he was held out for this game. While Hutchinson was the only top-five wide receiver playing, it was worth noting he played on the outside for seven of his eight snaps, with his one snap out of the slot coming out of 12 personnel. Last week, there were four plays out of 11 personnel where Hutchinson was lined up in the slot. Justin Watson was the slot receiver with the starters in this game. C.J. Stroud was pulled after the first drive, as were Hutchinson and running back Woody Marks. Every other wide receiver outside of Hutchinson who played on the first drive carried on with the backups on the second drive. This suggests Hutchinson was going to play more in the slot, but the injury to Higgins will likely return Hutchinson to his Z position. He will likely start there in Week 1, and will rotate with Dell throughout the season. This is good news for Noel once he’s healthy, as he might have the slot role to himself and not need to rotate with Higgins or Hutchinson. If he rotates with anyone, it will likely be Watson. A wide open competition for the backup tight end spot: Houston heavily invested in the position this off-season. Dalton Schultz has been the clear-cut lead tight end for Houston since 2023, and he suddenly becomes a top sleeper option with Higgins' injury. He was among the veterans who sat out this game. Houston struggled at the backup tight end position last year, with Brevin Jordan missing the season and Cade Stover being sidelined for half of the year. Houston brought in reinforcements this offseason with second-round rookie Marlin Klein and Foster Moreau. Houston had a clear-cut rotation last week, with Klein as the lead tight end, with Moreau joining him in 12 personnel and taking three of the 11 snaps out of 11 personnel. Then Klein exited the game, and Stover took over on the third drive, leading to three possessions with Stover and Moreau splitting snaps. This suggested a clear hierarchy of Klein, Moreau and Stover. This week, that pecking order was out the window. All three tight ends played on the first drive, with each receiving at least one snap in 11, 12 and 13 personnel. The three carried on throughout the first half, with Moreau being the most common tight end out of 11 personnel, and Stover as the most common in 12 personnel. It’s unclear if Jordan will complicate this situation given his injury. The second tight end in Houston won’t have any fantasy value as long as Schultz is healthy. Unless one of these players emerges as the clear backup in passing situations, it’s unlikely one will carry fantasy value even if Schultz suffers an injury this season. Miscellaneous Notes The Raiders rested their key starters, including quarterback Kirk Cousins, running back Ashton Jeanty, wide receiver Tre Tucker and tight ends Brock Bowers and Michael Mayer. The Texans rested their top few veterans, including running back David Montgomery, wide receiver Nico Collins and tight end Dalton Schultz. Backup running back Jawhar Jordan (strained hip flexor), fullback British Brooks (broken hand) and tight end Brevin Jordan (knee) are among those who also haven’t been practicing recently. San Francisco 49ers @ Los Angeles Chargers Oronde Gadsden II becomes undraftable: Gadsden did not receive a snap on the Chargers‘ first two drives. Los Angeles added Mike McDaniel as offensive coordinator and made significant changes to its tight end room. The Chargers added former Browns starting tight end David Njoku as well as Baltimore Ravens run-blocking tight end Charlie Kolar. They join Gadsden. McDaniel consistently had a three-man tight end rotation in Miami, with players like Julian Hill as a blocker, Durham Smythe as a well-rounded tight end and names like Jonnu Smith, Mike Gesicki, Tanner Conner, Greg Dulcich and Darren Waller taking a receiving role at various times. Gadsden appeared like the tight end most similar to his receiving tight ends, which made it seem like he had the most fantasy value. In the first preseason game, Kolar and Njoku rested with the starters, while Gadsden played with the rest of the backups. This week, the Chargers used Kolar and Njoku on two drives. They exited the game after those two series, with Gadsden starting to play on the third. On those two drives, Kolar took every snap in 11 personnel, the two shared the field on 12 personnel and Njoku played more than Kolar in 21 personnel. There is at least a small possibility that Gadsden is still the primary receiving tight end on third downs and two-minute drills. There were three third downs on the first two drives, and they were all for 3 yards or fewer. It’s common enough for a team to use its heavy personnel in those situations. However, looking at the past few years, McDaniel has often kept the receiving tight end on the field in these situations. This not only makes Gadsden not draftable, but it also makes it possible Kolar is a sleeper tight end. It could be hard to draft him without knowing how much Gadsden might play in obvious passing situations. However, this could be a two-man tight end room, with Njoku as the blocking tight end. In that case, Kolar could be in an excellent situation to have fantasy value. Keaton Mitchell remains the RB2: Mitchell took every snap on the second and third drive before Kimani Vidal played his first offensive snap. The Chargers had a strong one-two punch at running back last season in Omarion Hampton and Vidal when both running backs were healthy. Los Angeles added Mitchell in free agency on the suggestion of offensive coordinator Mike McDaniel. Mitchell is the running back in the league most similar to De’Von Achane in terms of size and speed, and Achane was among the league’s top running backs in McDaniel’s offense. It’s unclear exactly how snaps will be distributed between the running backs, but it’s becoming more likely this is a two-man rotation instead of three. In the first week of the preseason, Mitchell and Hampton both rested with the starters, while Vidal played. This week, Hampton started and played each of the three snaps. Ideally, we would have seen a longer drive to see how early in the drive Mitchell may have rotated in. It also could have been nice to see a third-and-long situation to see who was on the field, but we didn’t get a glimpse of that either. Hampton was pulled after the first drive, along with Justin Herbert, Ladd McConkey and various other starters. Mitchell joined the game at this point and played in all situations, suggesting the Chargers are comfortable with Hampton in receiving situations more than the Baltimore Ravens were. Vidal didn’t join until the fourth drive, and continued to be the main running back for the rest of the half. While it remains possible this is a three-man rotation, and Vidal is simply third in that order, we should expect Mitchell to see more snaps and touches than Vidal this season. De’Zhaun Stribling pushes for a starting job: Stribling was a frequent target in the first half and is making a push for a top-three spot on the depth chart. When San Francisco drafted Stribling, it was unclear where his easiest path to playing time was. San Francisco had Ricky Pearsall as its Z receiver, added Mike Evans in free agency to be the X and Christian Kirk in free agency to be the slot. Since then, Pearsall was placed on season-ending injured reserve, while Kirk hasn’t been able to play with a calf strain and seems unlikely to make the roster. In their place, Deebo Samuel was re-signed, and Demarcus Robinson has moved into the starting lineup. Evans missed this game while dealing with tightness, leading to Samuel and Robinson being the starting receivers, with Stribling joining them in 11 personnel. While all three receivers netted some playing time in the slot, Stribling was lined up there more often than not. Both starting wide receivers also took a play off on the first drive. The 49ers took out some starters after the first possession, including Samuel, with Robinson and Stribling playing an additional drive. Stribling caught four passes for 46 yards over his two drives, while Robinson was held without a target. Regardless of who the starters and who the backups are in 11 and 12 personnel, Stribling will see significant playing time in Week 1. Evans, Samuel and Robinson are all on the wrong side of 30 and will get rotated out at times. Given Evans' and Samuel’s injury history, they are likely to miss time this season. While Stribling might not make sense to have in Week 1 fantasy starting lineups, he should be drafted as he should be a significant contributor this season. Miscellaneous Notes The 49ers have several running backs dealing with injury. Christian McCaffrey has been held out of practice due to tightness, Jordan James has been doing some work on the side with fractured ribs, Isaac Guerendo remains on the PUP list and Patrick Taylor Jr. was placed on injured reserve today. Kaelon Black missed the first preseason game with an adductor injury, but was back for this game. He was the clear starter with the first team for this game, and given his health, is now the slight favorite for the backup job. George Kittle remains on the PUP list, but there is optimism he will be ready for the first week of the season. Jake Tonges was the lead receiving tight end for this game, and remains the tight end to add if Kittle misses any time due to injury. Chargers wide receivers Quentin Johnston and Tre Harris both missed practice this week and didn’t play in this game. Brenen Thompson was notably the starter in this game over KeAndre Lambert-Smith, making it clear the rookie is ahead on the depth chart. However, Thompson went to the blue medical tent and then the locker room with an undisclosed injury. PFF's fantasy football recap focuses on player usage and stats, breaking down all the vital information you need to achieve fantasy success in 2026. New York Jets @ Pittsburgh Steelers Omar Cooper Jr. starts for the Jets: Cooper only played with the second team last week, suggesting he has moved up the depth chart. The Jets drafted Cooper in the first round, but it has taken him some time to move up the depth chart. Garrett Wilson and Adonai Mitchell appear set as the top two wide receivers, with Wilson playing Z and Mitchell playing X. Wilson has played every snap with the starters, while Mitchell has only missed two snaps, and only after making two nice catches. Isaiah Williams has been ahead of Cooper in the slot. Last week, Williams played all of the 11 personnel snaps with the starters, and left the game at the same time as Wilson and Mitchell. Cooper entered after the starters left, and continued playing over the rest of the first half. This week, it was Cooper who played with the starters instead of Williams. Later in the drive, when Mitchell took two plays off, Cooper received one snap in 12 personnel, while Williams garnered one snap in 11 personnel. The Jets switched to backups on the second drive and Cooper wasn’t on the field, but Cooper returned for the third possession to play more on the outside. While it could have been nice to see him leave at the same time as the rest of the starters, it’s better to see him getting snaps on the outside, which he did on and off throughout the rest of the first half. If Cooper only plays in 11 personnel in the slot this season, it will be difficult for him to be fantasy-relevant, particularly when the Jets could use a lot of 12 personnel after drafting Kenyon Sadiq. His clearest path to being valuable in fantasy is also taking snaps on the outside in 12 personnel. While it doesn’t appear like Cooper is close to consistently taking snaps from Mitchell, this game was still a nice step in the right direction for the rookie. He is a fine late-round dart throw. A quieter day for Germie Bernard: While Bernard started, he was held without a catch and played more on the outside. Both starting wide receivers DK Metcalf and Michael Pittman Jr. missed last week’s preseason game, leading Bernard and Roman Wilson to be the Steelers' starting wide receivers. The two are competing to be the third wide receiver in three-receiver sets. Last week, Bernard was typically the wideout lined up in the slot, which was a big deal because Metcalf and Pittman traditionally play outside, so whoever wins the job will need to play significantly out of the slot. Bernard also caught four passes for 51 yards. This week, Wilson and Bernard started again, but Bernard was consistently lined up on the outside. Wilson was the primary slot receiver, with Ben Skowronek also seeing some work in the slot. The Steelers had three drives with the starters, and then turned to backups at running back and tight end. The two wide receivers kept playing further into the first half. This suggests there is no clear favorite for the third spot, and if anything, Wilson has a slight lead given his playing time in the slot this week. The fact that it’s so close could lead to both wide receivers splitting playing time. It’s unlikely one of these wide receivers will be fantasy-relevant only playing in 11 personnel, and it will be impossible if they are splitting work. Unless Metcalf's or Mitchell’s injuries linger on into the regular season, it’s unlikely Wilson or Bernard will see fantasy value anytime soon. Don’t read much into the Steelers' backfield rotation: Jaylen Warren started over Rico Dowdle, but the rotation in this game is unlikely to be the mix the Steelers use in the regular season. The Steelers moved on from Kenneth Gainwell and added Dowdle this off-season. Both Warren and Dowdle have experience being early-down backs as well as third-down backs, but neither has experience as an every-situation back, making it very difficult to project how snaps will be distributed between the two. In this game, Warren took the first drive, and Dowdle handled the second. Warren started the third drive and played five snaps, followed by six by Dowdle, and then Warren closed out the possession. It is common for teams to play a running back for several plays in the preseason with no regard to the situation, but it’s very rare for that kind of rotation to continue once the regular season starts. The fact that Warren got the start over Dowdle could be a good sign for his fantasy value, but it could also simply be giving preference to the returning player rather than the new player, which is also common in the preseason. This game should not change anyone’s opinion on how this backfield will look in the regular season. Miscellaneous Notes The Steelers decided to rest both Aaron Rodgers and Mason Rudolph so they could evaluate their two younger quarterbacks. Pittsburgh continued to use a two-man rotation at tight end with the starters, with Darnell Washington playing more on early downs and Pat Freiermuth more in passing situations, but it wasn’t a strict rotation. This is how the tight ends were used last week. This suggests Washington will play more snaps this season, but Freiermuth will run more routes. This is probably a situation to avoid given the split. The Jets didn’t have running backs Breece Hall (groin), Isaiah Davis (knee) or rookie tight end Kenyon Sadiq (hernia). There is optimism all three will be ready for Week 1. Mason Taylor unsurprisingly started with Sadiq’s absence. After the starters left the game on the first drive, including running back Braelon Allen and wide receivers Garrett Wilson and Adonai Mitchell, Taylor kept playing into the second possession. This suggests his role isn’t as secure as other starters. Jets undrafted rookie Malik McClain has played with the second team in each preseason game. If New York keeps six wide receivers, he appears to be the favorite for the sixth spot. Carolina Panthers @ Jacksonville Jaguars Jonathon Brooks continues in a featured role: Brooks played all but two snaps with the starters. Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard is dealing with a hamstring injury and isn’t expected to return until Week 1 at the earliest. This has opened the door for Brooks to be the Week 1 starter, and potentially keep the role for the season. His ADP has skyrocketed, but he still might be a value at his current ADP. In the first week of the preseason, Brooks was taken out for a third-and-4 for Trevor Etienne, suggesting Etienne would be the passing-down back if Hubbard misses time. This week, Brooks was taken out for one play when the team wanted to try a four-wide receiver, one-tight-end set. He and Etienne split the two third-and-medium plays this week, suggesting Carolina might even be comfortable with Brooks in passing situations. While it would be okay if Brooks doesn’t typically play on third-and-long from a fantasy perspective, it would be helpful if he plays during two-minute drills. The fact that Jacksonville trusted Brooks with that kind of situation, despite playing a lot of early snaps, suggests it could be comfortable with Brooks in other clear passing situations. For the second straight week, Etienne kept playing once the backups entered the game. Brooks is someone to continue targeting in drafts. CJ Williams gets a shot in the slot: The Jaguars' sixth-round rookie wide receiver has a chance to be the primary slot receiver. Jacksonville rested its starters for a second straight game, which included Parker Washington, Brian Thomas Jr., Jakobi Meyers and Travis Hunter. That has left Williams, fellow sixth-round rookie Josh Cameron and Austin Trammell as the primary backups. It’s unlikely any of these three wide receivers has a shot at fantasy value if there is an injury, and an injury to Parker Washington might be most significant. Liam Coen’s slot receivers have consistently found success from a fantasy perspective. The most likely scenario would be either Jakobi Meyers or Travis Hunter moving to the slot if Washington is sidelined, but there is always the possibility of multiple injuries. Trammell was the clear primary slot receiver in the first week of the preseason, with Williams only seeing four snaps out of the slot. The Jaguars used much more of a rotation this week, with Williams hitting four slot snaps in under 10 minutes. Williams has also seen the most targets out of the three receivers through two preseason games. Hopefully the Jaguars' wide receivers are able to stay healthy this season, but if injuries become a problem, Williams could be a name to remember. Miscellaneous Notes Panthers running back Chuba Hubbard is dealing with a hamstring injury and isn’t expected to return until Week 1 at the earliest. Wide receiver Xavier Legette got rolled up on during Wednesday’s practice, leading him to miss this game. There was some optimism he would be able to play, suggesting this is a short-term injury. Brycen Tremayne took his spot in three-receiver sets this week. The Panthers signed tight end Darren Waller earlier in the week. Since he just joined the team, he did not play in this game. The Jaguars didn’t have third-down back LeQuint Allen as well as wide receiver Parker Washington due to injuries. Washington is expected to return to practice next week, but Allen is out for the rest of camp. It’s unlikely either would have played if they were healthy. Jacksonville rested its starters and key backups, including quarterback Trevor Lawrence, running backs Bhayshul Tuten and Chris Rodriguez Jr., wide receivers Brian Thomas Jr., Jakobi Meyers and Travis Hunter and tight ends Brenton Strange and Nate Boerkircher. Green Bay Packers @ Denver Broncos Jaylen Waddle makes his Broncos debut: Denver’s new top wide receiver played on one drive, and then his day was done. The Broncos had a complicated wide receiver rotation last season, with Courtland Sutton as the lead wide receiver and Pat Bryant, Troy Franklin, Marvin Mims Jr. and Lil’Jordan Humphrey all seeing significant playing time. Denver traded its first-round pick for Waddle this offseason while retaining all five other wide receivers. Mims has been dealing with an undisclosed injury and was dressed in uniform for this game, but didn’t play. Otherwise, we received a first look at the Broncos' pecking order. Waddle and Sutton played an every-down role on the first drive, with Bryant joining them in three-wide receiver sets. Waddle and Sutton were taken out after one drive, with Franklin, Bryant and Humphrey rotating throughout the second series. Franklin and Humphrey continued