.jpg)
Welcome to the 2015 NFL Training Camp Report!! Loyal readers of Fantasy Alarm know that every summer I like to keep a finger on the pulse of NFL training camps and offer up my analysis to help you prepare for and dominate the upcoming fantasy football season.
Remember that the Fantasy Alarm news department is always on top of every breaking and developing story will be aiding the cause of keeping our readers informed.
Here is the Training Camp Reports for Wednesday July 29:
Let’s Get It Started
It’s that time of year again when crazy rich over praised athletes pretend to be poor and hungry by living together at renovated college dorms. It’s called training camp and it could be coming to a location near you.
I figure the best way to begin is by going over when each team opens camp and where they will be holding it this summer. Let’s take a look, shall we?
TEAM | REPORTS | 1st PRACTICE | LOCATION |
Minnesota Vikings | July 25th | July 26th | Mankato, MN. |
Pittsburgh Steelers | July 25th | July 26th | Latrobe, PA. |
Baltimore Ravens | July 29th | July 30th | Owings Mills, MD. |
Chicago Bears | July 29th | July 30th | Bourbonnais, IL. |
Cleveland Browns | July 29th | July 30th | Berea, OH. |
Dallas Cowboys | July 29th | July 30th | Oxnard, CA. |
Green Bay Packers | July 29th | July 30th | De Pere, WI. |
Miami Dolphins | July 29th | July 30th | Davie, FL. |
New England Patriots | July 29th | July 30th | Foxborough, MA. |
New Orleans Saints | July 29th | July 30th | Sulpher Springs, Wv. |
New York Jets | July 29th | July 30th | Florham Park, NJ. |
San Diego Chargers | July 29th | July 30th | San Diego, CA. |
Washington Redskins | July 29th | July 30th | Richmond, VA. |
Atlanta Falcons | July 30th | July 31st | Flowery Branch, GA. |
Buffalo Bills | July 30th | July 31st | Rochester, NY |
Carolina Panthers | July 30th | July 31st | Spartanburg, SC |
Cincinnati Bengals | July 30th | July 31st | Cincinnati, OH. |
Denver Broncos | July 30th | July 31st | Dove Valley, CO. |
Jacksonville Jaguars | July 30th | July 31st | Jacksonville, FL. |
New York Giants | July 30th | July 31st | East Rutherford, NJ. |
Oakland Raiders | July 30th | July 31st | Napa, CA. |
Seattle Seahawks | July 30th | July 31st | Renton, WA. |
Tennessee Titans | July 30th | July 31st | Nashville, TN. |
Arizona Cardinals | July 31st | August 1st | Glendale, AZ. |
Houston Texans | July 31st | August 2nd | Houston, TX. |
Kansas City Chiefs | July 31st | August 1st | St. Joseph, MO. |
St. Louis Rams | July 31st | August 1st | Earth City, MO. |
San Francisco 49ers | July 31st | August 1st | Santa Clara, CA. |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers | July 31st | August 1st | Tampa, FL. |
Indianapolis Colts | August 1st | August 2nd | Anderson, IN. |
Philadelphia Eagles | August 1st | August 2nd | Philadelphia, PA. |
Detroit Lions | August 2nd | August 3rd | Allen Park, MI. |
Tom Brady Suspension Upheld
Please stop all of your bitching and complaining about how awful the NFL is because it is punishing Tom Brady for his role in the deflategate saga. I don’t have the energy to rehash this entire argument but let’s just focus on a couple of key components.
For starters, it is absolutely not in the NFL’s best interest to discipline Tom Brady. Brady is one of the faces of the NFL and is widely considered the golden boy of the league. There is no way that the NFL has anything to gain by suspending him for any length of time whatsoever.
Secondly, stop comparing the deflategate situation with anything involving the law. Tom Brady is not being suspended for breaking a law. For that matter, Ray Rice, Le’Veon Bell and any other current or former NFL player(s) are not suspended because they broke laws. All discipline handed down from the NFL is for breaking their own set of rules and regulations.
To put this into perspective, it is not against the rules of the NFL to hit your wife. It is not against the NFL rules to do take drugs. It is against the NFL rules to get arrested for hitting your wife and for testing positive for illegal substances.
What the NFL does have rules on are things that alter the competitive balance of NFL games. That is what Tom Brady is being accused of doing and why he was suspended. It makes no difference that Le’Veon Bell got his suspension reduced or that any other player was disciplined more or less than Brady. In the eyes of the NFL what he did deserves punishment and thus it’ll be Jimmy Garoppolo under center for the Patriots in week one.
Where To Draft Le’Veon Bell
Bad news for Tom Brady but good news for Le’Veon Bell today as the NFL decided to lower his suspension from three games down to two. This obviously improves Bell’s expected fantasy output for 2015 but also cements him as a top 15 pick. Now, to me Bell should be a first round selection but I say that only because I would expect players like Antonio Brown, Julio Jones, Dez Bryant, DeMaryius Thomas, JaMaal Charles and Adrian Peterson to go first.
