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At this time of the year, with surprise roster cuts and players going on injured reserve, we'll see fantasy football stocks rise as teams finalize depth charts. Don't miss out on a hot pickup before the 2020 season starts Thursday.
The Washington Football Team released starting running back Adrian Peterson on Friday, so who's the next man up in an offense that needs a playmaker to emerge in the backfield?
Final training camp reports give us a glimpse of developments that didn't gain much traction over the past month. While some players solidified key roles—others fell in the pecking order.
Let's check out eight players who belong on your last-minute fantasy draft radar.
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ADP: 11.10
The choice between Comeback Player of the Year candidates Matthew Stafford and Ben Roethlisberger comes up in discussion as managers look for a quarterback who can produce at a level above his average draft position.
Both have several quality pass-catchers at running back, wide receiver and tight end, though you should favor Roethlisberger's surroundings. He has a more experienced offensive line, while Stafford will play behind two new starters on the right side—one of them possibly rookie third-rounder Jonah Jackson, who took first-team reps through camp.
Secondly, Mark Kaboly of The Athletic doesn't see Roethlisberger's surgically repaired elbow as a concern.
"He's made every throw possible over the three-week camp and was impressive doing it," Kaboly wrote. "His surgically repaired elbow isn't a concern. He only sat for one practice and part of another."
Just two years ago, Roethlisberger threw for a league-leading 5,129 yards and 34 touchdown passes, though he logged the most interceptions (16) as well.
Yet if the Steelers take an aggressive approach through the air with JuJu Smith-Schuster, Diontae Johnson, James Washington, Chase Claypool, Eric Ebron and Vance McDonald, Roethlisberger could creep back into top-10 fantasy scoring range among quarterbacks.
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ADP: 10.08
The New England Patriots tabbed Cam Newton as the starter in a quarterback battle that included Jarrett Stidham and Brian Hoyer, so no surprise here.
Nonetheless, The Athletic's Jeff Howe wrote he's "held a firm grip" on the first-string position, which provides more assurance that the Patriots won't pull him at the first sign of any trouble on the field.
In a 14-game 2018 campaign, Newton finished QB12, per FantasyPros. He's healthy with limited offensive weapons, which means we could see him on the run this season.
For his career, Newton has rushed for 4,806 yards and 58 touchdowns. If necessary, he will tuck the ball and run for yardage. If you prefer a quarterback who can rack up some extra points as a ball-carrier, take a look at him in the late rounds.
Aside from wideout Julian Edelman, Newton's weapons won't excite you, but he has some starting appeal in a favorable matchups (like Week 1 against Miami) because of his rushing capability.
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ADP: 6.11
This will become one of those "I told you so" picks. Initially, running back Devin Singletary seemed like the runaway option to lead the Buffalo Bills backfield—not so fast.
The Athletic's Joe Buscaglia projects that the Bills' lead running back will depend on the opponent and that Singletary's ball-security issues could cost him the starting job if they crop up again.
"Since each player can be a pass-catching option on third downs, it's likely there will be some weeks when Singletary is the lead back and Moss is the change-of-pace player, and other weeks when that's reversed. …The Bills love Singletary's vision and instincts, but if his fumbling issues carry over into 2020, Moss could take over as the lead back."
Under offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, the Bills have logged the sixth-most rush attempts two years in a row, and two running backs recorded at least 115 carries in both seasons.
The Bills will likely rely on Singletary and Moss to carry most of the load on the ground, though the latter has more upside because of the former's issues with fumbles. The rookie third-rounder has flex appeal with an RB2 ceiling.
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ADP: N/A
When one running back battles with an injury, he leaves the door open for another to step into a bigger role.
Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reported Darrell Henderson rehabbed a hamstring injury on the sideline September 2. She also wrote that head coach Sean McVay categorized him as "day-to-day." Eric Williams of SI.com tabbed Malcolm Brown the starter for his latest 53-man depth chart.
If Henderson doesn't suit up for Week 1, Brown and rookie second-rounder Cam Akers could split the rushing workload. While the latter's draft pedigree suggests he has significant upside, the sixth-year veteran holds the edge in playing experience.
Akers has a strong season outlook, but Brown may handle the bulk of the touches for the first few weeks. Managers who whiffed on running backs during the draft can do some patchwork at the position here.
