We’re just a couple of days away from the first official week of preseason games and we’re seeing a lot of maneuvering by teams and fantasy owners alike. Injuries and COVID continue to take center stage and both are wreaking havoc, as usual. For those who have already subscribed to the Fantasy Alarm NFL Draft Guide, you’ll be able to catch all of our updates in real time. Just over the weekend a full round of updates to all of the player rankings and Ultimate Cheat Sheet have been done, not to mention a number of articles as well, to reflect the latest changes, so be sure you are always downloading a new copy to ensure you are receiving the most recent version.

Also in the Draft Guide, be on the lookout this week for all of our latest NFL DFS content. You’ll find articles about how best to use the DFS Playbook Pro, roster construction for cash games and GPP tournaments, bankroll management and other strategies you should employ to be a successful daily fantasy football player. 

For those of you who like to wager on the NFL, particularly win totals, be sure to check out Wager Alarm as today starts the roll-out of our latest Win Totals Video Series with me and Craig Mish. Each day, you will see a new video for each division, beginning today with the AFC East. In addition to that division’s win totals, you’ll also hear our thoughts on wagering totals for the new 17-game as well as how to adjust your bets given the disparity among players regarding the COVID vaccine. 

Now that we’ve caught you up on some of the latest offerings, let’s get to the latest NFL news.

Barkley’s Back

The fantasy football community is buzzing with the news that the Giants removed Saquon Barkley from the PUP list. The videos of him at practice were all over social media with an overabundance of attention to the size of his thighs. Yes, Fantasy Twitter, we know of plenty of running backs with huge thighs. That doesn’t change the fact that he is still recovering from his second major knee reconstruction and you still need to remain cautious. Just last week we were all wondering if he would be ready for Week 1 and now he’s back and people are shooting him back up their draft boards. I understand that things can change quickly in the NFL, but be wary of what you are buying here. When fully healthy, yes, Barkley can be a beast, but we’re still talking about a suspect offensive line and it seems doubtful that he will be pushed to his limits anytime soon. I’d be very surprised to see him get anything more than a handful of carries in the final preseason game and then what…? Then he’s expected to get 20 touches in Week 1? I’m not saying to ignore him in drafts, but if I’m picking in the top half of the first round, I’m bypassing him for players with a less shaky track record.

Burrow Still Recovering

All eyes in Cincinnati are locked onto starting quarterback Joe Burrow who is still recovering from his torn ACL and MCL, suffered last season back in Week 11. The physical hurdles seem to be out of the way, but Burrow is struggling in camp right now and, according to him, the issues are all mental. It’s gone so far that Burrow requested players and coaches surround him while he’s inside the pocket during practice so he can get used to seeing bodies swirling around him. While it’s admirable that he feels open enough to discuss these issues with the team, fantasy owners may want to take note as to how this could change his style of play. If he’s afraid of the pocket collapsing on him, he could turtle at times and take the sack. If he’s afraid of getting hit and re-injuring his knee, he may not be so inclined to run downfield, but rather straight to the sidelines if he struggles to find an open receiver downfield. You probably don’t need to panic just yet, but if you’re interested in drafting Burrow because of the high-octane nature of the Bengals offense, you may want to back him up with someone stable.

Separation Anxiety

We can stay with the Bengals here as the latest reports out of camp regarding rookie wideout Ja’Marr Chase haven’t exactly been glowing. It’s still early in camp and he’s still learning, both the offensive scheme and the speed of the defenders he’s matched up against, but if he’s having trouble gaining separation against a tomato can secondary like that of the Bengals, how is he going to matchup against some of the top corners in the NFL? Monitor his practices over the next couple of weeks and watch how he looks against NFL-caliber players, even if it’s the Bengals. His ADP has him going slightly ahead of Tee Higgins, but if these troubles persist, perhaps Higgins and Boyd are the ones to watch and roster this season.

Are We Bumping Up Jonnu?