to play over the rest of the half with backups. This reinforced the idea that Waddle and Sutton are the top wide receivers on the depth chart, followed by Bryant, but didn’t give us a great indication of how they might rotate in the regular season. Sean Payton has a long history of rotating wide receivers more than most teams, and also has a pattern of not following that order in the preseason. In fact, the preseason sequence has also been misleading at times, with Mims serving as the clear second wide receiver in last year's preseason, followed by a part-time role, and Tim Patrick starting in the preseason before his release. In this case, it’s clear Waddle will be first given how much Denver has invested in him, and we can expect Sutton to be second given his long history with the team. But, we should still write the Broncos' depth chart in pencil, not pen. Evan Engram sees an increased role: Engram played a clear majority of snaps with the starters, unlike past games. Engram had a long history of being an every-down tight end over five years with the New York Giants and three with the Jacksonville Jaguars. For example, in 2023, he averaged 78.6% of offensive snaps. When he joined the Broncos, he became a part-time player. Sean Payton has a long history of utilizing a tight end rotation, with the only exception being Jimmy Graham during his elite seasons. Since Payton joined the Broncos, Adam Trautman has been his early-down tight end. Engram averaged 42.1% of snaps last season, peaking at 55.6% of snaps. This led to a disappointing fantasy season. Davis Webb is the new offensive coordinator for the Broncos. He was a third-round rookie by the New York Giants in 2017, the same year Engram was their first-round pick. Their friendship has led some to believe Engram could have a bigger season this year. Engram played 12 of 14 snaps with the starters this week after playing 15 of 25 last week. Last season, he played 33 of 54 snaps during the preseason, so this has been a step in the right direction. Engram played on the first drive with the backups, while Trautman played the rest of the half, further suggesting Engram might be pulling apart from Trautman. Engram is unlikely to move up the rankings enough to make him worth drafting in most drafts, but he is a name worth monitoring early in the season, as he could become a popular waiver wire target if all goes well. MarShawn Lloyd shares the backfield with Chris Brooks: Lloyd remains in the lead for the Packers backup job. Packers running back Josh Jacobs returned to practice on Tuesday with his groin injury but didn’t play in this game. Brooks and Emanuel Wilson were the Packers' backup options last season, but they opted not to retain Wilson and didn’t make any significant additions to the backfield. This left Lloyd, who has barely played in his two NFL seasons, and Brooks in contention for the backup job. Brooks was unable to participate last week, so Lloyd played every snap over the first two drives and then his day was done. Lloyd started this game and played each of the first four snaps. Green Bay had a 14-play drive to begin the game, with Lloyd playing nine snaps to five by Brooks. Green Bay pulled its starters after the first drive, which included taking out wide receivers Christian Watson and Matthew Golden and tight end Josh Whyle, but the running backs kept playing. After three drives, Lloyd had tallied 16 snaps to seven by Brooks, with a tendency of Brooks playing more on third downs. Brooks continued to play on the fourth drive and began rotating with Pierre Strong. This strongly suggests that Lloyd will be the primary backup on early downs, while Brooks may be the backup on third downs. There were reports earlier in the offseason that Brooks may see time at fullback, but that didn’t happen in this game. Lloyd remains a late-round dart throw, but the Packers could still add another running back after cut-down day, complicating the backup situation. Miscellaneous Notes The Packers mostly played their healthy starters, but Jayden Reed sat out for an undisclosed reason. Skyy Moore was the backup slot receiver for Green Bay in Reed’s place, while Bo Melton and Savion Williams were the secondary wide receivers. Williams stopped playing after his two snaps, so it’s possible he suffered an injury that has not been reported as of this article being published. Tight end Tucker Kraft is still being eased back into action. He’s returned to team drills, but not 11-on-11 practices, and he was held out of this game. Backup tight end Luke Musgrave remains on the PUP. Josh Whyle is the likely second tight end option this season, and would be someone worth considering if Kraft isn’t ready for Week 1. Similar to last week, J.K. Dobbins didn’t play, RJ Harvey started the game and Jonah Coleman entered not long after. This gives us no indication on how the Broncos‘ running backs might rotate once the season begins. Washington Commanders @ Detroit Lions The Commanders' wide receiver depth chart takes shape: All of Washington’s top wide receivers were active for this game, providing the clearest look yet at how the depth chart is taking shape. Terry McLaurin leads a crowded receiver room. Washington has spent mid-round picks in each of the past three drafts on slot receivers Luke McCaffrey, Jaylin Lane and Antonio Williams. The Commanders have also added several veterans over the past year, including Stefon Diggs, Treylon Burks, Dyami Brown and Van Jefferson. On the first drive, McLaurin lined up at X, Burks at Z and Diggs in the slot in 11 personnel. Diggs had historically been an every-down receiver, but he played only 54.7% of the snaps last season with the New England Patriots. His usage in this game suggests he could again be limited primarily to 11 personnel, which would put a ceiling on his fantasy potential. Diggs’ slot role also increases the likelihood that Burks sees significant playing time rather than one of Washington’s younger slot receivers. On the second drive, Brown took over at X, Burks remained at Z and McCaffrey played in the slot in 11 personnel. Jefferson also took two snaps in place of Burks at Z. On the third drive, McCaffrey moved outside to X, Jefferson played Z and Williams and Lane rotated in the slot. That usage suggests Lane could be the odd man out if Washington keeps only seven wide receivers. It also indicates that Williams is unlikely to see much, if any, playing time early in the season. Chig Okonkwo plays 12 of 14 snaps in the first quarter: Washington’s new lead tight end appears poised for a larger role than he ever had with the Tennessee Titans. Washington used a three-man rotation at tight end last season with Zach Ertz, John Bates and Ben Sinnott. Ertz tore his ACL late in the season, and Washington opted not to re-sign him, instead bringing in Okonkwo. Okonkwo has posted impressive advanced metrics at times but never developed into a consistent fantasy starter in Tennessee, where he often worked in a rotation and played just 63% of the offensive snaps last season. Okonkwo and Bates were among the starters who rested in last week’s preseason game, and they were the only two tight ends to play on the first two drives this week. They shared four snaps in 12 personnel, while Okonkwo played eight of 10 snaps in 11 personnel. Both exited after the second drive, with Sinnott, Colson Yankoff and Lawrence Cager taking over on the third drive. That usage suggests Okonkwo and Bates are well ahead of Sinnott on the depth chart, while Okonkwo is positioned for a significant increase in playing time compared to his tenure in Tennessee. He should be one of the top sleeper tight ends this season and an excellent target for fantasy managers who wait at the position. Isaac TeSlaa plays with the backups: The Lions rested their starters for a second straight week, but TeSlaa remained in the game until midway through the second quarter. Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams have been locked into Detroit’s top two wide receiver spots. Last season, TeSlaa competed with veteran Kalif Raymond for the third receiver role in 11 personnel. Raymond left for Chicago in free agency, seemingly opening the door for TeSlaa to take over those snaps. If the Lions fully trusted TeSlaa in that role, however, he likely would have rested with the starters in at least one of the first two preseason games. Detroit’s depth chart behind him remains unsettled, and ideally, those receivers would receive more playing time to help determine who makes the roster. Instead, TeSlaa played not only with the second-team offense that started the game but also alongside the third-team quarterback and offensive line. Greg Dortch and Cedrick Wilson Jr. appeared to be his closest competition last week, while Tay Martin was heavily involved this week. TeSlaa should still receive significant playing time this season, but he is unlikely to have much fantasy value unless St. Brown or Williams misses time. Even in that scenario, Detroit could look to add a wide receiver via trade rather than significantly expanding TeSlaa’s role. Miscellaneous Notes The Commanders announced before the game that quarterback Marcus Mariota (sprained MCL) and running backs Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Rachaad White (hamstring) and Jeremy McNichols (quad) would not play. Croskey-Merritt’s absence was the biggest surprise, but ESPN’s John Keim reported that he may have suffered an injury during Thursday’s practice. Lions backup running back Isiah Pacheco (MCL sprain) and starting tight end Sam LaPorta (hip) did not play due to injury. The Lions also rested several starters, including quarterback Jared Goff, running back Jahmyr Gibbs and wide receivers Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams. Buffalo Bills @ Cleveland Browns Denzel Boston is the Browns’ only offensive starter to play: Cleveland’s second-round rookie played throughout the first quarter despite the Browns resting the rest of their offensive starters. Boston has secured Cleveland’s X receiver role after he, Jerry Jeudy and KC Concepcion started the first preseason game. Uncertainty remains about how snaps will be distributed in 12 personnel, as Cleveland has shown a willingness to use Concepcion in those formations despite his primary role in the slot. Boston surprisingly played despite Cleveland resting its starters. The Browns have a legitimate quarterback competition, and having Boston on the field gave Shedeur Sanders another weapon as he made his case for the job. That provides a reasonable explanation for Boston’s usage, although it was unusual that he played only the first and last snaps of the second drive and none in between. He finished with a 75% snap rate over the first two drives before exiting ahead of the other Browns who played. His usage isn’t a major red flag, but his playing time in Week 1 will be worth monitoring. Boston opened the game alongside Isaiah Bond, with Gage Larvadain joining them in three-receiver sets. Bond split his snaps between the slot and outside after playing almost exclusively in the slot last season. He appears to be the top backup at all three receiver spots and would be worth considering off the waiver wire if one of Cleveland’s starting receivers suffers an injury. Don’t read into which Bills played: Buffalo rested its starters and key backups, which made it somewhat surprising to see Ray Davis and Jackson Hawes on the field. Buffalo rested most of the players fantasy managers would recognize, with multiple undrafted rookies from the 2025 and 2026 classes playing on the opening drive. Davis and Hawes stood out among that group. Davis has been the primary early-down backup to James Cook III, while Hawes was part of a three-man rotation at tight end throughout last season. However, the Bills had limited options at both positions. Buffalo has only five halfbacks on its roster, with Cook resting and third-down back Ty Johnson injured. That left only three running backs available. Resting Davis would have left Buffalo with two for the entire game, an unrealistic option given their additional special teams responsibilities and the possibility of an injury. The situation was identical at tight end. Buffalo has five tight ends on the roster, with Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox sitting out. Hawes is clearly the third option, but resting him as well would have left the Bills with only two available tight ends. Veterans playing alongside backups in these situations can typically be a red flag, but the circumstances suggest that isn’t the case with Davis or Hawes. Miscellaneous Notes The Bills were without several wide receivers, including DJ Moore (lower body), Joshua Palmer (undisclosed), Khalil Shakir (undisclosed), Keon Coleman (foot), Skyler Bell (groin) and Dante Pettis (undisclosed). Tyrell Shavers remains on the PUP list. Third-down back Ty Johnson (undisclosed) also missed his second straight preseason game. Buffalo also rested healthy starters, including quarterback Josh Allen, running back James Cook III and tight ends Dalton Kincaid and Dawson Knox. The Browns were without running back Quinshon Judkins, fullback Michael Burton, wide receiver Cedric Tillman and tight ends Joe Royer and Dea’Quan Wright. They were listed out for personal/health reasons, though the specific reasons for their absences have not been disclosed. Todd Monken said Judkins is dealing with “a little something nagging, nothing big.” Tillman’s continued absence will only fuel speculation that he could be released. Browns backup tight ends Jack Stoll and Brenden Bates landed on injured reserve over the past week. Cleveland also rested running back Dylan Sampson, wide receivers Jerry Jeudy and KC Concepcion, and tight end Harold Fannin Jr. Atlanta Falcons @ Indianapolis Colts Zachariah Branch plays a limited role: The third-round rookie primarily played in 11 personnel in this game. The Falcons remade their wide receiver room this offseason, retaining Drake London, signing Jahan Dotson and Olamide Zaccheaus in free agency and drafting Branch in the third round. At 5-foot-10 and 180 pounds, Branch’s size could limit his fantasy upside. Atlanta rested its starters, so Branch opened the game with the second-team offense. He played alongside Dylan Drummond and Chris Blair, who were the primary receivers in 12 personnel. Branch mostly joined them in the slot when Atlanta moved to 11 personnel. He has played exactly one snap in 12 personnel in each of the Falcons’ first two preseason games. While it wasn’t surprising that Branch would primarily be limited to 11 personnel, more preseason work in two-receiver sets would have increased the possibility of an expanded role if injuries strike during the regular season. Branch played only the first two drives and exited before the other receivers, suggesting his spot in the rotation is secure. While several third-round wide receivers are worthy of late-round fantasy picks this year, Branch shouldn’t be one of them because his upside appears limited. His best-case scenario is overtaking Zaccheaus as Atlanta’s primary slot receiver, but that role is unlikely to provide enough volume for him to become a consistent fantasy starter. Laquon Treadwell locks into a roster spot: Treadwell played only one drive before exiting ahead of the rest of the Colts players who started the game. The Colts’ top four wide receivers appear set when healthy, with Alec Pierce at X, Keenan Allen at Z, Josh Downs in the slot and Ashton Dulin as the top backup. It remains unclear whether Pierce will be ready for Week 1, as he hasn’t practiced in months. If he is unavailable, Dulin is the most likely candidate to take over at X, though that is no guarantee. Treadwell has been the top X receiver among the backups throughout the preseason. He appeared to be competing with Nick Westbrook-Ikhine for playing time and potentially a roster spot, but Treadwell appears to have pulled ahead. He exited after one drive, while Westbrook-Ikhine remained in the game. Treadwell could see significant playing time in Week 1, particularly if Pierce isn’t ready. The Colts have enough positional flexibility among their top three receivers that Treadwell could enter the game whenever one of them needs a break in 11 personnel. That would also leave him one injury away from a starting role. Miscellaneous Notes The Falcons rested quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, running backs Bijan Robinson and Brian Robinson, tight ends Kyle Pitts Sr., Charlie Woerner and Austin Hooper, and wide receivers Drake London, Jahan Dotson and Olamide Zaccheaus. Quarterback Michael Penix Jr. continues to be eased back into action and didn’t play in this game. The Colts rested quarterback Daniel Jones, running back Jonathan Taylor, wide receivers Josh Downs, Keenan Allen and Ashton Dulin, and tight ends Tyler Warren, Mo Alie-Cox, Drew Ogletree and Will Mallory. Backup running back DJ Giddens (hamstring) and backup slot receiver Anthony Gould (groin) did not play due to injury, while Alec Pierce remains on the PUP list. Rookie Seth McGowan may win the backup running back job by default with Giddens sidelined. McGowan was the focal point of the Colts’ offense early in the game. Baltimore Ravens @ Minnesota Vikings More evidence that Ja’Kobi Lane is the Ravens’ WR3: Lane appears poised for a significant role in Baltimore’s offense this season. Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman have been the Ravens’ top receivers in recent years. Baltimore didn’t re-sign DeAndre Hopkins, creating a wide-open competition for the third wide receiver spot between Lane, fellow rookie Elijah Sarratt and recent draft picks Devontez Walker and LaJohntay Wester. Last week, the Ravens rested their starters, and Lane, Walker and Wester started while Sarratt worked with the backups. Sarratt did not enter the game until late in the third quarter, after Xavier Guillory and Chris Moore. That usage suggests he is well down the Ravens’ wide receiver depth chart. The Ravens rested their starters again this week, with Lane and Walker serving as the primary wide receivers for the first four drives and Wester joining them in three-receiver sets. Lane’s day ended after the fourth drive along with quarterback Tyler Huntley, while Walker and Wester continued playing with Joe Fagnano. That usage suggests Lane is ahead of both on the depth chart. That was already the expectation based on Lane’s draft capital and reports from beat writers, but his preseason usage provides further confirmation. Lane could even be elevated to the No. 2 receiver role after Bateman was arrested Friday on charges of family violence. It remains unclear how Bateman’s legal situation will affect his availability this season, but the possibility of him missing time only increases Lane’s chances of playing a notable role. Lane is a worthwhile late-round dart throw, and his ADP is likely to rise. Demond Claiborne locks into the RB3 spot: Claiborne is no longer rotating with Zavier Scott, suggesting he has secured the Vikings’ No. 3 running back job. Claiborne was a sixth-round pick by Minnesota in this year’s draft. While Aaron Jones Sr. and Jordan Mason were locked into the top two spots, Claiborne was still competing with Scott last week. Scott appeared in 16 games for the Vikings last season, recording 32 carries and 14 receptions. Last week, Jones and Mason played early in the first quarter before Claiborne replaced them late in the period. Scott began rotating with Claiborne in the second quarter, and both continued to play throughout the second and third quarters, with Scott remaining in the game briefly into the fourth. This week, Minnesota rested its starters, allowing Claiborne to start. He played every snap in the first quarter before Scott took over in the second. It remains unclear how much Claiborne will play on offense during the regular season, but his spot as one of Minnesota’s top three running backs appears secure. Miscellaneous Notes The Vikings rested quarterback Kyler Murray, running backs Aaron Jones Sr. and Jordan Mason, wide receivers Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and Jauan Jennings, and tight ends T.J. Hockenson and Josh Oliver. While Tai Felton played more snaps than Jennings last week, that was because the Vikings view Felton as their backup X receiver and Jefferson did not play. It did not necessarily indicate that Felton is ahead of Jennings on the depth chart. The Ravens rested quarterback Lamar Jackson, running backs Derrick Henry, Justice Hill, Rasheen Ali and Adam Randall, wide receivers Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman, and tight ends Mark Andrews and Durham Smythe. Most of those absences were expected, as they are veterans near the top of the depth chart. Ali has not been practicing for an undisclosed reason, explaining his absence. It is unclear why Randall is not playing. Considering he is a mid-round rookie and Baltimore played its other rookies who are expected to have larger roles, it is more likely that Randall is dealing with an undisclosed injury than receiving veteran-style rest. New Orleans Saints @ Los Angeles Rams The Saints’ backup running back situation heats up: Kendre Miller and Devin Neal were both available after missing last week. New Orleans has six notable running backs on the depth chart: Travis Etienne Jr., Alvin Kamara, Miller, Neal, Audric Estime and Ty Chandler. At least one, if not two, will likely be left off the roster when cuts arrive. Kamara has a sprained MCL and could miss Week 1, so the Saints will likely keep four running backs on their initial roster. Kamara missed this week, as did Estime, who suffered an ankle injury last week. Etienne rested with the other starters. The Saints used a wide-open rotation throughout the first half. Miller started, with Neal rotating in on the first drive. Miller, Neal, Chandler and undrafted rookie CJ Donaldson each played two snaps on the second drive. Miller handled most of the third drive, with Chandler mixing in, before the two rotated on the fourth drive. Miller ultimately played the most snaps of the group and appears to be the favorite for the No. 3 running back job. However, there was enough rotation throughout the first half that plenty could change over the next week. Barion Brown sits for the Saints: The sixth-round rookie was among several Saints players who sat out this week. Brown has been one of the most talked-about rookies in Saints camp, making several big catches and earning work with both the first- and second-team offenses. He started last week, though five of the top six wide receivers on the depth chart were unavailable, and played on and off throughout the game. This week, the Saints were still without their top three wide receivers in Chris Olave, Jordyn Tyson and Devaughn Vele. Their top veteran backup, Mason Tipton, remains on the PUP list. Fellow rookie Bryce Lance, who was unavailable last week, returned to action this week. It’s possible Brown is dealing with an undisclosed injury or that the Saints simply didn’t want to overwork him after he logged so many snaps last week. However, it’s also possible New Orleans views Brown as an important enough player to rest. With Tyson expected to miss roughly two months because of a hamstring injury, Brown could see significant playing time in 11 personnel early in the season. Brown is worth adding in dynasty leagues wherever he remains available. In redraft leagues, it’s probably best to leave him on the waiver wire until there is more clarity on where he sits on the depth chart. Xavier Smith sits for the Rams: Smith was the only Rams skill-position player who played last week but sat this week. Every team approaches the preseason differently, and the Rams take one of the league’s most conservative approaches with important players. Los Angeles typically rests all of its starters throughout the preseason, along with key backups, and tends to hold out even more players as the preseason progresses. It was noteworthy that Smith played last week because he was the only skill-position player with a significant role last season who saw action. His absence this week makes it clear that his roster spot is secure. Still, it’s unlikely that any Rams wide receiver outside of Puka Nacua and Davante Adams will have fantasy value unless injuries significantly alter the depth chart. Miscellaneous Notes The Rams rested their starters and key backups, as usual. That included quarterback Matthew Stafford, running backs Kyren Williams, Blake Corum and Ronnie Rivers, wide receivers Puka Nacua, Davante Adams, Konata Mumpfield, Jordan Whittington and Xavier Smith, and tight ends Colby Parkinson, Terrance Ferguson, Tyler Higbee and Davis Allen. The only Rams skill-position players who played today and are expected to make the roster were 2025 fourth-round running back Jarquez Hunter and rookies CJ Daniels and Max Klare. It’s possible none of the three will be active on game days. The Saints were without running back Alvin Kamara (sprained MCL) and wide receiver Jordyn Tyson (hamstring), both of whom are expected to miss the start of the season. Mason Tipton remains on the PUP list. The Saints were without running back Alvin Kamara (sprained MCL) and wide receiver Jordyn Tyson (hamstring), both of whom are expected to miss the start of the season. Mason Tipton remains on the PUP list. Saints rookie tight end Oscar Delp played 13 of the first 18 snaps before exiting ahead of the other Saints who played in the game. New York Giants @ Miami Dolphins The Giants’ running back battle heats up: Devin Singletary started ahead of Tyrone Tracy Jr. in what could ultimately become a four-man rotation. New York surprisingly rotated all three of its top running backs last week. Cam Skattebo started, but Tracy also played on the first drive before Skattebo reentered and shared time with Singletary. All three were finished by early in the second quarter, suggesting there wasn’t a significant gap between them on the depth chart. Head coach John Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Matt Nagy have generally favored two- or three-man backfield rotations. New York signed Najee Harris earlier in the week, but he didn’t play in this game. He will need time to ramp up and might not play next week, either, though he reportedly expects to have a significant role in the offense. Skattebo was among the starters who rested this week, leaving Singletary and Tracy to rotate throughout the first half. While New York could keep four running backs, Singletary and Tracy are likely competing for playing time, and Singletary appears to have the edge. Tracy notably struggled in pass protection last week, while Singletary has graded well in that area in recent seasons. That could leave the Giants with a three-man rotation of Skattebo, Harris and Singletary in Week 1. Malachi Fields may have won a starting job: The third-round rookie played only the first drive before exiting ahead of the rest of the wide receivers. New York made several changes to its wide receiver room this offseason, retaining Malik Nabers and Darius Slayton, signing Calvin Austin III, Darnell Mooney, Odell Beckham Jr., Braxton Berrios and JuJu Smith-Schuster, and drafting Fields. The Giants released Smith-Schuster this past week. Nabers is unlikely to play in the preseason, but there is optimism that he will be ready for Week 1. New York used Fields, Austin, Mooney and Slayton in a four-man rotation early last week, with players lining up at various positions. Beckham and Berrios eventually joined the rotation. This week, the plan was much more straightforward. On the first drive, Fields lined up at X, Slayton at Z and Austin in the slot in 11 personnel. Slayton has typically played X for the Giants, so lining up at Z represented a change for him. On the second drive, Beckham replaced Fields at X, and the trio of Beckham, Slayton and Austin played the rest of the first half. Beckham remained in the game with the backups to begin the second half. That usage suggests Fields has won the starting X job, with Beckham as his backup. Nabers should start at Z when healthy, with Slayton backing him up and likely starting if Nabers isn’t ready for Week 1. Austin appears to be the primary slot receiver. Fields is now a viable late-round fantasy target, while Slayton should only be considered if Nabers is expected to miss Week 1. Head coach John Harbaugh told reporters after the game that Mooney missed this game because he was the best man at his brother’s wedding. Mooney mostly played X and in the slot in the first preseason game. Given how little Fields played relative to Austin, it seems more likely Mooney takes time from Austin in the slot than he takes snaps from Fields at X. Harbaugh also said Berrios missed the game due to a soft tissue injury. Jaylen Wright remains the RB2 for Miami: Wright has played ahead of Ollie Gordon II for the second straight week. The Dolphins retained their top three running backs from last season in De’Von Achane, Wright and Gordon. Gordon was the primary backup early last season, but Wright moved ahead of him as the year progressed. In the first week of the preseason, Wright was the first running back to enter after Achane exited. While there was some rotation, Wright’s day ended at halftime, while Gordon played into the fourth quarter. Achane rested this week, leaving Wright to start. He played 12 of the first 16 snaps over Miami’s first four drives. Wright lost a fumble during that stretch, but the Dolphins continued to use him. When he briefly left the game, he appeared to be dealing with an injury before returning rather than simply rotating out for Gordon. Gordon began seeing more significant playing time early in the second quarter. Gordon remained in the game until late in the quarter, when he appeared to injure his shoulder while being tackled. Miami hasn’t invested much in a fourth running back, so the team could look to add one if Gordon’s injury is serious. Wright briefly returned to the game after Gordon exited. Wright is unlikely to have much standalone fantasy value despite being the clear backup. However, if Achane misses time this season, Wright would become a priority waiver-wire addition and is worth considering as a late-round target in deeper leagues where most handcuffs are rostered. Dolphins’ wide receiver room takes shape: The first preseason game provided clarity on Miami’s top two wide receivers. This game offered a better indication of who will fill the No. 3 role. Miami made several changes to its wide receiver room this offseason, retaining Malik Washington, signing Jalen Tolbert, Tutu Atwell and Jalen Reagor, and drafting Caleb Douglas, Kevin Coleman Jr. and Chris Bell. Last week, Washington and Douglas dominated snaps with the starters, with Reagor joining them in three-receiver sets. Tolbert and Atwell were the primary backups, while Coleman was sidelined by an injury. Bell was activated from the NFI list earlier this week after tearing his ACL in December. This week, Washington was one of the few starters who didn’t play, providing further evidence that his starting role is secure. Douglas played only the first drive before his day ended, similarly solidifying his place among the starters. Tolbert was the other starting receiver, suggesting he has moved ahead of Reagor on the depth chart. He played two drives before exiting ahead of the rest of the receivers and should be considered the favorite to play Z in 11 personnel in Week 1. Coleman made his preseason debut after missing last week and consistently lined up in the slot in 11 personnel. Atwell replaced Douglas on the second drive, while Reagor replaced Tolbert on the third. Tolbert returned later in the second quarter, however, suggesting his lead over the other receivers isn’t particularly secure. Washington and Douglas remain interesting late-round dart throws in fantasy drafts. Miscellaneous Notes The Giants rested several starters, including quarterback Jaxson Dart, running back Cam Skattebo and tight end Isaiah Likely. Tight ends Theo Johnson and Chris Manhertz played only the first drive before their days ended. Both are expected to see significant playing time this season. The Dolphins rested several starters, including quarterback Malik Willis, running back De’Von Achane and wide receiver Malik Washington. Miami tight end Greg Dulcich played two of the three snaps on the first drive before his day ended. He was off the field for the first snap out of 21 personnel, a grouping he isn’t expected to play in often this season. Chicago Bears @ Cincinnati Bengals Colston Loveland plays eight of nine snaps with the starters: Loveland continued to see a snap rate similar to what he had late last season. Loveland spent most of his rookie season in a part-time role alongside Cole Kmet, playing between 52% and 66% of the offensive snaps in most weeks. That changed over the final three weeks of the regular season and the first week of the playoffs, when he played more than 80% of the snaps. He scored more than 21 PPR points in three of those four games. There has been little doubt that Loveland would continue to have a significant role in the offense, as he is the consensus TE3 by ADP and rankings. Part of that confidence stems from the Bears trading DJ Moore and not making as significant an investment in their third wide receiver, suggesting they could use more two-tight-end sets. Loveland’s playing time matched expectations, although it was somewhat surprising that Chicago used 12 personnel on only four of its nine snaps with the starters. His only snap off the field came on second-and-4 on the second play of the game. That allowed Kaden Davis and JP Richardson to get some work with Caleb Williams, so this small sample might not be indicative of how often Chicago will use 12 personnel during the regular season. Fantasy managers can draft Loveland with slightly more confidence after this usage, but it shouldn’t meaningfully affect his ADP. Erick All Jr. returns to the Bengals: All tore his ACL midway through the 2024 season and missed all of 2025. The Bengals typically use two early-down tight ends and a receiving tight end, with the receiving option playing primarily in obvious passing situations. That leaves one of the early-down tight ends with a decent amount of receiving volume, but the rotation makes it nearly impossible for any Bengals tight end to sustain fantasy value. During All’s rookie season, he was the early-down tight end who contributed as a receiver, while Mike Gesicki filled the receiving role and Drew Sample served as the other early-down option. With All sidelined last season, Cincinnati added Noah Fant to fill his role. Gesicki and Sample both rested for this game, while Cincinnati used plenty of 11 personnel early to give its young wide receivers more playing time. All started and immediately returned to his usual early-down role. Unfortunately for his fantasy prospects, the Bengals maintained their typical rotation even in the preseason, so All never played on third-and-medium or third-and-long. That usage suggests All will step right back into his rookie-year role, but it is unlikely to be large enough to make him fantasy relevant. He would need opportunities in obvious passing situations, and Cincinnati showed no indication that it plans to use him that way. Tanner Hudson handled the most obvious passing situations in this game, while Cam Grandy played in other passing situations. If Gesicki misses time this season, Hudson would likely take over that role rather than All, consistent with how Cincinnati has rotated its tight ends in recent years. All played only one drive, which makes sense both because this was his first game back and because he has the largest expected regular-season role among the Bengals players who suited up. Fant finished as TE37 last season, while All was TE38 over the first nine weeks of 2024. A similar finish is a reasonable expectation for All this season. Unless you’re in a league where roughly 40 tight ends are rostered, he shouldn’t be drafted. Miscellaneous Notes The Bengals rested quarterback Joe Burrow, running backs Chase Brown and Samaje Perine, wide receivers Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins and Andrei Iosivas and tight ends Mike Gesicki and Drew Sample. Chicago didn’t have Kyle Monangai (hyperextended knee) and Luther Burden III (groin), and it’s unlikely either plays in next week’s game. Zavion Thomas also wasn’t available. It’s unclear if it’s related to the knee injury he suffered two weeks ago, but he also didn’t play last week. Bears lead running back D’Andre Swift also didn’t play, which appears more precautionary. He’s only had one preseason where he’s played more than six snaps. Kalif Raymond is expected to be the Bears' third wide receiver. He played only the first three snaps, and his day ended before the rest of the starters. This is understandable considering he is 32. Philadelphia Eagles @ New England Patriots More concerns for Eli Stowers: Stowers played only a part-time role for the Eagles in this game. Philadelphia selected Stowers in the second round with the expectation that he could become the team’s lead tight end in 2027, with Dallas Goedert entering the final season of his contract. There was at least some hope that Stowers could contribute as a rookie. He is primarily a receiving tight end, and it has become clear that Johnny Mundt will likely serve as the second tight end in 12 personnel this season. Last week, Stowers was the second tight end in 12 personnel behind Grant Calcaterra, suggesting Stowers was fourth on the depth chart. This week, Philadelphia rested its top two tight ends, while Calcaterra was sidelined by an injury. Rather than giving Stowers an every-down role, the Eagles used him exclusively in 11 personnel during the first quarter. Philadelphia used 12 personnel on half of its plays during that stretch, with E.J. Jenkins and Cameron Latu handling the tight end snaps in those formations. Stowers should still make the roster given his draft capital, but his preseason usage has been discouraging, and his dynasty value should continue to fall. Kyle Williams and Efton Chism III remain at the bottom of the depth chart: The two young receivers started for New England while five other wide receivers were among the key players who sat out. The Patriots added A.J. Brown and Romeo Doubs this offseason while losing only Stefon Diggs, making it difficult for the other returning wide receivers to see as much playing time as last year, let alone expand their roles. DeMario Douglas, Kayshon Boutte and Mack Hollins were key contributors last season who could all see a reduction in snaps this year. That has made it even harder for Williams and Chism to earn more playing time. It’s clear through the first two preseason games that Williams and Chism sit sixth and seventh on the depth chart. In practice, Chism is the backup slot receiver and could see a notable role if Douglas were to suffer an injury. It will be much harder for Williams to find a role this season. He projects as an X receiver, which is where Brown and Boutte both play. Doubs also has experience at X, and if injuries pile up, it’s possible that Doubs would simply move back to X rather than Williams becoming a starter. Ideally, both wide receivers would have also sat this week because their roster spots were secure. Instead, they started and continued playing deep into the second quarter. Most Patriots beat writers expect the team to keep seven wide receivers this season, so Williams and Chism appear likely to make the roster. However, it’s unlikely that either will become fantasy relevant this season. Miscellaneous Notes The Patriots rested quarterback Drake Maye, running backs Rhamondre Stevenson and TreVeyon Henderson, fullback Reggie Gilliam, wide receivers A.J. Brown, Romeo Doubs, DeMario Douglas, Kayshon Boutte and Mack Hollins, as well as tight end Hunter Henry. Third-round rookie tight end Eli Raridon was not spotted during warmups with the other starters who weren’t playing, suggesting he could be dealing with an injury. He is expected to be the Patriots’ second tight end as long as they don’t add another from a different roster. The Eagles rested quarterback Jalen Hurts, running backs Saquon Barkley and Tank Bigsby, wide receivers DeVonta Smith, Dontayvion Wicks and Hollywood Brown, and tight ends Dallas Goedert and Johnny Mundt. First-round rookie Makai Lemon returned to practice Thursday after missing most of camp with a hamstring issue. He didn’t play in this