Of course, once Henderson returns, Brown should go back on the waiver wire.
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ADP: 6.02
The Washington Football Team made a notable cut, releasing Adrian Peterson on Friday. The backfield features two veterans, Peyton Barber and J.D. McKissic, along with two youngsters, Bryce Love and rookie third-rounder Antonio Gibson.
Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post broke down the running back group.
"The top two guys—Gibson and McKissic—are receiver converts. Barber adds a physicality inside and Love has been described by Rivera as a possible every-down back, giving offensive coordinator Scott Turner a number of options in how he wants to use his options," Jhabvala wrote.
Because Washington invested a third-round pick in Gibson, he's the running back who stands out. As Jhabvala writes, the Memphis product has a wide receiver background, which makes him a potential threat on all three downs. Secondly, McKissic has only 88 rush attempts in four seasons.
If you need a dual-threat running back with upside in point-per-receptions leagues, grab Gibson without hesitation.
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ADP: 11.01
Typically, you want to stay away from aging wide receivers. Yet 33-year-old speedster DeSean Jackson has an opportunity to start the season with high volume of targets.
The Philadelphia Eagles will open the season with wideouts Alshon Jeffery (Lisfranc) and Jalen Reagor (shoulder) on the sideline. According to Jeff McLane of the Philadelphia Inquirer, the former may not go on the physically unable to perform list, but he could sit out multiple weeks. Geoff Mosher of Inside the Birds reported on August 30 that the latter could miss "about four weeks."
Far more advanced than second-year wide receiver J.J. Arcega-Whiteside and rookie fifth-rounder John Hightower, Jackson should take the field as a top-two pass-catching option along with tight end Zach Ertz.
Even though we saw only a small sample of Jackson and quarterback Carson Wentz last year, the two connected eight times for 154 yards and two touchdowns in Week 1 against the Washington Football Team. The 13th-year veteran averages 17.4 yards per catch for his career. He's worth a gamble with two receivers out.
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ADP: 8.10
While quarterback Tyrod Taylor started for the Buffalo Bills between the 2015 and 2017 seasons, tight end Charles Clay listed within the top three on the team in targets for each of those seasons.
Although Taylor's career-high 3,035 passing yards may scare away fantasy managers, you should take a look at Hunter Henry because of the signal-caller's tendency to target tight ends at a high volume.
Henry has to stay healthy. He missed the entire 2018 season because of a torn ACL and suffered a tibia plateau fracture that kept him out of four games last year.
Per Daniel Popper of The Athletic, the Chargers are prepared to play through the "majority of September" without Mike Williams. However, according to head coach Anthony Lynn, the wideout will be a game-time decision for Week 1 against the Cincinnati Bengals (h/t Joe Reedy of the Associated Press).
While Keenan Allen will likely command a high target volume, running back Austin Ekeler or Henry could slip into the No. 2 spot in the pass-catching pecking order depending on the opponent.
In 2019, Henry caught 55 passes for 652 yards and five touchdowns. He may see an early spike in numbers if Williams misses a few games.
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ADP: 13.09
The New York Jets have notable injuries at wide receiver. Rookie second-rounder Denzel Mims missed several practices because of a hamstring injury, which raises concern about his early rapport with quarterback Sam Darnold.
Breshad Perriman had swelling in his knee. He missed over a week of practices, per ESPN's Rich Cimini. Head coach Adam Gase said the wideout is "feeling a lot better." Yet his status for Week 1 remains unclear.
While Jamison Crowder and Chris Hogan could see most of the targets at wide receiver, tight end Chris Herndon may open the season with a big role. He's going into his third campaign with Darnold. As a rookie, the Miami product hauled in 39 passes for 502 yards and four touchdowns.
Last year, Herndon only played 18 offensive snaps. He served a four-game suspension for violating the league's substance-abuse policy and then battled a hamstring injury that resulted in a season-ending trip to the injured-reserve list.
Herndon goes into the upcoming campaign healthy and available for Darnold, who has a shortage of familiar pass-catching options. The two can rekindle their spark from two years ago.
ADPs are for PPR leagues and courtesy of Fantasy Football Calculator.
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