When Patriots TE Hunter Henry went down with a shoulder injury, some fantasy pundits immediately started to talk up Jonnu Smith as the “next man up.” While yes, he was expected to serve in that “secondary” role to Henry in their 2-TE sets, it’s as if none of them read Andrew Cooper’s TE Whispers or have any inkling of understanding as to how coaches, particularly Bill Belichick, view and use their tight ends. Jeez. We even made the whole series free to help educate the masses. Do yourself a favor and go read everything you can from Coop regarding tight ends. Understand the “tight end room” and understand who is likely to handle more of the blocking work vs who is lined up as the traditional in-line tight end. When you’re done with that, then go and draft. Be mindful though…an MRI on Henry’s shoulder revealed no structural damage and while he’s expected to miss the remainder of the preseason, he is still expected to be available come Week 1.

Not Moving So Swiftly Now, Is He?

We’re two weeks into training camp and Lions’ star running back D’Andre Swift continues to avoid 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 drills. He’s apparently nursing a groin issue and hasn’t participated much in camp, outside of some light, non-contact work and individual drills. If you caught the Fantasy Busts article in the Draft Guide, you already know my thoughts on the second-year back, but if not, allow me to quickly sum them up – beware. This is a lost season for the Lions. They are not expected to compete. New offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn likes to rotate his running backs in as we saw last year with Austin Ekeler, Justin Jackson, Joshua Kelley and even Kalen Ballage. The team brought in Jamaal Williams who showed last season in Green Bay that he is fully capable of being a pass-catcher. If you’re running the Lions and you know you’re not going anywhere this season, are you really going to subject the future of the team to a heavy workload and additional wear-and tear? This groin injury isn’t just keeping him off the field; it’s giving Lynn more of a reason to put his trust into Williams.

Samuel Struggling to Get on the Field

When wide receiver Curtis Samuel left Carolina to join Ron Rivera and Scott Turner in Washington, there was significant hope that this passing game would take off. Turner is one of those coordinators who is routinely lauded for designing schemes to highlight the talents of his players and he was full credited with Samuel’s breakout in Carolina when the two were working together for the Panthers. But Samuel got the double-whammy when he suffered a groin issue and then, while out, tested positive for COVID. He was placed on the COVID/reserve list, but now here we are 10 days later and instead of being free and clear, he’s been transferred from COVID/reserve to the PUP list and still hasn’t set foot on the field in training camp. There isn’t much in the way of concern regarding his ability to get back on the field and pick up everything the offense is doing, but there is concern that he could be handing over parts of his target share. Dyami Brown has been turning heads in camp and receivers like Adam Humphris, Kelvin Harmon and Cam Sims are seeing increased opportunities to work with the first team. The ADP is dropping which actually works in our favor. We still want him late in our drafts. But the longer he stays out the more work he could lose in the early part of the season. Cream always rises to the top, but it’s going to be very difficult to even consider him as a WR3 or flex play early in the season unless he gets back out there soon.

How ‘Bout Them Cowboys?

Yes, truly vomitous that I even type those words, but in the spirit of my SiriusXM co-host, Jim Bowden, I feel compelled to mention the way the Cowboys are lining up their wide receivers. We heard reports during OTAs that Dallas wanted to utilize Michael Gallup in the slot more and, true to their word, that is exactly what we are seeing in camp right now. If you’re a Hard Knocks fan, you should monitor this even more closely, but for now, this isn’t something to be alarmed by. CeeDee Lamb thrived in the slot last season and he is expected to receive plenty of snaps there again this season, but head coach Mike McCarthy and OC Kellen Moore want to be able to mix it up on the field and not come off as too predictable. Gallup has routinely been on the outside, but they want him, Lamb and Amari Cooper to be interchangeable in an effort to keep the defense guessing. Simply out, there is nothing to be concerned with here. The Dallas passing attack will only benefit from moving guys around and being more unpredictable.

Kickers Matter

Let’s wrap things up today with this note – yes, people, kickers do matter. I know there is a growing movement to eliminate kickers from fantasy football, but the mainstream public is still drafting kickers and defense as much today as they ever were. Kicking is a part of the game and it will likely remain as such til then end of time. So with that, those of you who drafted Wil Lutz already, you better get that add/drop button ready for the first round of waivers. The Saints kicker will miss at least the next eight weeks after undergoing core-muscle surgery. The bummer is not just about how reliable Lutz has been as the kicker in a high-octane offense, but now with the change at QB, having a reliable kicker was always good insurance should either Jameis Winston or Taysom Hill stall inside the red zone. Veteran Brett Maher, formerly of Dallas (2018-19), will handle the kicking responsibilities for the time being.