<\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Your one-stop-shop for Rotoworld\u2019s preseason fantasy football content. <\/p>\n Get personalized fantasy football insights based on your league settings with FantasyLife+. Your league is unique, your advice should be too. Head to fantasylife.com<\/a> and use code ROTO20 for 20% off.<\/p>\n Arizona Cardinals<\/p>\n More of the same for Marvin Harrison Jr.<\/p>\n The good news for Marv is that he was targeted on 20 percent of his routes and one of his looks was an easy, middle-of-the-field target that he caught. The bad news is that, on the whole, his usage wasn\u2019t much different from last year. He ran 80 percent of his routes from out wide and had an aDOT of 14. MHJ ran 75 percent of his routes from a wide alignment as a rookie and posted a 14.2 aDOT. Of course, Kyler Murray was also intercepted on his second throw to Harrison Jr.<\/p>\n It\u2019s a small sample, but there\u2019s no evidence that Harrison\u2019s role will be any different this year.<\/p>\n Atlanta Falcons<\/p>\n Ray-Ray McCloud gets the veteran treatment<\/p>\n The Falcons didn\u2019t play anyone fantasy-relevant, so there\u2019s not much to say here. With Darnell Mooney nursing a multi-week shoulder injury, Ray-Ray McCloud could see an uptick in targets early in the year. KhaDarel Hodge was also rested, so that camp battle is one to watch for deep fantasy formats.<\/p>\n Baltimore Ravens<\/p>\n Keaton Mitchell looks back to form<\/p>\n Keaton Mitchell suffered a torn ACL late in the 2023 season in the midst of a minor breakout fueled by explosive plays. He returned midway through the 2024 season but never looked the same and failed to carve out even a nominal role on offense. Mitchell has reportedly looked like his old self in camp and that proved accurate in the preseason when he ran for 68 yards and a score on nine attempts.<\/p>\n Mitchell could be a FLEX-worthy player in a pinch if he earns a role as a change-of-pace option behind Derrick Henry.<\/p>\n Buffalo Bills<\/p>\n Dalton Kincaid is stuck in the slot<\/p>\n Dalton Kincaid only ran three of five possible routes with the starters and was in the slot for two of his reps. Dawson Knox played on three run-blocking snaps to Kincaid\u2019s one. This has been a constant issue for Kincaid since the Bills drafted him in the first round and it\u2019s not going anywhere. He looks like a committee tight end once again.<\/p>\n Carolina Panthers<\/p>\n Bryce Young shines in preseason opener<\/p>\n There were plenty of notes from the Panthers\u2019 first preseason game. Again, Nathan Jahnke does great work and you should check his piece out for notes on the receivers. One area where our takeaways diverged was the backfield. Rico Dowdle played more snaps than Chubba Hubbard. More importantly, Dowdle ran four routes to Hubbard\u2019s three. Hubbard averaged a dreadful .51 yards per route run last year and the Panthers could be looking for a replacement on passing downs.<\/p>\n The most important note, however, was how Bryce Young looked. The third-year passer picked up where he left off at the end of 2024, going 4-of-6 for 58 yards and a score. PFF charted both of his incompletions as drops. Young is shaping up to be one of the best late-round QBs of the offseason.<\/p>\n Chicago Bears<\/p>\n Colston Loveland is rising, Luther Burden has to earn it<\/p>\n The Bears rested their starting skill position players. Colston Loveland took the first drive with the backups and played all six snaps. He ran half of his routes from the slot but wasn\u2019t subbed out for either of Chicago\u2019s running plays. This will change when he\u2019s competing with Cole Kmet for snaps, but it\u2019s a good sign that he wasn\u2019t treated like Dalton Kincaid yet.<\/p>\n Luther Burden also played with the backups. Unlike Loveland, Ben Johnson let him play the entire first half. I don\u2019t buy that a top-40 pick is going to play behind Olamide Zaccheus, who was rested with the starters, for long. Burden missed some of the offseason with a soft tissue injury and is a rookie. The fact that he received the typical rookie treatment isn\u2019t concerning to me at this time. Johnson was also effusive in his praise for Burden after the game.<\/p>\n Cincinnati Bengals<\/p>\n Andrei Iosivas remains the WR3<\/p>\n It looks like there won\u2019t be any changes to the Bengals\u2019 depth chart on offense for now. Jermaine Burton didn\u2019t play a snap with the starters while Andrei Iosivas ran as many routes as Tee Higgins. The WR3 role in Cincy is a stayaway for fantasy purposes.