The way I look at it is that as long as you secure a worthy enough RB to replace Bell in the first two weeks, you’ll receive top 12 fantasy production from that spot over the course of they season.
Injured PUP
I am a big fan of Dolphins first round selection WR DeVante Parker however his rookie campaign will being on the active/PUP list for now. This is not the same as the PUP list that would keep him out of the first six regular season games, but it does mean that it’ll be awhile before Parker is back on the practice field with his new teammates.
If you recall, Parker had a second surgery on his troublesome foot back in June. History is unkind to rookies who miss a significant amount of their first training camp so here is hoping that Parker can make it back real soon.
As much as I love Parker and his potential with Ryan Tannehill I am going to have to downgrade him a dozen spots or so in my rankings now.
Nice Landing
The Cardinals made the signing of TE Jermaine Gresham official today. This is a nice spot for Gresham who has accumulated 414 receptions for 2,722 yards and 22 TD’s in five seasons with the Bengals. Gresham isn’t the modern day prototype “move” TE who fantasy owners love but he is an effective two way player that should wind up winning the starting job here with the birds.
Gresham could wind up being a decent bye week replacement TE this season but is useless in anything but the deepest of fantasy leagues at this time. Carson Palmer does like throwing to the TE but there are quite a few better prospects at this stage then Gresham.
Player News
CBS Sports’ Aditi Kinkhabwala says free agent QB Aaron Rodgers “is not going to play just for the sake of playing.”
Kinkhabwala has had conversations with Rodgers and executives around the league trying to sign him. Based on those conversations, she says, “it’s extremely clear Rodgers is not going to play just for the sake of playing.” He remains unsigned with the 2025 NFL Draft on the horizon and multiple teams needing quarterback help. The Steelers are the most likely fit, but it seems Rodgers won’t force it if he does not find a good fit. This explains why Rodgers has been interested in the Vikings and has not yet signed. The 41-year-old may be headed for retirement if a situation he prefers, like the Vikings, does not want him back. His options remain limited and Rodgers may call it a career if he still does not like his options later in the offseason.
Bears signed LB T.J. Edwards to a two-year, $20 million extension.
Edwards’ extension includes $16.6 million guaranteed. The Bears originally signed him to a three-year, $19.5 million contract two seasons ago and he has outplayed that salary. Edwards has four interceptions, 6.5 sacks, and 20 tackles for loss in two seasons starting for Chicago in the middle of the field. He gets a raise as the Bears lock up another important part of their defense after extending CB Kyler Gordon earlier in the week.
Georgia EDGE Mykel Williams visited the Falcons on Wednesday.
Williams posted on his Instagram that he visited the Falcons facility on what was the last day of pre-draft visits. The 20-year-old is a Georgia native, played at the University of Georgia, and is expected to be selected in the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. The Falcons have a need for an edge rusher and hold the No. 15 pick. They may look to keep Williams in-state and add his skillset to their pass-rushing group. Williams tallied five sacks last season and has explosive production for any team looking to add an edge rusher in the first round.
Fox Sports’ Jordan Schultz reports Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart “won’t fall out of the first round.”
Schultz reports his sources are indicating that Dart will not fall out of the first round of the 2025 NFL Draft. He continues that the Giants are a candidate to trade up from pick No. 34 into the first round to take Dart if they do not take a quarterback at pick No. 3. The Saints are also an option with pick No. 9 or a trade up from pick No. 40. Dart is generally considered the third quarterback to come off the board after Cam Ward and Shedeur Sanders, so a team in need of a franchise quarterback may take a chance on him after Ward and Sanders are selected. Teams could look to gain a fifth-year option on Dart and trade into the first round if he is not taken earlier.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports Raiders LT Kolton Miller is not participating in the voluntary offseason program and seeks an extension.
Miller was the Raiders’ first-round pick in 2018 and has started 107 games over seven seasons for the team. He is set to enter the final year of his current contract in 2025, making $12.25 million. Though he is not technically holding out yet since the offseason program is voluntary, Fowler notes Miller is seeking an extension. He finished last season with an 80.6 PFF grade, No. 14 among offensive tackles. Miller has been the Raiders’ franchise left tackle for seven years now and both sides will certainly discuss an extension as training camp nears.
Virginia Tech RB Bhayshul Tuten said he had a private workout with the Commanders’ running backs coach.
Tuten didn’t name him directly, but Anthony Lynn is currently the Commanders’ running backs coach and run game coordinator. The Commanders were hampered by injuries to both Brian Robinson Jr. and Austin Ekeler last year. Robinson Jr. missed three games and played through some of his injuries while Ekeler missed five contests and was limited to just 112 touches. Tuten crushed the combine with a 4.32 Forty at 5'9/206. He handled 200 touches in back-to-back seasons at Virginia Tech while topping 1,100 yards from scrimmage in both campaigns. He would offer the Washington backfield a good mix of durability and home run potential.