game. Wide receiver Elijah Moore (neck) and tight end Grant Calcaterra (back) were also among the Eagles who didn’t play because of injuries. Kansas City Chiefs @ Tampa Bay Buccaneers Chiefs’ confusing running back usage: Emari Demercado went from playing late in the fourth quarter of the first preseason game to seeing the field on the first drive of this game. Kansas City reworked its running back room this offseason and added Kenneth Walker to be its lead back. Brashard Smith was retained, and he is competing with free-agent addition Demercado and fifth-round rookie Emmett Johnson. All three could specialize as passing-down backs, but someone will also need to serve as Walker’s backup on early downs. On the first drive, Walker played the first two snaps before Demercado took over on third down. One reasonable explanation is that Walker might not always play on third downs. He has an injury history, and if there is any situation where it makes sense to take him off the field, it’s on third down. It’s also reasonable to think that Walker simply played his two snaps before his day ended early, meaning this usage doesn’t tell us anything about how he might be deployed on third downs. While most head coaches wait until the end of a drive to rotate players out of a preseason game, Andy Reid has a long history of taking players out mid-drive. He took Tyquan Thornton, Travis Kelce and Noah Gray out mid-drive at various points in this game, for example. Walker was also taken out after one play last week. Reid consistently avoids using running backs by situation in the preseason, instead giving one back a set of plays before moving on to another. Another unique practice by Reid is changing the order in which running backs play from one preseason game to the next. Isiah Pacheco was high on the depth chart for a preseason game during his rookie season, but that role didn’t materialize until the middle of the regular season. Last year, Elijah Mitchell was high on the depth chart in the first week of the preseason, while Carson Steele was the primary backup to Pacheco in the second game. Last week, Smith entered the game after Walker played one snap and remained on the field for the rest of the first quarter. Smith and Johnson rotated throughout the second and third quarters, with Demercado taking his first offensive snap in the fourth quarter. This week, Demercado was up first. After taking the final snap of the first drive, he played throughout the second and third drives. Johnson began seeing playing time on the fourth drive. Smith played on special teams early in the game but didn’t play on offense until the second half. We aren’t much closer to finding out who Walker’s handcuff will be or who, if anyone, will play in certain passing situations this season. It’s entirely possible those answers change over the course of the season. It’s best to leave all three on the waiver wire and simply draft Walker early. Tyquan Thornton remains the WR3: While Cyrus Allen has received plenty of praise during training camp, Thornton remains high on Kansas City’s depth chart. Chiefs wide receivers Rashee Rice (knee) and Xavier Worthy (shoulder) have been practicing but are being eased back into action and didn’t play in this game. Thornton, Allen and Jalen Royals are the expected top backups, and this game further confirmed their roles. They were the only three wide receivers to play on the first three drives, with Thornton at X, Royals at Z and Allen in the slot in 11 personnel. The Chiefs typically mix up their wide receiver usage more than most teams, but that wasn’t the case on these drives. Thornton played the first snap of the fourth drive before his day ended, with Andrew Armstrong taking his place. Royals and Allen continued playing throughout the rest of the first half, even after Garrett Nussmeier took over for Justin Fields at quarterback. The fact that Allen played so late in the first half suggests he won’t see an extensive role immediately, but he is clearly among the top five wide receivers on the depth chart. It’s also worth noting that Allen isn’t necessarily competing with Thornton, as the two play very different roles. Thornton was among the league leaders in average depth of target last season, while Allen projects to have a much lower average depth of target. Allen’s primary path to a fantasy-relevant role this season is taking playing time from Rice. Don’t read into the Buccaneers’ running back snap counts: While Kenneth Gainwell played more snaps with the starters than Bucky Irving, Irving received the start. The Buccaneers allowed Rachaad White to walk in free agency and spent more on Gainwell after his breakout season with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Gainwell received significant praise during OTAs while Irving was out with an injury, but everything since then has suggested that Irving is the starter. Irving started this game and ran the ball on each of the first three plays for 14 yards. After that, his day was done before the rest of the starters. Gainwell took over for the final two plays of the first drive, played all three snaps on the second drive and then exited along with the rest of the Buccaneers’ starters. All this game did was confirm that Irving is the lead back. It didn’t provide much insight into what the backfield’s snap split might look like or how interchangeable the two backs could be, as opposed to Irving playing more in rushing situations and Gainwell handling more passing-down work. Their ADPs and rankings should not change based on this game. Dallas Cowboys @ Arizona Cardinals The Cowboys’ backfield battle takes a turn: Malik Davis started this week after not playing until the third quarter last week. Javonte Williams was the Cowboys’ starter last season, with Davis ending the year as a backup. Fifth-round rookie Jaydon Blue spent most of the season as a healthy inactive, while seventh-round rookie Phil Mafah missed most of last season due to injury. Cowboys coaches and beat writers have made it clear that they hoped Blue or Mafah would win the backup job. Last week, Blue started the game, with Mafah rotating in throughout the first half. Blue was done at halftime, Mafah started the third quarter and Davis took over later. This week, Davis started, with Blue rotating in later in the first drive. This suggests Davis is currently the favorite for the backup job, but the situation is likely unsettled and could be a top storyline in the third week of the preseason. It’s also possible the Cowboys add a running back after the third week of the preseason. Blue was worth drafting in the late rounds when it seemed clear he was on track to win the backup job, but this is now a situation to avoid. Bam Knight sits along with other key players: Corey Kiner and Evan Hull were Arizona’s primary running backs for this game. Knight was the Cardinals’ starting running back for half of last season, but it seemed like his job was in jeopardy a few months ago. James Conner and Trey Benson were expected to return, the team signed Tyler Allgeier in free agency and then drafted Jeremiyah Love. This presumably put Knight fifth on the depth chart. There were rumblings at the start of the preseason that Knight could make the roster ahead of Conner, Benson or both because of his ability on special teams. Knight’s chances of making the roster have continued to increase, as Love suffered a high ankle sprain that will keep him out until the start of the season, Conner is still dealing with a foot injury and Benson is dealing with a knee injury. Those chances appear even higher now, as Knight didn’t play in this game. While Knight could be injured, the more likely scenario is that Arizona wanted to keep its second-best healthy running back out of harm’s way. Benson is unlikely to make the roster at this point, and there is a good chance the Cardinals keep four running backs given Love’s injury. It will take an injury to Allgeier, along with the other running backs remaining sidelined, for Knight to have fantasy value this season, but stranger things have happened. Miscellaneous Notes The Cowboys rested starters and key backups, including quarterback Dak Prescott, halfback Javonte Williams, fullback Hunter Luepke, wide receivers CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Ryan Flournoy and KaVontae Turpin, and tight ends Jake Ferguson and Brevyn Spann-Ford. Jonathan Mingo appears to be the favorite for the fifth wide receiver spot after starting both preseason games and catching a long touchdown pass. Undrafted rookie Camden Brown played in the first quarter last week and appears to have overtaken veteran Marquez Valdes-Scantling on the depth chart. Wide receiver Tyler Johnson and tight end Zack Kuntz played only in the fourth quarter last week but saw significant playing time with the starters in the first quarter this week, suggesting several bottom-of-the-roster spots remain unsettled. Cowboys third tight end Luke Schoonmaker played eight of the first nine snaps and left the game early, making it clear he is the third tight end. He similarly left early last week. The Cardinals rested quarterback Jacoby Brissett, running backs Tyler Allgeier and Bam Knight, wide receivers Michael Wilson, Marvin Harrison Jr. and Kendrick Bourne, and tight ends Trey McBride and Elijah Higgins. Fifth-round rookie wide receiver Reggie Virgil started the game. He drew an illegal contact penalty on the first play, hopped around shortly after the contact and then jogged off the field. He didn’t enter the game again until the second quarter. Jalen Brooks appears to be the favorite for Arizona’s fourth wide receiver spot. Devin Duvernay was expected to make the Cardinals’ 53-man roster because of his work as a returner. He is listed first on the unofficial depth chart at both kick and punt returner. Ihmir Smith-Marsette is listed second at both spots, and he received significant playing time with the starters in the first half. It’s possible Smith-Marsette makes the roster instead of Duvernay. Seattle Seahawks @ Tennessee Titans Tyjae Spears out-snaps Tony Pollard with the starters again: Pollard has started both games, but Spears has been on the field more frequently with Cam Ward this preseason. Pollard and Spears have shared the Titans’ backfield for each of the past two seasons. Pollard has played more in rushing situations, while Spears has played more on passing downs. Pollard led the team in snaps in most games, but Spears occasionally played more when the Titans fell behind early. Now, the Titans have a new coaching staff that could find a different way to rotate the two. Pollard played the first drive this week, while Spears played the second and third. Last week, Spears rotated in more on the first drive, while Pollard rotated back in on the third drive. This generally suggests that Pollard is ahead of Spears, but the gap between the two may be smaller than it has been in past years. If Pollard were clearly ahead, he likely wouldn’t have returned for the third drive last week and potentially would have been taken out earlier. The fact that he is playing at all is somewhat surprising, as he is one of only five lead running backs to play this week in the preseason and one of only two to play more than three snaps. Pollard appears to be a classic dead-zone running back who, on paper, looks capable of producing RB2 numbers but could easily finish outside the top 30 fantasy running backs. There is a decent chance that Spears ends up leading this backfield in fantasy points. Titans’ wide receiver depth chart appears set: Tennessee stuck with the same three receivers for each of the first three drives. Tennessee’s top receivers for most of last season were fourth-round rookies Elic Ayomanor and Chimere Dike. While both players remain on the roster, they have fallen behind Calvin Ridley, who spent most of last season injured, first-round rookie Carnell Tate and free-agent addition Wan’Dale Robinson. Ayomanor and Dike didn’t see significant playing time until the fourth quarter, when the rest of the backups entered the game. For the first three drives, Ridley played X, Tate played Z and Robinson lined up in the slot. Robinson left the field in 12 personnel, which wasn’t the case when he was the lead receiver for the New York Giants last year. This lowers his fantasy ceiling compared to his time in New York. Ridley took two plays off late in the Titans’ long opening drive, with Ayomanor taking over at X on those plays. It seems unlikely that Ayomanor will have fantasy value this season unless Ridley suffers another injury or is traded. Ridley is worth a late-round draft pick because he remains one of the top options on the team, but the Titans’ offense will need to improve for him to pay off at his ADP. Tate played the Z receiver role last week but was subbed out more often with Ward on the field. This week, Tate was consistently on the field, which is a good sign for the rookie. However, as with everyone else in the offense, the Titans will need to play better for Tate to be worth an early pick in fantasy drafts. Gunnar Helm leads a tight end rotation: While Helm is the lead tight end for the Titans, he is likely a player to avoid in fantasy drafts. Helm started his rookie season as the second option behind Chig Okonkwo, but his playing time slowly increased as the season progressed. The Titans decided not to re-sign Okonkwo and instead brought in free agent Daniel Bellinger. Bellinger spent the first four seasons of his career with the New York Giants, including time with new Titans offensive coordinator Brian Daboll. Helm played the first four snaps of the opening drive, but Bellinger replaced him on third down and played the rest of the drive. The Titans used some 12 personnel on the second drive with both players on the field, while Helm played more snaps in 11 personnel. On the third drive, both players again saw time in 11 personnel. While Helm is still expected to be the lead tight end, he will need more playing time to earn a higher target share than he has seen in the past. He will also need the Titans’ offense to improve for him to become a top-12 fantasy tight end. Most other starting receiving tight ends have an easier path to a top-12 finish. Elijah Arroyo plays into the second quarter: Arroyo caught a highlight-worthy touchdown, but the fact that he played into the second quarter isn’t a great sign for his fantasy value. Arroyo was a second-round pick by the Seahawks last season but ultimately lost the starting job to AJ Barner. Barner didn’t miss a game last season, and Arroyo averaged a 39.5% snap rate. There is a chance that rate will be even lower this season, as the Seahawks have more wide receivers they can trust. While there had been talk of Arroyo having a breakout season, this is the second straight game in which Arroyo played while the starters sat. Nearly half of the league’s backup tight ends didn’t play this week, although a few were sidelined by injuries rather than being rested. This indicates Seattle doesn’t plan to make Arroyo as big a part of the offense as the receivers who didn’t play in this game. Arroyo will be someone to pick up off the waiver wire if Barner suffers an injury, but it’s unlikely that Arroyo has another path to fantasy value this season. Miscellaneous Notes Seattle opted to sit Jadarian Price after he missed time with upper-leg soreness. While he ramped up to padded practices this week, Seattle opted to remain cautious. Emanuel Wilson missed his second straight preseason game with an undisclosed injury. Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet remains on the PUP list, so he was not eligible to play and is unlikely to be available for Week 1. Seahawks backup wide receiver Jake Bobo was placed on injured reserve yesterday with a knee injury, ending his season. Second-year receiver Tory Horton will be out for “some time” with an undisclosed injury. Seattle rested its starters and other key players, including quarterback Sam Darnold, running back George Holani, wide receivers Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Rashid Shaheed and Cooper Kupp, and tight end AJ Barner. Table Notes Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, such as offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats exclude these plays. Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not. Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game."

"The NFL season starts in less than three weeks, and the big wave of drafts in redraft leagues is upon us. What a time to be alive! Two of my favorite columns to write each season are this one, and its sister, Red Light: Players to Avoid (coming next).Here’s a link to where you can find my other preseason fantasy football content here at Big Blue View, including my July rankings, sleepers, a Giants fantasy preview and much more: Fantasy Football Hub.This column lists some of the players I’m most interested in targeting. I’m looking to take these guys at or around their current Average Draft Position (ADP), or even a little earlier. You’ll notice that my rankings on almost every player listed in this column are either equal to or ahead of market. That’s the idea. This isn’t a breakouts or sleepers column, but rather a list of players who I think offer solid value at current pricing. If a player isn’t listed, that doesn’t mean I’m out on him. I can’t list everyone.I’m not going to discuss first-rounders. I’m mainly focusing on players going AFTER the first 15 or so picks, but still inside the first 130. Rounds 2-10 of a draft are critical, as that’s where you’ll build the foundation of your starting lineup and top reserves. These rounds are all about finding good values and upside, while avoiding landmines. After Round 10 or 11, you’re getting deeper into your bench, and sleeper territory. For those who play in auction leagues, (a) bravo, and (b) I’m interested in the same players, if I can get them at a fair price.Make sure to see my Sleepers column for players I like who are ranked outside the Top-130ADPs listed are as of August 21, 2026, are a consensus of several sites, and are for Half PPR scoring. Rankings reflect Half PPR scoring, on a points per game basis, with Week 18 excluded. ADPs are a little all over the place right now – your mileage may vary.GREEN LIGHT PLAYERS, 2026:QuarterbackJayden Daniels (ADP 64, my rank 58) and Jalen Hurts (ADP 70, my rank 60).QB is insanely deep this year, and in one-QB leagues, there’s really no reason to take one early. You’re passing up on too much value elsewhere. But several rounds after Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson are long gone, if I can get one of the two remaining elite dual-threats in Round 6, I’m certainly thinking about it. The opportunity cost is manageable at that juncture, considering the QB points you could be getting on a weekly basis.I like the addition of Stefon Diggs for Daniels, who was the QB4 in his rookie season (22.5 FPPG) before injuries derailed his 2025 campaign. Washington’s defense is still bad and Daniels and the offense are going to need to keep pace.Hurts gets a lot of criticism as a thrower and that helps to make him underrated for fantasy. Bottom line: He hasn’t finished outside the Top-8 QBs in any of the last five seasons, and while the rushing TDs dipped last year to just eight, he’s still a good bet for double digit scores with the tush push in play. I’m not overly worried about the departure of A.J. Brown. Hurts is cash money for fantasy, and he hasn’t been this cheap in years.Others: QB is so deep with quality this season, you can absolutely wait and then take one or two guys in the QB12-22 range and you’ll probably do just fine at the position. Streaming options will abound. In Superflex leagues, very good second QBs should be fairly easy to nab. I like any of high-upside Justin Herbert (ADP 88, my rank 82), Trevor Lawrence (ADP 89, my rank 83), Dak Prescott (ADP 91, my rank 85), and Jaxson Dart (ADP 92, my rank 93) in the Round 8-9 range, or if you want to wait even further while you continue to load up at other positions, Brock Purdy, Bo Nix, and Jared Goff (ADP range 113-125) are great choices in Round 10-11 (or later if they fall further).Goff in particular is a terrific value at his ADP (125), if you want to wait until the