<\/p>\n Cleveland Browns<\/p>\n Jerome Ford is ahead of rookie Dylan Sampson<\/p>\n The Browns gave most of their veterans the day off, including Jerome Ford. Dylan Sampson started with the second-team offense and ceded one snap to Trayveon Williams. Early camp reports had Ford comfortably ahead of Sampson and we should continue to expect that for now. Ford is a strong Week 1 play for ZeroRB teams if Quinshon Judkins\u2019 legal situation remains unresolved.<\/p>\n Dallas Cowboys<\/p>\n No backfield clarity<\/p>\n The Cowboys rested their starters while backup running backs Miles Sanders and Jaydon Blue were sidelined because of injuries. Neither Deuce Vaughn nor Phil Mafah showed much juice in their absence. Mafah averaged a pitiful 1.7 yards after contact per carry and Vaughn was even worse at 1.5. Javonte Williams could see a three-down role to open the year if Sanders and Blue continue to miss valuable practice reps.<\/p>\n Denver Broncos<\/p>\n Marvin Mims breakout part two?<\/p>\n After a quiet rookie season, Marvin Mims broke out over the second half of 2024 with 28 catches for 434 yards and six scores over his final seven games. He averaged 2.37 yards per route run last year, good for ninth-best among all wide receivers. The bad news was that he did so while running a route on a third of the team\u2019s dropbacks. His was so limited that it was hard to envision him making the leap to a full-time role in year three. That wasn\u2019t the case in the Broncos\u2019 first preseason outing. Mims ran a route on 9-of-11 dropbacks with the starters. Even though we should expect his efficiency to dip as his role grows, an expanded route tree for Mims would make him a smash in the double-digit rounds.<\/p>\n Detroit Lions<\/p>\n Isaac TeSlaa continues to impress<\/p>\n The third-round rookie caught two passes of 20+ in the Hall of Fame Game and followed that up with a 14-yard touchdown in his second preseason outing.<\/p>\n The Lions don\u2019t have an obvious No. 3 receiver and spent three third-round picks to land TeSlaa in the draft. He\u2019s a clear bet to have a part-time role early in the year and could dust Tim Patrick as Detroit\u2019s WR3 by the end of the season.<\/p>\n Green Bay Packers<\/p>\n Matthew Golden plays an every-down role<\/p>\n The No. 23 overall pick wasn\u2019t an elite prospect and I was largely out on him during the pre-draft process. For fantasy purposes, I have an \u201cL\u201d to hold here. Golden matched Brian Thomas Jr. in career College Dominator Rating (22 percent) and came up .1 yards per route run (1.85) behind him. He was also taken at the same spot in the draft. BTJ was a better prospect because of how much more impressive his year three peak was, but I can squint and see the similarities. Now he\u2019s locked into an every-down role out of the gates? Golden is a strong click in fantasy drafts as a WR4.<\/p>\n Indianapolis Colts<\/p>\n Anthony Richardson flops<\/p>\n If there\u2019s one thing Anthony Richardson couldn\u2019t afford to do in Indy\u2019s matchup with the Ravens, it was open the door for Daniel Jones. Richardson did just that by turning his back to a free pass-rusher and taking a sack that dislocated his pinky finger. He left the game but has already resumed throwing. Even if the health scare was nothing more than a close call, Richardson can\u2019t get out of his own way to lock up the starting gig for Week 1.<\/p>\n Jacksonville Jaguars<\/p>\n Travis Hunter gets normal receiver usage<\/p>\n The obvious concern with Travis Hunter as a fantasy asset has been the potential for his role on defense to cut into his route rate on the other side of the ball. That couldn\u2019t have been further from the truth in his preseason debut. Hunter played 11-of-12 snaps with the starters on offense and didn\u2019t take the field on defense until later in the game. This could all change next week, but as of right now, the No. 2 overall pick is playing a full-time wide receiver role. He currently goes as a WR3 in Best Ball drafts.<\/p>\n Kansas City Chiefs<\/p>\n Jalen Royals down bad<\/p>\n There\u2019s not much to say other than Jalen Royals played behind Jason Brownlee and Tyquan Thornton, both of whom got a brief look with the starters. It was only three snaps, so maybe Royals would have joined Mahomes had the drive gone longer, but there\u2019s too much risk of Royals being a zero to take him in any fantasy format.<\/p>\n Get personalized fantasy football insights based on your league settings with FantasyLife+. Your league is unique, your advice should be too. Head to fantasylife.com<\/a> and use code ROTO20 for 20% off.<\/p>\n Las Vegas Raiders<\/p>\n Dont\u2019e Thornton\u2019s strong offseason rolls on <\/p>\n The Raiders took Jack Bech in the second round and doubled down on receiver in the fourth with Dont\u2019e Thornton. The latter played over Bech before training camp, operating as the X receiver. That held into camp and nothing changed for the duo over the weekend. Thornton got the start and then continued to play with the backups. Bech didn\u2019t see the field until starting Z receiver Tre Tucker took the bench for the night. Thornton is a sneaky late-round dart while Bech should largely be saved for dynasty formats.<\/p>\n Los Angeles Chargers<\/p>\n Quiet preseason continues for Tre Harris<\/p>\n Between the Hall of Fame Game and Week 1 of the preseason, second-round rookie Tre Harris has run 25 routes. He has earned two targets on those routes, neither of which he caught. Fellow rookie Keandre Lambert-Smith, on the other hand, has 43 yards and a score on three targets while running just one more route. Two games of partial playing time aren\u2019t going to decide which rookie wins out in the long run, but they are seemingly fighting for the WR4 job with Keenan Allen back in LA, and KLS has played better in live action.<\/p>\n Los Angeles Rams<\/p>\n Rams split backup duties<\/p>\n The Rams didn\u2019t give either one of their backup running backs the lion\u2019s share of the snaps with the second-team offense. Blake Corum got the start and notably saw all three of the goal-to-go carries with the 2s. He punched in two touchdowns on those attempts. Corum out-carried Jarquez Hunter 9-4 with the second-team offense, though the rookie did play to a draw in routes at eight apiece. This looks like a committee in the making if anything happens to Kyren Williams, and Corum appears to have the edge over Hunter for now.<\/p>\n Miami Dolphins<\/p>\n Alexander Mattison suffers a season-ending neck injury <\/p>\n Alexander Mattison won\u2019t play this year after going down with a neck injury. The team signed Mike Boone and Aaron Shampklin as potential replacements. Jaylen Wright was the only backup to see any run with the starters, indicating he is the favorite to take on what\u2019s left of the vacated Raheem Mostert role. Rookie Ollie Gordon could still push him for that gig as training camp progresses.<\/p>\n Minnesota Vikings<\/p>\n Jalen Nailor remains ahead of Tai Felton<\/p>\n The Vikings made Maryland\u2019s Tai Felton the final pick of Day Two of the draft. Felton hasn\u2019t made much headway on the depth chart since then. He was never going to pass either of Minnesota\u2019s top two receivers, but a WR3 gig wasn\u2019t out of the question. That now appears to be the case after Jalen Nailor played all 12 snaps with the starters over the weekend. This confirms previous reports from the beats in Minnesota. Nailor averaged 13.4 points per game in two contests with Addison out last year. Addison is slated to miss the first three weeks of the season while serving a suspension, putting Nailor in the DFS mix at least.<\/p>\n New Orleans Saints<\/p>\n Ups and downs for Tyler Shough<\/p>\n The Saints took Louisville\u2019s Tyler Shough at the top of the second round with the hope that a seven-year college quarterback would be ready to start out of the gates. He has reportedly been a disaster in camp and has played behind both Spencer Rattler and Jake Haener at times. While it was nice to see him hit a wide-open Mason Tipton for a long touchdown, his pick-six against backup defenders was the stuff of nightmares.<\/p>\n New England Patriots<\/p>\n TreVeyon Henderson is the truth<\/p>\n The second-round former Buckeye would have had a strong debut if you simply looked at his role. He ran six routes to Rhamondre Stevenson\u2019s five and played on 7-of-14 snaps with Drake Maye. OC Josh McDaniels then talked about Henderson being one of the fastest backs he has ever coached.<\/p>\n Patriots OC Josh McDaniels on TreVeyon Henderson: “We\u2019ve had some really good players with skillsets that are somewhat like his \u2014 maybe nobody quite as fast. (Shane) Vereen was probably the fastest \u2014 him and Danny Woodhead were fast, but TreVeyon\u2019s fast fast.”<\/p>\n \u2014 Doug Kyed (@DougKyed) August 11, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n If all of this wasn\u2019t enough, Henderson showed off his game-breaking speed with a kickoff return touchdown to start the game. The hype around Henderson is already reaching an Ameer Abdullah pitch in Best Ball drafts.<\/p>\n New York Giants<\/p>\n Fumble issues continue for Tyrone Tracy<\/p>\n Tyrone Tracy dethroned Devin Singletary as the Giants\u2019 starter as a rookie, an impressive feat for any Day Three back, let alone one who switched positions a year before entering the NFL. His inexperience, however, did show at times, namely with four fumbles. That issue reared its head in the preseason once again with a close call on one of his three carries. It was eventually ruled that Tracy\u2019s knee was down, negating the turnover. If rookie Cam Skattebo can recover from his hamstring issue sooner rather than later, he could be a legitimate threat to Tracy\u2019s job.