final QB1s are being taken. He doesn’t run and isn’t an exciting pick. When you take him, your leaguemates will barely notice. But he’s been a very consistent (and healthy) low-end QB1 for fantasy since his arrival in Detroit. On top of that, the Lions have one of the league’s easiest schedules, their defense is perennially banged up and undermanned, and new OC Drew Petzing is a nice upgrade.Running BackI had some solid extra-base hits with my green light RBs last season, including Travis Etienne, Jr., Chase Brown, and D’Andre Swift. Here are some green lighters for 2026:Kenneth Walker III (ADP 18, my rank 15) and Derrick Henry (ADP 19, my rank 11) are big name players who are in play for me starting around the 1-2 turn and certainly early in Round 2. Walker has a great opportunity to finally secure a workhorse role in Kansas City, with a QB in Patrick Mahomes who is coming off a torn ACL and figures to scramble less and dump it off more. Walker has never gotten much credit as a pass-catcher and I think he’ll outproduce expectations in that area. The key with him is health.In two seasons in Baltimore, Henry has done nothing to make anyone think he’s slowing down. He’s averaged 5.9 and 5.2 yards per carry in his two seasons with the Ravens. Fine, he doesn’t catch passes. So what? When you top 3,700 rushing yards with 32 rushing TDs across two seasons, you’re fantasy gold. At his Round 2 cost, he’s a great choice as your RB1, or second stud RB in a back-heavy build. Father Time can keep waiting. King Henry owns him.Chase Brown (ADP 15, my rank 16). No notes. Rinse and repeat for a back who does everything well and has minimal competition in a potent offense.Omarion Hampton (ADP 16, my rank 18) is a player I like a lot this year too, in a Mike McDaniel offense and with his size and skillset. He’s going to visit the end zone quite a bit. But the bandwagon is full, the ADP is very high, and I don’t think I’ll get much of him given that I’m a little behind consensus, and have Waker, Henry, and Brown ahead of him.In late Round 3, I’m in on Javonte Williams (ADP 31, my rank 27). He’s expensive for a player who was a late bloomer. But I like the situation, with an excellent offense and not that much competition for high-leverage touches. Let’s also run back Travis Etienne, Jr. (ADP 41, my rank 38). He’s in a great situation to produce in Kellen Moore’s fast-paced offense, and I’m not worried about Alvin Kamara (who is already banged up) siphoning off the high value touches. They paid Etienne a lot to go there and Kamara’s excellent career is at or near its end.Further down, I’m green lighting David Montgomery (ADP 48, my rank 44), D’Andre Swift (ADP 50, my rank 45), Rhamondre Stevenson (ADP 74, my rank 66), Jonathon Brooks (ADP 88, my rank 80), and Jordan Mason (ADP 100, my rank 91). All are attractively priced RB2s/Flexes, in my view.Montgomery should be the workhorse on a team with a stellar defense and limited receiving weapons. Their O-line isn’t great, but the opportunity is. Just look at what Joe Mixon did in this offense two seasons ago. The Bears figure to get into plenty of shootouts and Swift is positioned to repeat what he did last season. Stevenson isn’t going away, and is criminally underpriced. Brooks is a flier given that he’s never been healthy, but the price is attractive for someone who might get lots of work and showed a ton of talent in college. Chuba Hubbard is already banged up. Mason is very cheap for a player who has a good chance to be the top RB in what should be an improved offense.Wide ReceiverThe injury bug strikes again. Damn. Three receivers who I planned on highlighting in this column have gotten hurt in the preseason (Emeka Egbuka, Jordyn Tyson, and Jayden Higgins). Higgins is done for the year (ACL), unfortunately. I’ll reevaluate the other two as we get closer to the season, but if they’re good to go Week 1, they’re likely still going to be green light plays for me, at cost.I think a lot of receivers in the first 4-5 rounds are pretty fairly priced. Here are some I like most, at ADP:A.J. Brown (ADP 21, my rank 21). I’m a little concerned that Howie Roseman, who is the best G.M. in the NFL, let Brown walk. What does he know? Both health and motivation are potential concerns with Brown, who is now 29. But here is what I do know: New England lacked an elite receiver last season, and their QB not only led the NFL in completion percentage (72%), but he also led in yards per attempt (9.5). That’s a truly insane combo platter that hasn’t been talked about enough. If Drake Maye can get anywhere close to the league lead in those two categories again, that’s great news for Brown, who has always been able to win downfield and make big plays.Chris Olave (ADP 28, my rank 25) is a bargain in Round 3, and especially with Tyson likely to miss at least the start of the season, and possibly a lot more if he can’t figure out his chronic hamstring issues. Think Christain Watson, early in his career. I trust Kellen Moore’s offense, and the team just doesn’t have a lot beyond Olave. His target share should be among the highest in the league, and assuming he can stay healthy he should build on his WR8 finish from last season.Ladd McConkey (ADP 43, my rank 39), Jaylen Waddle (ADP 47, my rank 42), D.J. Moore (ADP 51, my rank 46), and Terry McLaurin (ADP 56, my rank 50) are some of my favorite WRs in Rounds 4 and 5 (plus Egbuka), and a round or two later, I like Christian Watson (ADP 66, my rank 55), and Rome Odunze (ADP 64, my rank 62). The reasons for my vote of confidence vary, but I think all are well positioned to lead their teams in targets and catches, and all are in offenses that should score plenty. Odunze is going a full round behind teammate Luther Burden III (and it was almost a round more than that before Burden got hurt) and I think the hype train for Luther’s year two breakout has gone slightly off the rails.Brian Thomas Jr. (ADP 78, my rank 74) is a forgotten man, and is going just behind teammate Parker Washington. I can’t get behind that and don’t mind gambling on his talent and big play potential in Round 7.As we get down towards the double digit rounds, a couple of guys I like most at their very affordable cost are Michael Wilson, Chris Godwin, Jr., Josh Downs, and Jayden Reed. My ranks on all four are ahead of ADP.Note: There is plenty of good value at WR after Round 10, so be sure to see the Sleepers column.Tight End Big hits for me last season were George Kittle and Tucker Kraft (until he got hurt). Here are my favorite values this year:I think both Colston Loveland (ADP 42, my rank 42) and Tyler Warren (ADP 49, my rank 51) are attractively priced, but I prefer a number of RBs and WRs in the same range. I probably won’t get too much of either one unless they fall, in which case I’m happy to pounce. The good news is that there are a bunch of TEs going many rounds later who I’m happy with as my TE1. And if they don’t work out, there are sleepers who could be viable streaming options.Sam LaPorta (ADP: 69, my ranking: 64) is a player I like a lot this season and especially with a price near the 6/7 turn. I’m generally all-in on the Lions for fantasy this season, and while he’s no Trey McBride, LaPorta has strong receiving chops and new OC Drew Petzing clearly knows how to involve a pass-catching TE in his offense.Further down, I think George Kittle (ADP 94, my rank 87), Dalton Kincaid (ADP 102, my rank 99), Isaiah Likely (ADP 104, my rank 108), and Mark Andrews (ADP 116, my rank 111) are all good upside plays that won’t cost you a lot. Any of these four could easily end up finishing as Top-10 TEs this season.I was more bullish on Likely when his ADP was a round later, but I still like the opportunity for him to finally deliver as a TE1, on a team with dusty receivers after Malik Nabers, whose health is uncertain. Kittle is only eight months removed from a torn achilles and is 33, but he’s a crazy bargain if he’s still got it, and the receiver room in San Francisco isn’t exactly the picture of health or youth. Kincaid is finally past the PCL injury that plagued his early seasons and is a good breakout candidate. Andrews has less competition this season and has always been a red zone favorite for Lamar Jackson. He may not catch as many passes as the rest in this group, but I won’t be surprised if we look up in January and he’s among the touchdown leaders at the position.Those are the green light plays for 2026. Stay tuned for the column of warning and whining —The Red Light list, coming soon."

"WEBVTT - Big Blue Kickoff Live 8/20 | Recent Roster Changes It's time for a Big Blue kickoff line. Nobody can ever tell you that you couldn't do it. Because you're on giants dot Com. You know what I saw you York Giant. Crack and the Giants mobile app seventeen. Tuckdown we are, We're out tap. Part of the Giants podcast network. Let's go on, Hell Dog has fun. Welcome to Thursday's edition a Big Blue Kickoff live here on giants dot com YouTube as well as the mobile app. We are with you for the next sixty minutes. Thanks so much for tuning in. It is presented by Cadillac, the official luxury vehicle of the New York Giants. We are broadcasting from the Giants Podcast Studio, presented by Hacketsack Maridine Health Keep getting Better. Multiple ways you'd interact with us here on the program two zero one nine three nine four five one three. Could also interact with us on social media is at Mark Melusis one word, I'm Atlance Metal one word as well med o w You know it indeed and if you don't, you got to go back to spelling class and check in on the AVCS is the archive of the show and our entire podcast network on the Giants mobile app, podcast platforms everywhere, the Giants YouTube channel and at giants dot com, slash podcast moose. How's everything on your own team? Everything's good, Lands, I mean, rolling right along here through training camp for the Giants summer, clicking right along, blink of an eye. Will be at the game one of the regular season Sunday night against the Dallas Cowboys. Amazingly enough. But all as well, my friend, how about yourself? I'm doing great and it's always fun to be alongside you. The Dolphins of the Giants just wrapped up their joint practice, so we'll get into a little bit in terms of the pros and the cons. But where I want to start is, just as I got off the air yesterday, the Giants did make a trade as they ship backup offensive lineman Daniel ba la Fa la lais say that one hundred times to the Jacksonville Jaguars for a sixth round pick, pending a physical. Now they had depth on the offensive line. But I would say, in my interpretation moves, I think this trade is more telling for the Jaguars than the Giants, And the reason being is not that maybe Giants fans are reading into the daily ins and outs of what's going on in Jacksonville. But the Jaguars recently learned that they're starting right guard Patrick mccherry underwent back surgery yep, so his status is very much up in the air. They had an automatic, instantaneous need to at least bring somebody in with starting experience that they could insert as opposed to maybe, you know, rolling the dice and seeing if somebody's going to be cut or on the waiver wires. So I think you can understand why this move was made from Jacksonville standpoint. I don't know how much I would necessarily, I guess, read into it from the Giants perspective and saying it gives another offensive lineman a leg up here. I don't know if ID necessarily go there. I grew with the logic and kind of the train of thought lands that he went through. From a dagwar perspective. They had a pressing need, right, and you look around the National Football League you start to make the calls that fact to that pressing need, and you say, well, where can we address it? Right? Where can we bring in a player of quality that maybe is in a training camp battle or maybe is in a battle for a roster spot for a particular organization, but would answer a serious question that we have at least initially along our offensive line and give us some competition at that position. So, I think from a Jaguar perspective, I don't disagree with the alance. I think it makes sense for them. From a Giant perspective, I think you read into it that they have a lot of confidence in the depth in the room that they feel okay in trading away a Fallee down to Jacksonville, in making that deal and saying themselves that the starting five is really good. We understand everyone's got to go out there and stay healthy throughout the course of the regular season. We know our depth is going to get challenged throughout the course of the regular season at certain points in the time, and hopefully none of it is significant injuries lands, but we see it year in and year out, regardless of organization. A Giant said, Okay, well, we feel really good about that room right now, uh, and that depth in that room to where we can make this trade. And so we trade away a guy that you know has value for us, but doesn't have myth necessarily the consequential value that it does for Jacksonville. For the Jaguars, they address a big time area of need. For the Giants, they deal from their depth and add a potential net future asset in getting a Lake Brown. Draft to it. Plus they just added ba La lais recently. Right, So you actually turned somebody. That who's on the street, correct. I mean you didn't basically put a wealth of money or investment in this player and then now all of a sudden you flipped it into an asset in next year's draft as a twenty twenty, which what you know. Because that's where you get into a lance. I mean, regardless of sport. What you what do you get frustrated with as fans is that when you're not able to turn you know, you see it sometimes in Major League Baseball more so than anything else where. You see it on a team that's not contending. Not to drug, it's not a true apples happles comparison, But go with me for a second. Where a non contending team doesn't trade an impending free agent and then that free agent eventually lose it leaves in free agency, and you say, well, you could get the draft capital right and the competition that comes along with it in today's day and age of Major League Baseball, or you could have flipped that asset and maybe added somebody in more consequence at the line. And I'm selling you of that this sixth round pick is going to be very consequential for the future of the New York Times. We don't know, right, it's a great unknown, but right it's a future asset. But for the Giants here it makes sense to where we just turned, you know, a short term asset that we just brought a board into the organization, don't have a lot of commitment to him, and now all of a sudden, there's a team in the NFL that looks at him as a potential answer for them, at least in the short term, and we're able to get some draft capital back in return. So for the Giants it makes perfect sense. And I think for them, I think the only message you would lead me to believe is that they feel really good about where that offensive line room is right now at the stage of training. Yeah, I mean, I just I guess I wasn't reading into it from the standpoint that somebody now launches where I was going. It was more of a depth piece. Sure, you know, that no definite thing. I don't think it's a case of where somebody all of the sudden is clearly aheads up. I think it's more of a case of while we have a lot of guys that are probably on a similar plane, right, different strengths, different weaknesses, but in an overall evaluation where they're on a similar plane to where there's no there's no great differential between a player B player C player. We feel confident in either one of those players should they be put in a position to where they need to start. Yeah, you have several players that are within the same ballpark, so there's not a huge differential. And at least if we speculate here, you think about the numbers game Moose, I could see them certainly keying nine offensive lineman. You would think, right, the five starters, four backups. And it goes without saying if you're going to be a backup offensive lineman, you better have the capacity to be slid into multiple spots, whether you're a center slash guard or a guard slash tackle. So if you look at currently some of the players on that second level, you've got Evan Neil, we know has experience at guard and tackle, bo could be the swing tackle. I think he clearly is the favorite. Brian Hudson has emerged with Lucas Patrick being hurt to back up John Michael Schmidt. Stinney has been utilized throughout his career in a variety of spots, A Zoo dou same thing, and then the rookie JC Davis. So it's a high volume group right now where you easily could have afforded to ship one out of town where you're not necessarily setting yourself back in the competition for the top four second level best offensive lineman that you're going to retain. Well, iould agree. I think of those names not to throw shade at any of them, because that's not what we're doing here, but I think interesting thing the two guys that are really of interest to me would be that are intriguing J. C. Davis obviously a six round pick, and then Marcus Bow based on what we saw a year ago, where I think in I think you hit upon Atlant that the opportunity to be a string swing tackle. I think when he was thrown in a position into the deep end of the pool a year ago, I thought he looked pretty good all right for a guy that all of a sudden he said, well, there were some limitations for him from a scouting perspective coming out of college. And then you saw him in the National Football League. And what I love about athletes, Lance, and what you love, we all love, is seeing guys where they're they're able to meet the moment, their talent is able to meet the moment. And we saw bow a year ago throwing thrown into some spot. Then I thought he played really well, and you know, I thought there was a lot of promise there to where you say, Okay, well, if he's going to be our swing tackle, you feel pretty good about that. You hope that. Illuminor and you hope that Andrew Thomas And obviously, you know you lose your left tackle. You know, they're franchise left tackles for a reason. There's nobody in the Giants offensive line room that's gonna be able to replace Andrew Thomas. Right, So we all go on to that guy's and guidance and kind of understanding. But bo is interesting one. I think jac Davis as well Evan Neil. When the Giants brought him back, you know, got a lot of you know, negative press from Giant fans, but you understand it. Guy that was really well thought of, high draft pick coming out of Alabama, a top ten pick, and it's been frustrating to see where his development is gone here as a member of the New York Giants. But you know, there was. Kind of a no risk, high reward kind of a deal where you have a new coaching staff taking a look at him and seeing if they can get the best out of Evan Neil moving forward. There's no doubt that he's a mountain of a man, really good athlete. The question is canny play at the level many projected him to be as an offensive line in the NFL, and we have not been able to see that up until this. Point in time. So those would be the three names to me of intriguing. But you know, I think for the Giants here, they feel really good about where their starters are. Now. It's a matter of where potentially those four backups are land and how exactly do they fit, and really. Who gives them the most flexibility should injuries occur. I will say this though, I think this swing tackle position is critical because if I'm the Giant and I know I'm going down a hypothetical road. But you have to prepare accordingly right because you never know how the durability of your team is going to play out. I would not want to envision a scenario where you'd have to kick out Mawi Nooah to tackle where he played in college because he's a rookie moose. I want to leave him at guard. I want him to create his comfort level there is opposed to playing a game of what I like to call musical chairs. So that's why bo having the. Capacity and the ability to be slid in at left tackle end or right tackle or JC Davis to your point, maybe being launched in I think is important in the early stage of the season. So I agree you can keep see See at