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/a><\/p>\n 2025 fantasy football previews, projections, stats and more for every position from Rotoworld and NBC Sports.<\/p>\n New York Jets<\/p>\n Warning signs for Breece Hall<\/p>\n This is not the type of running back rotation I would expect for a team with a workhorse runner.<\/p>\n Jets RB rotation in the opener: \u2014 Hayden Winks (@HaydenWinks) August 10, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n That, of course, might be my fault for expecting Breece Hall to be a three-down back. Jets coach Aaron Glenn said in March that the team has \u201cthree running backs on this team that we\u2019re going to utilize as much as possible.\u201d Braelon Allen has drawn praise throughout the offseason and into camp. Hall is entering a contract year. Even second-year back Isaiah Davis has gotten some live from the coaches. Hall is undoubtedly the most talented of the three, but the stars are aligning for him to be a prototypical dead zone back.<\/p>\n Philadelphia Eagles<\/p>\n Will Shipley gets two drives<\/p>\n Will Shipley got every snap of the first two drives for Philly, though head coach Nick Sirriani didn\u2019t play many of his starters. The Eagles have been singing Shipley\u2019s praises this offseason, even as Dillon occasionally mixes in ahead of him in practice. Dillon is on a one-year deal worth little more than the veteran minimum. Shipley is a fourth-round pick entering his second year. If anything happens to Saquon Barkley, I expect it to be the Shipley show.<\/p>\n Pittsburgh Steelers<\/p>\n Kenneth Gainwell draws the start<\/p>\n Free agent addition Kenneth Gainwell drew the start over rookie Kaleb Johnson. Gainwell only played a handful of snaps before taking the bench alongside Jaylen Warren, who was rested. Johnson was repeatedly bottled up by the Jaguars\u2019 defense and averaged a pitiful 2.5 yards per carry on his eight attempts. Johnson struggling while playing behind a replacement-level veteran is the perfect setup for a Warren rebound.<\/p>\n San Francisco 49ers<\/p>\n Nothing to see here<\/p>\n There wasn\u2019t a single fantasy-relevant note to be found in San Francisco\u2019s offense. The 49ers rested their healthy starters and were without several starters and backups due to injury:<\/p>\n Jauan Jennings – calfBrandon Aiyuk – ACL, on the PUP listJacob Cowing – calfIsaac Guerendo – shoulderJordan James – finger<\/p>\n Simply put, you\u2019ll have to watch the newsfeed<\/a> to stay up to date on the bevy of injuries in San Francisco.<\/p>\n Seattle Seahawks<\/p>\n Tory Horton is inevitable<\/p>\n New OC Klint Kubiak brought Marquez Valdez-Scantling with him from New Orleans and the veteran wideout is expected to start for Seattle. While that may be true in Week 1, rookie Tory Horton isn\u2019t going to make it easy for him. Horton and the other backups drew the start versus Vegas. Horton was the standout of the game with three catches for 31 yards and a score.<\/p>\n Horton has been making noise in camp and recently got some reps with the 1s. He was a high-upside prospect who is now knocking on the door of a starting job early in his career. Keep an eye on him in dynasty leagues.<\/p>\n Tampa Bay Buccaneers<\/p>\n Rachaad White (groin) is day-to-day<\/p>\n Rachaad White suffered a groin injury versus the Titans but escaped with a \u201cday-to-day\u201d designation according to head coach Todd Bowles. White ceded nearly all of the between-the-tackles work to Bucky Irving down the stretch last year but still clung to passing-downs duties until the bitter end. Even a minor injury could clear the way for a full Bucky takeover.<\/p>\n Tennessee Titans<\/p>\n Tyjae Spears carted off the field<\/p>\n Tyjae Spears hobbled to the sideline before riding the cart to the locker room. He was later diagnosed with a dreaded high-ankle sprain and is expected to miss a few weeks. Tony Pollard averaged 13.6 carries and 3.5 targets in games with Spears active last year. That jumped to 22 carries and 3.8 targets with Spears inactive.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
+ Breece Hall starts and gets a carry.
+ Breece gets another carry.
+ Isaiah Davis 3rd-and-5 pass pro rep.
+ Breece route on 1st down.
+ Braelon Allen route on 2nd down.
+ Braelon carry (and truck) on 1st down.
+ Davis route on 1st down.
+ Breece\u2026<\/p>\n