right guard. Because here's the other thing. It becomes a domino effect. This is what I always say. You move him to the outside. Now John Michael Schmidz has to get used to a new guard. Why do you want to create all of these movables? And then there's a learning curve for Mino And there's going to be a learning curve with him playing guard because he was a tackle at college. But now there's going to be a learning curve for him now playing tackle. In the National Football League because there there's. Not one and the same. It's decidedly different. And we've seen that with a number of times with the offensive linemen, tackles specifically that have been really good in college but have not necessarily been particularly good in the National Football League. We just talked about Evan Neil, right, So I don't disagree with the alliance. I love that train of thought. I think you're dead on target. I would keep mynoo around, And I agree the swing tackle position in the National Football League has become of high important, and you know, I think the Giants of the potential here with Bo would have a really really good one. Now, he doesn't want to be a swing tackle the entirety of his career. We understand that because tackles get paid, especially left tackles, they get paid in the National Football League. But for the here and now, we're looking at the giants and kind of the microscope at twenty twenty six. Bo is a guy that I'm really intrigued with where I think I saw enough from him last year to feel pretty good about as long as he continues to grow and progress under this new coaching staff. Feeling pretty good about what he's going to be this season. And he had the benefit of getting out there to your point when you had Andrew Thomas sideline last season, So he was able to put some film out there in a regular season setting, which I'm sure helped this new coaching. Staff evaluate him. Now they further see him up close and personal, and that I think is another reason why they at least were able to sacrifice an offensive lineman. Because if Bow once again gives you security where you could slide him in left and right, then the focus becomes more of Okay, who has the upper handed guard? And while I don't think again this change is necessarily the conversation of anybody at right or left guard. But if I'm Evan Neil, who you brought up just moves from a mental perspective, I'm at least a deserving my environment. I'm saying there's one less body. Okay, not to make this impersonal, but the bottom line is there's one less person that is standing in my way of trying to make the fifty three. So if anything, this should not that he needs motivation, right, he should have all of it once he re signed, but this is now giving him I'm sure the train of thought entering the final two preseason games. Okay, if I could put some good film together and give this coaching staff a reason, maybe I can carve out a role on the interior to be that second layer behind the likes of John Runyon and CC. Now we know, right, and I think from Neil where and Lance, you know, it'd be interesting to see exactly what his mindset, train of thought was being brought here and being brought back here because everyone thought that for all likely it is giant. Career is over. But I think he had a look at as a fresh start, and that you know, regardless of what is transpired in the past and what things have whether it be injury or what there be performance of how it has not worked out, there's a reason why Evan Neil was drafted as highly as he was coming out of Alabama. I think, and I think there are not just people within this building, but people around the National Football League that are surprised that his career is gone the way that it has gone. So now this coaching staff says, and lets you see it all the time, Teams are gonna gamble on talent. Teams are gonna. Gamble, especially on the offensive line. So they're gonna say themselves, well, let me get my hands on them, let me get my offensive line coach on them, let me get our vision for him, let me figure out let's get a fresh start. Because the the ability is there. It's not like he doesn't have the. Talent or ability to play the position. The question is he hasn't been on lock. So you know, if you're if I'm Evan Neil, just like you say to yourself, you gotta look at this is now. Yes, there's one less body for him to get over, but also a scenario here where this coaching staff, new set eyes, put everything that happened in the past behind him and see if he can regenerate or get his career back on track. And you look at him on the sideline during practice. You mentioned we know why he was drafted in the first round. He's a monster. I mean about physicality still the point, but once again, it's all about how that transfers and translates to the football field. I mean, you could be humongous, but if you don't have the nuance of playing the offensive line and being able to execute, it completely changes things. But it does, at least I'm sure shift some of the dynamics in the thought process for at least these individual backup offensive linemen. And today they down in Miami had an opportunity to go up against this Dolphins offensive line and the offensive skill set. I'm sorry the defensive line. I should say for the Dolphins. From a Giants offensive line perspective, you flip the script for the Giants defense trying to handle Malik Willison company with respect to their offense and the pros of a practice like this, even though they're going to see the Dolphins, of course on the weekend. Is y. I always say this loses just from listening to players and training camp for the a better term, it gets boring. Okay, it's cyclical. It's the same thing over and over again. So just to help foster the level of competition, it is beneficial to mix things up and go against an opposing team, play somebody else to exactly. That's it. I mean, this year's been a little bit different than underdable practice have been longer, been a little tougher, been a little harder. Not to knock Dabs, who's now the offensive coordinator down there in Tennessee, So not trying to do that but it's been a little bit of a different feel. But I think to your point lance where I think it's a valid one where there is a mundane list. Now, this year's been a little bit different because you know, you spent eleven twelve days down in West Virginia at the Greenbrier, and then obviously it shifted back up here East brother for just outside of MetLife Stadium at the Giants practice facility. So the surroundings have changed, but the work hasn't right, And so I don't I like it when teams go off first and foremost you get to hit somebody else. Number two is sure you get a feel of where exactly your team is, right, and you know when you're going up against one another, you know the tendencies of players, right, So now you get to see other bodies. You get to see other individuals. Even though Miami is not a particularly talented team and not a lot of expectations coming into the year for the Miami Dolphins, you know, you go on the road, it's another kind of team bonding type of experience as well. If you're John Harball and the New York Giants, then I think it worked, you know, I really do especially with the way that training camps are handled now lance as compared to fifteen twenty years ago in the National Football League, they are less physical where there is you know, you know, first month of the NFL regular season, you're kind of working out some of the quirk because of that lack of work that you get. We've obviously in the preseason cut down. I think these I think when you're able to go up against other teams, as long as guys don't lose their heads and there's not fights left and right, where we saw between the Jets and the Buccaneers last week before they played on Friday night, I think I think it worked. I think it works for both teams. I think you get a sense of where your team is. I think it's good to go up against other people and it's good to hit other people as well. And Jeff Haffley, the head coach of the Dolphins, he spoke before the practice to the media, had said, we're doing just eleven on eleven's, We're not doing seven on sevens. We want to play real football. Yeah, that's great, which is a great approach. And I had talked about this on yesterday's show, and pretty much the reports had confirmed that the Giants weren't going to take any chances exposing the leak neighbors in an uncontrolled fire set in a team setting. You knew that wasn't going to happen, just based on what John Harbaugh mentioned. Now it's not a setback of any sort because once again he avoided pup to begin training camp. We've seen him now start to take part in Team DROs even though he's wearing the red jersey. I voiced it as cautiously optimistic. I think at this stage in him being in line hopefully to be ready for week one based on him getting those check marks done little by little with respect to the timeline. But you look at the fact that the cons outweigh the pros to a expose him to Dolphins opposing players still this early, well before the season, it's just not worth it. He's got plenty of good work here at East Rutherford and West Virginia that you didn't think the coaching staff was going to roll the dice with no. I mean, you know, you want to bring up like kind of like you know, a day in, day out example, like if you have something that you love in life, right, maybe it's a watch. Maybe it's nothing that maybe you know, maybe you know you you go out and you love to play doll on a day in, day out. Basis, right, what do you do? You take care of your clubs, right, you do? You make sure that the clubs are ready to go when you hit the eighteen and everything polish. You're shot them them up, you clean out the grooves. You're doing all these things because you know what, you're very proud of your set of golf clubs. Right now, that's an example. You sound like you're speaking from experience. No, no, I'm a terrible guy. Okay, I just want to I'm a heck, I'm a terrible If we go out there playing that, you'll take tons of money off even though. Now, but here's the deal, Like, so you look at the giants. The giants understand the asset they have him e Leak name, like they they understand we all get it, right, but they know it from the inside that you know, he's an unbelievably special young wide receiver and you got to protect the player and sometimes you got to protect the athlete from themselves, right, and we see that from time to time because the compete level, that's The one thing you heard about the Giants outside of his you know, athletic ability, was that you know, he's a dog. He's got a lot of dog in them. And that is a tremendous compliment. That you heard the John Horball talk about Hood the cornerback coming out of Tennessee. The Giants selecting the second round where the compete level is there and that's what separates athletes. So if you're the Giants here, why would you put them in a position to potentially have a setback where you can it's a non controlled environment where you can control everything, whether it be at the Greenbrier, whether it be here at East Rutherford. You control everything in terms of what is acceptable and what's not. If you go down there in Miami and all of a sudden you're opening up the contact against the Miami or open up to any it doesn't make any sense. So for the Giants that are protecting the player with the goal of having him be ready Game one against the Dallas Cowboys, will see if that will all see if that goal is achieved. But there's no doubt the impact that he has lance in that receiver room, and you know that better than anybody and what he potentially can do under with Matt Nagy's offense this upcoming season, because there is nobody we can run through the litany of everybody, there's nobody with the same skill set, a similar skill set that what Malik Neighbors has. What he can provide this offer. That also would put fears in the eyes of an opposing defensive coordinator and just shift it and change their thoughts. And make everyone's job easier without Odull. If you have Neighbors on the field, the amount of focus that's going to be on him doesn't open up things for guys like Isaiah likely does it open up things like Darius Slayton. When you look at a Malachi Fields, the rookie had of Notre Dame, it opens it up for everybody. That's what great receivers do in the. NFL, and that's why Also on a related note, you look at what Malachi Fields did that great touchdown touch and the opener against the Vikings. It looked like he made some plays with art today at Dolphins practice. He all of a sudden becomes a bit of an X factor given a little bit of the unknown with Neighbors and his health. But if we're talking about. You want to give the opposition a reason to think about multiple personnel and likely who I think is going to be a great insurance policy for Dart. He doesn't have Mark Andrews in front of him anymore. He could very well be the guy at tight end. Malachi Fields could stretch the field, can make these jump plays. Now, all of a sudden, when you go in and you study Moose the Giants offense, you've got four players without a doubt from the Giants perspective, you get excited, but you're also giving food for thought to the early defenses, especially when there's not a lot of film with all of these guys on the field together, and now defensive backs and linebackers, you know, have to worry about their discipline and so forth. And I think if you just go back to recent history, especially most recently once Neighbors went down, the problem with the Giants ran into was they just didn't have that one focal point guy on the offensive side of the ball that would shift things, whether it's to the right side the left side of the field. I think if Fields plays up to what we're seeing already in terms of him showing flashes in training camp likely lives up to what we've already seen in Baltimore, and they can get that running game going with various pieces. Now you're talking about a multi dimensional Giants offense as opposed to maybe just one side of the fence doing a lot of the heavy list. Right, or as my dad was a then all of a sudden, you're starting to cook with gas, right, I mean that is it is that you could think about that as being realistic or a possibility and not where you know you're you're saying, well, all that's unrealistic. No, it's really not. When you look at the Giants have got an offensive line in front, that's not going to be a talking point as long as everyone stays healthy. Right. You hear from offensive coordinators over the years, you can't run it, you can't block it. So if you can't block it, you can't run it. And that means running an efficient offense and that should not be an issue here. For the New York guys, you mentioned the touchdown pass, the Malachy fields, the vision and the ability to throw a guy open. That throw by Jackson Dart is the reason why the hair stares stands up on the back of your neck. Why you get excited watching dark because that's an elite level throw to be able to throw across your body, throw a guy open, and then Malachi Fields to go up there and get it right. And the chemistry that he already has with a rookie receiver at a Notre Dame and you ran through all the options. And listen, Lance, if you go through the elite level offenses of the NFL just from a year ago, they all run it like they all run it like the Rams run it like Stafford had forty six touchdown passes. He's got Nakua and he's got you know, he's got a cavalcat of weapons, right DeVante Adams. But you look at the Rams. Rams are a really good rush offense. They could run the football right, and I think you've seen here with the physicality of John Harball with yes, Tyrone, Tracy's got to pick up the blitzes. We understand that right. And that was a massive mistake this past Saturday some Minnesota vikings and he's been called out in the carpet time and time again. But with the offensive line, the Giants can go out there. How more dynamic will this passing game look? When you look at the idea that the Giants are going to be able to run it and run it efficiently upfront and with recard and with the physicality with the offensive line, with Skataboo looking like, you know, he's well passed the injury that he suffered last year against the Philadelphia Eagles. Giants want to run the football, and it's going to open things up to that passing game as well, and the dynamic aspect of this passing game. You can realistically put your head to the pillow if you're a Giant fan and be really excited about just how exclusive they can be. I think the best example if you're the Giants, look at the Bears turnaround last year. They were third in the NFL in rushing yards per game. No coincidence that they solidified the division in the North and then had success with Ben Johnson. Yeah, Caleb Williams looked a lot different, did he not. Absolutely, it's the best friend of a quarterback because now, all of a sudden, you're facing third and four instead of third and eight, and there's more options to run as you get deeper into drives, especially on those third downs. And Buffalo was number one Baltimore was number two. And what is the common element with all three. Of those teams? They made it to the playoffs and they aided all three of those quarterbacks. Now, Buffalo and Baltimore have more experienced quarterbacks, but remember Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen are integral parts of that run game. They're very much embedded into that. Now, the Giants they don't necessarily want Jackson Dart to be as embedded because. They don't want to correct exactly. They want him to give up on the play slow things, don't take the hits exactly. But it's interesting, Lance, I'm going to cut you off. You know, you bring up the Allen. Remember early on in his career, Josh Allen was taken. In the amount of hits, absolutely remember that. And he was he hadn't he wasn't going into you know, and they did not have the same protocols back then as they do now, right, but you know, not similar, not as as much as it is now. And listen, I'm all four protecting the starting quarterback or protecting quarterbacks because it's the most important position in sports, right And I can understand Darts frustration after what's transpired on Saturday and want, you know, the athlete, our athletes to go out there and be open and honest, especially after games. But Allen's learned, like Dart's gonna learn. Like Alan sometimes. Takes hits and he's a you know, Allan is a physical marvel, right, he really is with you know what he's able to do. But early on in his career, similar conversations were happening around Josh Allen up in Buffalo where he was taking one hit after another after another after another, and said, well, this is not going to be sustainable. And he learned, right. I think Jackson Dart is going to learn here with the New York Giants too, to where there are times, you know, you want to tell me the Super Bowls on the line, Yeah, go go out there and take on the safety. You want to tell me it's the first quarter opening week against Dallas. I don't know, and that's all I need you to take it on the safety. You're taking it on the linebacker, like there are just times to be able to do it. But Allan learned that. I think Dart's cann learn as well. Well. Allen's offensive line was horrendous early in his career. Remember they had to completely revamped that group. And just to tell at least some of the story, he was sacked. As I bring up his numbers twenty eight times his rookie year, had jumped to thirty eight in year two, and then all of a sudden year three, when he made the Pro Bowl, it went down to twenty six. Now, quarterback decision making influences the volume of sacks, but that doesn't tell the story of how many hits Alan took when he realized there's nothing to survey the field with because the offensive line pan pass protech, I need to take off and run, and you're absorbing even more hits. So twenty eight and thirty eight is only the typical sacks during the flow of a game. It's not everything. He took one. I was just going to go there as the next padded statistic to take a look at. So let's look at Okay, So Allen's running numbers. He ran eighty nine times as a rookie. It went up to one oh nine his second year in the league. Now since then it's been triple digits. But eighty nine and one oh nine in the first two years on top of all the sacks you absorbed. Yeah, that's one hundred and ninety seven times he ran the football and then on top of the side. I just remember, remember there was a game if IF they were down in Houston against the Texans where Allan took a hit on the sideline where he did similar to what happened with Dart and the Patriots where he didn't go out of bounds and took a hit on the sideline that kind of knocked him or was a hit that he shouldn't have taken. So so you know, you look at listen, if dart Is evolves into what Josh Allen has been for the Buffalo Bills, I mean, will all be celebrated. I mean that's it. I mean he is. He'll take Yeah, you'll take that right because you can make the argument as we're doing the show on this Thursday, and that Josh Allen's the best quarterback in the National Football League, right, that he's that talented, that good. They just need the right Darting cast and supporting cast around him. So for Dart here, the weapons are there now you know we've seen it. When the offensive line is there, the running back room is good enough, if Neighbors is healthy, the receiver room. Is good enough. What excites you about a guy like Dart to draw another comparison, is he makes guys around him better, right, And you hear the stories to where he understands the responsibility of being a quarterback, to where you go into the Giants' locker room might be talking about to the receiver. He might be talking to an offensive lineman. He might be talking a long staff or defensive back linebacker. It doesn't matter. He understands he's the quarterback of the entire team. And those leadership qualities, you know, get guys to be able to play for the quarterback, and that's what you want. And when when the team is playing for the quarterback and not just him singularly, he gets the best out of those players. And that's what you love what you've seen early on here from. Dark Yeah, and when you have a guy like Malachai Fields that's going to go up and make a quarterback contested catches. Absolutely, it's music to Dart's ears. And that's why I go back to he could become and emerges ujex factor if that translates over to the regular season. This is Big Blue Kickoff Live Thursday's edition presented by Cadillac, the official luxury vehicle of the. New York Giants. Let's open up the phone lines at two zero one nine three nine four five one three. We've gotten MO in New Jersey. Joins us here on BBKL. What's happening? Mo? MO? Going once MO with us? MO going twice Yo. We hear something there? We go right, all right, we're almost down to strike three, but you got to check swing. What's up? Mo? Hey, how y'all doing? Man? Bless bless, blessed man? Y'all can hear me? Good? Though? We hear yep, absolutely, man, I want to That's a perfect example. Man. I just had back surgery Thursday, right and I wanted to go back to work right away because my job is not that hard like duty. And the doctor said, oh, pop your brake, slow down. Yeah, I say, sometimes the doctor's got to save you from yourself. Also, he said, no, go September first, we need some little time off. You can get her. So they're doing the same thing with neighbors. He's practicing, he's doing his things, but they're being cautious with him. He knows we need them for the future. And all this practices is all making them better. I'm gonna tell you one thing, Man, this team a lot of people. I hear a lot of fans. I've been to fan since eighty six. I'm fifty five, and I hear a lot of people debate and all that, and they gotta punk the breaks. Man. They told them about playoffs, super Bowl, this that we gotta take this like a microwave process, nice and slow. Yah. I'm saying this is not a fast thing. You're gonna go out there and learn and learn everything and practice and be We got Dallas, we got the Rams, and these guys are swing up too thinking of the same thing about us. So these fans gotta come back down to earth and realize, Man, we're human, we learn in the system, and we're gonna get better. I had no doubt, but we just got to pump by brakes Man and Odell. He's gonna make the team. I believe he's the fan favorite. Guys. I love your show. I'm gonna go ahead, go off. I'm gonna let other people talk. God blessed shoes MANE. Yeah, I appreciate the phone call. Well, listen, it's natural for fans at this time of the year to get excited. It's a clean slate, so I mean that's harmless fun. I think every team and every fan base feels the same way that you know they're hoping that this is going to be their year. The Giants certainly have more work to do. I think John Harball would be the first one to say that. But you know, getting some of these key components back on the field is what is going to be key. And I think Neighbors I don't get the GISTs from him that he's trying to rush things. Clearly he's hungry, but Harball made it clear the other day Moose that before he gets on the field in a regular season game, Neighbors is gonna have to take a hit in some type of a setting. That doesn't mean that they're gonna put him in a preseason game, but they're not going to just have him wear the red jersey and then get into a game. They're gonna be him up and build up those callouses so that the first time he goes to the ground after absorbing some type of physicality is not in a regular season game. They've got to flip the script to that point before then he launches into a game. I would agree with that, Yeah, I think, and that comes along with it. Listen, there are all the ear mark if you're a Giant fan, to be excited. And you know fan is short for fanatic, right, So the Giant fan has been a lot of frustration watching a very proud franchise and seeing the result of recent memory. Right, So there's an excitement level with John Harball lean into it. There's an excitement level for Opening Night against the Dallas Cowboys, lean into it. And if any every Giant fan out there wants to be excited, it's hard to say, oh, tmper down the expectations, tamper down the excitement because we see it in the National Football League. Listen, let's everybody might be chasing the Rams this year, regardless of city that you're in, regardless of who you root for, right because the Rams are supremely talented team. But there are parodies the word in the NFL. What makes the NFL so great is that there is an unknown. You can become what the Jags did last year, what the Patriots did last year, you know, and go from you know, largely irrelevant to all of a sudden being a playoff team. And I think when you have a quarterback. Year two for Jackson Dart where what you saw from year number one. A new head coach in John Harball, who came off eighteen successful years, including a Super Bowl title down there in Baltimore with the Ravens. And when you look at whether it be the receiver room with neighbors, the running back room with Skataboo, the. Quarterback, the offensive line, the ability to get after the quarterback with guys like that dual Carter Brian Burns, what rvel Reese has looked like so far during the course of training camp. The fact that this coaching staff is going to be, you know, hand in hand on part the game plan of hardball, practicing in game situations, cleaning up the special teams which has been an issue as well. There's a reason to be excited about this giant team. I understand. Listen, first two games are you're gonna get tested. There's no doubt. Yeah. You come out of those first two games and you're one to one for arguments, Dake, I mean, the excitement's gonna be off, the charge coming back home to met Life Data. Yeah, I think they would gladly take that, especially since one of the two opponents of course, is within the division and a team that has had the Giants number in recent and past history. But I think it's more important from their standpoint. The Giants I'm talking about is you're going up in the early stage of the season against two teams that have made the playoffs consistently and have a lot of firepower, specifically on offense. And this is a defense that's got a new scheme, a new coordinator, no doubt, does not have Dexter Lawrence in the middle. Okay, so how well can they stop the run? You just talked about teams that we were going through that made the playoffs last year, no coincidence, were a top yeah ball. Okay, well, you're going up against two teams. Javonte Williams had a great season with the Cowboys last season. He's very well in the mix and the Rams Jel Williams correct, but they'll put a variety of different weapons. No utilized the wide receivers. They utilize Puka Nakua out of the backfield corum without a doubt, So they have to be prepared. The Giants that that discipline and that linebacking corps that they beefed up with a lot of length is going to be there on point, so that they could very much stay within striking distance within that game, because you know, the Giants offense is going to have pressure on itself right to match wits with what the Cowboys and the Rams present. But a defensive stop here or there, forcing a field goal instead of a touchdown or a punt could go a long way in determining the outcome of one of these two contents. It's it's got old school football lands when you look at it right, and there's and we could get into how you execute, what your blocking scheme up run, who use your oc DC and the talent level of the team, But there's something to be said. Good defense has stopped the run. Good offenses from them. I mean, that's it. I mean, so like you could however way you want to look at it. You want to be an efficient offense in the National Football League, it comes with being able to run the football, and you really can't start and I could talk we could talk about Atlance the ability of the Giants to be able to attack. The quarterback, and that's true. You better stop the run, because if you can't stop the run, you can't talk about yourself being an elite level defense, because there's no elite level defense. You go back. Historically, whether it be the eighty five Bears, whether it be the Ravens with Sarah Gusa and Ray Lewis, whether it be the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Now I'm just talking about all time great defense. They all stopped the run, right Booger, McFarland, Warren Sappa front, they all stopped the run. Giants obviously have a they're looking to resolve the solution of the loss and the trading away of Dexter Lawrence to Cincinnati with strength in numbers and also beefing up the all off ball linebacker, where those guys like Tremaine Edmunds and Rvel Reeves are going to go out there as the defensive lineman up front are making and carrying up picking up blockers. They're going to have to go out there and be able to make plays when the players are there to be me. Well, your point is well spelled out. Once again, I go to the numbers. They don't lie. The top three rushing defenses last year all made the playoffs. Jackson number one, Denver number two in Seattle won the Super Bowl. They allowed just under ninety two yards per game on the ground. Once again, this stuff is not coincidental. It goes hand in hand. Look at Houston, Yeah, I mean, and Houston's quarterback play was atrocious. I mean they didn't even need their quarterback. And I like CJ. Stroud, I can't believe he's taking a step back that he has, but that Houston defense didn't need much from that offense. I think they allowed like seventeen points per game. That was it. And still Stroud couldn't get out of his own way. And another indicator that I think we've talked about at times throughout the course of the offseason. The Giant sack total didn't necessarily jump off the page, but they had. Thirty nine last year. You probably want to get a little bit more into the forties, but they were middle of the pack even though they could not stop the run. But imagine you then take those sacked, you take those pressures, which were even better than the sack totals, and now you start eliminating the effectiveness of the opposing run game. It's all about down in distances, atching the surface of earlier You go back to the Giants' opponents last year, Moose This was the big theme. Teams did not have to throw the ball much against the Giants. You go number by number, and I'm not gonna bore our audience because if they were running the football so effectively, and also, by the way, playing from ahead, it plays right into your hands, where just pound the football, don't put your quarterback in harm way, don't have him drop back one hundred times, don't give them an opportunity to disrupt or change the field with a hard hitting sack. Run the football. So they've got to have better complimentary football where you want those sack numbers to stay as is and slightly improved, but the run defense has to make a significant jump. And if that happens, that's where all of a sudden, the entire makeup of the team shifts because you're not now forcing Jackson Dart in that offense to have to play video game asque football. Yeah. Weekinning, we got. Yeah, and it's going to get the ultimate test the first couple week because we know, you know, the the Dallas Cowboys, that offense, they're going to be able to score, right, I mean they they averaged I think like thirty points per game. But the defense last year gave up thirty points per game. Now Ibra flu's their defensive coordinator. Out the window, they or out the door, let go new defensive coordinator made some adjustments, latest. One being Christian Miller. Right. The latest addition they made was von Miller, who had a good sision with the command. Yeah, nine sacks, seventeen you know, thirty seven, thirty eight years old. Right, So when you look at Miller, if you use him correctly, can he still get out after the quarterback? I think he said the other day when he got introduced out by the Dallas Cowboys, I think I could wake up and still go out there and get sacked. Now the question is how exactly do you use him? So Dallas going to score, we know the Rams going to score. I mean, there's I mean regards. So you want to. Look at a scenario here where you want to make it as difficult as you possibly can. So those two offenses that you're going to see early on here, you know they're going to go out and say, let's see if the Giants really can stop the run. Let's test them because and we got to see it in order to believe it. And that's going to be a big time challenge early on for the Giants defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator Denarples. Let's head back to the phone lines. We check in with Carl in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. What's happening, Carl, Welcome to BBK. What do you got? How you doing well? Good? Much think of playing, getting ready for football season. Excited for the Giants this year. I was actually Aniche Brothers third about three weeks ago. I winded up building their their weight room and I got to speak to coach himself, you know, and I feel very excited to actually have hard Ball as our head coach because I kind of asked a couple of questions when I spoke to Hardball, and. He answered what I wanted to hear. It's great and it's going. To be It's about time that we finally have the right coach in the house. We're talcome back towards Don Cofflin error. You know, we haven't had a real good head coach in years, and I think that's the best thing for Jackson Dark and be able to play with elite neighbors. We haven't seen what he did last year without without mylite neighbors, without a hopeing elite neighbors, you know, and I think we're gonna. Really take off this year. Carl it and you know, and thanks off of the call. I think, and listen, that's really cool. I mean, you're doing some work within the building, the head coach. You have a conversation with him. I think it says everything you need to know about Harball. He's a people guy. I mean lance you see it on a day and day out basis. He saw when he was leaving the stadium the other day, somebody threw a picture of him and he said, can I keep this? This really cool? And it was kind of he's of artwork like he is. He's affable, he's likable, very confident, understands what it needs to do. The challenge that came came along with being the head football coach of the New York Giants. I think he needed to change just as much, you know, the Baltimore Ravens. I think for John Harball, this has been kind of a freshening for him to come here and represent this franchise, and I think he's excited about it. I think he's too committed to fail. I think the work ethic, the drive, he's going to get the best out of this football team, however way it looks, and I think you got to look at and say there's a phase to that too. I mean, you know, the old Cliche Rome wasn't built in a day. The Giants are all of a sudden going to go to the super Bowl this year, but if you take a massive step forward, I think Giant fans will take it and build into the excitement. At twenty seven. Well, football is built into his DNA. His father was a long time it's clearly his brother. I think he is one of those lifers where you could see him going as far as possible before he calls it quits. And that's why when the last caller brought up Tom Coughlin, I understand the parallels between both. You have two well disciplined coaches. They've been around the league, they have seen just about everything, and they have a very similar style. And remember Kauughlin was influential in telling Harball he should heavily consider the Giants. So that's no coincidence either. They have very similar approaches in terms of how they got a team. But remember Tom Kaughlin at a turning point in his career, moose where he when he was here, he had to if he didn't change his. Bites things up correct. You know, with Michael. Strahan and leadership council, he was known to. Be a disciplinarian and new generation of players. And to his credit, and Tom deserves a lot of credit, he did change hardball. I don't think has necessarily gone through the same ebbs and flows as Kaughlan, but it definitely is a change with respect to how long and hard practices are going right now in training camp compared to what some of these Giants players were exposed to previously. I think a lot of these Giants players and Rvel Reese is probably the best example. He was asked, well, has it been quite an adjustment, and he said, listen, I just came from Matt Patricia, who's an NFL coach at Ohio State. But not everybody had the same pathway in terms of their jump from college to the pros. He was coached by somebody that's gone through the grind of training camp day in and day out. I think somebody who may not have been exposed to that, I can understand it. Maybe a little bit of a rude awakening in the first few weeks of. Ten, Yeah, for sure. But I think the player has got to understand. I think they do that. It's all with intent. I mean, the intent is to get you mentally and physically prepared for the regular season. The intent is to understand what the the expectations hold yourself, what we're going to hold you, sell you accountable as a player, what the expectations now are as far as being a New York Giant. So I think and as long as the. Intent is clear lance, I think you know the players even though it's going to be difficult, even though it might push you physically, it might push you mentally, you're gonna be a okay with it. But yeah, the. Complin example, everyone's personality is different, right, So we're not telling you that John Harball is exactly like Tom Coughlin. But when you look at the core principles as a coach, and John learned this from his dad, obviously, you know his brother has been uber successful, whether it be in the NFL or whether it be in college and now with the with the Los Angeles Chargers. They understand the principles what they believe to get the organizational work team they are currently coaching where they want to go. And also when you look at the fact that you know, I like how you said there's intent. Purpose is another term. Yeah, that comes to mind, no doubt. And Harbaugh, the one thing that I love about him is he's very transparent. When he is peppered with questions from the media and they want to know, why did you do late afternoon practice as opposed to morning, he gave you an entire dissertation as to why he implemented that. So it goes back to intent and purpose. He doesn't do things for the sake of doing things, or he doesn't do things because he says, well, the Giants have done it this way for the last five years, so I'm. New now in years scho we're going to continue to correct. It's he had things that he was exposed to as an assistant with Andy Reid, with his father, and obviously as a successful coach with the Ravens, and he has seen them yield result. So that's why he's going to continue to do it. Yeah, And that's it. And the results will follow. And I fully and Lance, you and I have both an agreement. We fully believe that the results will follow because you know, you think about you know, the even the practice fields were worked on, you know, before the Giants returned here from West Virginia, because he didn't like the way the practice fields felt early on here when you were going through the OTAs and the mini camps and everything like that. So they brought somebody else in to work on the field and brought you know, so like everything here is with the with the one goal is to win. That's where I mean, ultimately, that's the great decider what we get and week out in the NFL is what does the scoreboard say? What is it on a Sunday night, a Thursday night, you know, a Sunday afternoon or a Monday. Night, Like what is what does the scoreboard say? And I think John Harbaugh has taking it to where he's telling this team listen. It's gonna be difficult. But the reason why it's going to be difficult is because we're looking to get the best out of you. And that's what coaches need to do week in and week out. Let's head back to the phone lines. We check in with Drew in West Palm Beach, Florida. What's happened to Drew? What do you got for us? What's up, Drew? Hey, how you guys doing well? What's on your mind? Good? Uh? So, I just want to talk about So I'm fifteen years old, live and sort of and then dad grew up in New York, so you know, I've been raised into the New York Phantom, love the Giants, but obviously don't have as much knowledge as you guys do. Wanted to take your brains on a few things, sure, the things that stand out. To me like the most. Like so far, I've been like competition a lot. Yeah, I wanted the one competition that I've seen kind of grow or displayer kind of grow into more of a bigger role is Jack Kelly. And how do you think that he could impact that linebacker three spot, maybe even take it over for Michael McFadden. How close is that right now? Well, Kelly, I spoke about him a little bit on yesterday's show because there was another similar Q yes JD sixth round pick in this year's class who actually had a similar track record to McFadden if you look at his college production and getting after the quarterback. I think, though at this stage, my personal opinion, to answer your question, Drew, I think Kelly's track is being a really good special teams contributor and somebody that you may scratch the surface here or there on defense. But even though mcfatnen is coming off the foot injury, I think he just has a lot more experience in terms of linebacker reps at the NFL level. And keep in mind recent Edmonds with their length, are going to get the bulk of the snaps. It also depends on are we going to see a four to three very often or are they going to go with an extra defensive back When you say three linebackers, I guess my next question is how often, Mussa are they going to rely on having three linebackers on the field. And if the answer is not very. Often, then to me, the third linebackers spot may not make that much of an indent outside of Edmunds in ree who we know we're going to see on the field to the bulk of the work. Okay, I like that. I'm a big Michael mcsadden fan. I just didn't know if they wanted to kind of jump them into that role immediately. And obviously I've seen Jack Kelly progress in a way that I thought has been very positive, and. I would agree with you. Yeah, no, no, I would say, Kelly is the player you expected would be coming out of college. The scouting report was dead on, right. I mean that's it. High energy, guy loves football can help out as Lance mentioned. And I don't disagree with with Lance where he told you as far as special teams is concerned, I'm not telling you that's where the ceiling of his career is. Here is a New York football giant. But when we're talking about initially his rookie year, I think your assessment is dead online. The other thing is and I understand Drew, you're excitement about Jack Kelly, but I say this all the time. Remember see a guy flash at a preseason game. Going up against the Viking second tier players is a lot different than going up against the Dallas Cowboys and the Rams, as Mark and I would talking about earlier and their number one allotment. And once again, I'm not trying to give you less excitement about Jack Kelly. I think it's always promising where at least characteristic show up early in camp in terms of how they were utilized in college. I just think making the jump to being that type of a player at the linebacker position on a every down basis. That is a real huge leap that I don't know if he'd be willing or able to take on in the first few weeks. I want to put him in a position to be successful exactly. I mean that's the other aspect too. I think here's the greatest or not the greatest. That's a little bit strong lance. I'll tell you he looks the part. He looks like as an NFL line. A very active player. Yes, so like that is, you know, and we have seen it across the National Football League where you see guys are like, I don't you know they I don't think he's an NFL player like great in college. I don't think he's necessarily an NFL player. I think Jack Kelly has shown you that that he fit and I think is I think is his role with the Giants will evolve as long as he stays healthy. And I think one of the big reasons why the Giants were so excited about him when they drafted him coming out of college was not only of how active of a football player he was, how much leadership he showed as a college football player, was that he was going to be a plus on special teams, and that's the aspect of it that I think he is going to probably be largely leaned into on, especially if everybody stays healthy. Is I mean, I could see him hustling down the field and coverage and being that you need that, Jack Kelly is he needs somebody to carve out that role. Drew, did you have another competition you wanted to bring up before we. Let you go? Oh yeah, yeah, that was my net. The other one I had. It wasn't really a competition, but it's more of like a It definitely is because it's about the wide receivers. Obviously they have a lot of depth. The question I really had was in the back end, the wide receivers six and seven, those types, you know, the back end. How big of a special teams role do tho those guys need to have to make the team. That's a great question. We'll let you go on that note, Drew, thanks so much for giving us a ring. From that standpoint, Well, the short answer is it's a must because if you look at the snap counts, you're not going to have the luxury to get on the field that contribute as a wide receiver. Barring an injury of course, and if they play the top three or four wideouts, Remember the tight ends are going to play a prominent role. The running backs can catch the ball out of the backfield. It's a numbers game. If you are going to be moose, if you're going to be active on the dimensional, Yeah, the sixth or seventh wide receiver, if they choose to even keep or dress that many, that's the million dollar question. You're going to see the bulk of your snap come on special teams, So I think of I'll bring up a player popped into my head. This is going back a little bit Dwayne Harris when he was on the Giants right one. Yeah, Dwayne Harris was a wide receiver that didn't get a lot of opportunities unless guys were hurt. But Dwayne played all four units on special teams. He played kickoff, punt and then the coverage for both, so they had no choice. He was going to get a jersey. I know he was a return man, but he also he wasn't just somebody that they rolled down and got maybe four returns a game. He was hustling down the field, making tackles and flipping the field. So I'm not saying you gotta be like Dwayne Harris, but you've got to show the. Ability to contribute. In those areas. If you're gonna be the sixth or the seventh wide receiver, right. You got to help in other ways and that shows your value. Right. You got to be multi dimensional, you know. And it's not just what you do in the receiver room, is how else, in essence can you help this team fill a role outside of what you're naturally going if they're naturally born to, which is play the NFL receiver spot. And you mentioned Dwyn Harris is a good one. So that's where you get into the conversation of you know, Odell Beckham Junior, great story, what exactly is his role if you're keeping him back into the root, you know, back into the roster in terms of wide receiver. Well, you know Odell's not going out there and playing special team. So how exactly does it look moving forward? And we all love the story And that's not a decision lands for you and I to make here on a Thursday doing a Big Blue Kickoff live, but there's no doubt about it. You want to make yourself if you're battling for a receiver spot as appealing as you possibly can. We just getting a comment in on YouTube related to Jack Kelly, who is a big part of the conversation. Quote. I'm excited for Kelly. I seen him play in person in college. He is a dog. He needs NFL reps first for him to really grow his role with echoes our sentiments. He's going to be a good special teams player and backup if needed on d And that pretty much duplicates exactly. I think the perspective that we're coming in. Yeah, good comment from hooked Rubb. I let you relying on the names. I just read the comments to make sense. Yes, you hooked the interpretation a. Little football reference there, couldn't mean something else too, will leave that to the imagination. Yes, you could tell it shifting from a PG show elsewhere. So we're trying to stay on track here. Yeah, Marcus is going to wheel us back to Planet Earth in California. We hope what's happened to Marcus? Oh? Man, you guys aren't coming back to the Planet Earth with me? Man, Okay, I spoke too soon, you did. The question was going to be Christian Wilkinson. Man, do you think it's worth bringing him in for a look the run defense. I think I've watched that preseason game like three times already and it just looks just as bad as last year. And if not, Wilkinson, do you think we'll just maybe try to do some shuffling on the waiver wire and bring in some young, big kids or is there anybody out there who could come and help save us? Well, I think you're referred to Christian Wilkins though, correct, right? Not Wilkinson? Yeah, Wilkins, the former Dolphin and the former Raider who, for our audience understands, suffered a significant injury in twenty twenty four and did not play in twenty twenty five. So the first question before we even talk about giants need is where is he health wise? Because when a player hasn't been on the football field and more than a year and another team hasn't brought him in, I don't remember Moose. I don't think anybody's brought him in for a tryout. I don't remember seeing a report. Of you know, there was other things that wong. Correct, there was some off the field too, Yeah, so that's a first one. I don't think anybody's brought him in, So. That's a significant hurdle number one. And then the second part of your question, Marcus, is before I entertain a team bringing in a player, I always say who do they have in house and how much do they want to give an opportunity. To evaluate these players? And we've heard Darius Alexander, forget heard, played into the third quarter of the preseason game, So that will tell you, I think all you need to know. They're gonna give him every opportunity to prove that he belongs next to DJ Reader and he could be a very reliable player. I thought Bobby Jamison Travis, their sixth round pick, showed some flashes in the preseason game. Then they brought in Lucky Foe to the veteran I mean, Shelby Harris didn't play, but you know he's a guy that's been on the inside outside. You got a mix of veterans, you've got some young guys in Alexander and Jamison Travis. I guess to answer your question is do you really need to bring in Wilkins and is he gonna leap frog the veterans you already have and provide something different considering he hasn't played football in over a year. Okay, I mean, it makes sense. It seems like that our biggest area of weakness right now. Well, stopping the run. I'm with you here, Well, you don't have to fight us here. Stopping the run is a huge priority, no doubt about it. Uh where else on the team? What position group do you think that we might need another major upgrade to actually make this he'son a like super successful, not just building better for the future, but to actually have a really successful season. I mean, well, you've seen the Giants workout number of defensive back, you know, and I think the interior of the defensive line I would put to this way, the ANSWER's got to come from within, and it's got to come where you're going to stop the rush defense, not based on the brilliance of one singular individual, because that guy's not available, I mean, and if he was, he's not going to be sitting there on the streets and and everything like that. So, you know, and all due respect Christian Wilkins of what he was at one point in his career with Miami and the Law and then with the Las Vegas Raiders, but uh, it's got to be you got to stop the run as a group, right, And that's where Edmunds and Reese come into play. That's where when you look at the job of the defensive tackles upfront, whether whatever the defensive look is, you know, taking up lockers and allowing those guys to be able to make plays in space, to make sure that you are a sure tackling team, that you're not missing tackles when there are plays to be made, that you are making them land Like, that's where it comes down to it, because you know, there's no doubt when Decor Lawrence was at his peak, he's one of the best of interior defensive linemen the National Football League. He's no longer here, so like, and you're not going to be able to replace him with one singular player, not exactly, not at this stage. Maybe down the line, you will not at this stage. So that's where the Giants have added a number of bodies here to wear strengthen numbers. And then it's the scheme in the role up front for Denard Wilson. One hundred percent, I'm with you and Marcus. We appreciate the phone call. It is a cumulative effect of a number of players. If the Giants is going to make a jump, it's unrealistic as you laid out for one guy to put on the cape and replace that. The Supperman's not walking through the building now, reader, He's been solid and he's drawn double teams. So that's what you want correct at this point in his career. Can he continue to do that? Can he give the opposing offensive line, as I said earlier, something to think about. Can Alexander get more comfortable in being a run stopper? But I think you hit it on the nose with respect to the mindset from the Giants, is not just who comes in to play defensive tackle, It is did we upgrade the linebacker position that second level so that if there is the ability of the runner to get beyond the defensive front, are we cleaning it up quick enough move so that it doesn't get to the secondary, It doesn't get to become a fifteen to twenty yard run. You know, the Giants are not going to shut down the run. Nobody's going to be able to do that. But you want to limit the damage on each individual run. And you hope that Reese and Edmonds, with their length and their ability to wrap up a guy and bring him down, can then turn what last year was let's say a ten yard game into maybe si you know what, over the course of a content that matters thing. That matters up and then like we ran through and did some TOMPs when we were looking at rush offenses, rush defenses, I'll tell you, like and I'll take a look at it before tomorrow's show that we're doing together Land, But I would tell you probably one of your look at the upper echelon defenses in the National Football League, I would tell you there's probably one more more of the most surest tackling teams in the NFL as well. If there's a play to be made in the not saying it's going to be one hundred percent certainty, but they're making the play. And that's what you want to see. You don't want to see misstackle. You want to see guys being able to say, all right, let's limit the damage. Is the five yard game, live to fight another down, but don't turn that five yard game with a missed open field tackle into all of a sudden, a seventeen yard game to where then all of a sudden it's a massive positive play. So that's what you want to limit. You want to make sure when there's tackles to be made. As a defense, you're making them. That was the backbreaker last season. It wasn't just the inability to stop the run. It was giving up explosive runs, no question. So you got to clean that up. Just one last comment before we wrap up shop. I believe the strongest positions on the team this year will be the running backs on offense the linebackers on defense. As we're talking about that, and we mentioned the length. However, in order to have true success this year, they need both the O line and the D line to be number one. And that's why we've had the focal point on the interior of that defensive line. We know they got the edge, guys, but can they win the battle on the interior. And we'll get into that on tomorrow show as we look ahead to things to watch in this matchup against the Miami Dolphins. Would you like to give credit to the handle of where that comment came from? That's your job. This progress? Is that HD short for? Is that just HD dream HD forever? Well? Drum age for you? Okay, so we'll leave it at that. You interpret what that no O good, I won't judge you accordingly. Well, clean things up even on this program. As we move forward to I do I went to NYU. That's a massive set of down. I just want to make sure that those watching have the right resume. Okay, you know in terms of I bled purple before light blue. Okay, just make sure you get the facts in order here. Okay, right? Because then why such a step down? Yes, yeah, then why you wouldn't even take my coals? Okay? Go violence, Well, they certainly gave me the time of day. No, sure, maybe put it a good word for you. On one side he mentioned the right. You know what I love, I love, and I hope it worked out. I love the fact that Naji Harris is here with the Giants. Loved him as a player at Alabama, loved him early on in Pittsburgh. Felt bad the setback, I know you spent time on it. But love the fact that Naji Harris is in the building. And hopefully he gets another opportunity because I think he is a really good running back that can provide a team a little bit of a pop still at the stage. Of his career. Yeah, he's been durbled. Did I miss a game with the first four years with the Steelers, Unfortunately, had that torn right Achilles, that who was alluding to And we will certainly get into the running game as well tomorrow, and we will fully break down the items to watch and pay attention as the Giants will go up against the Dolphins in their second preseason game on Saturday afternoon. That is going to wrap up Thursday's edition of BBKL. It is presented by Cadillac, the official luxury vehicle of the New York Giants. We are broadcasting from the Giants Podcast Studio, presented by Hackett Zach Brity in Health. Keep getting Better at the archive of this show and our entire podcast network on the Giants mobile app podcast platforms everywhere at the Giants YouTube channel, end at giants dot com, slash podcasts Moose good conversation. Has always Lance been a blast man, no doubt about it, remark melusis on Lance Metow signing off here on giants dot com. Stay locked to the team website for all the latest. We'll speak to you tomorrow. Have a good one."