NFL News & Rumors This Week: Brandon Aiyuk, Sunday Ticket Lawsuit & More
Dynasty rookie drafts are in our rearview. Best ball season, of course, never ends. But we are right around the corner from the greatest part of fantasy football – redraft season!
If you ask me, the Scott Fish Bowl is the unofficial “grand opening” of seasonal redraft leagues. And it starts in 10 days! The SFB Podathan is this weekend, so make sure you are subscribed to the Fantasy Cares YouTube for that. And, if you are playing in that or one of the satellites, make sure you check out our Guide to Winning SFB14 with Rankings!
As we do every Friday, we’ll hit on the major NFL news and rumors from around the league first. Then, at the bottom, we’ll share the fantasy football-related rumors, big or small, for us to obsess over. Isn’t football the best?
Jury Orders NFL To Pay Over $4 Billion In Sunday Ticket Antitrust Lawsuit
- A jury ruled in favor of the plaintiffs in an antitrust lawsuit against the NFL that would award $96 million to commercial users and $4.7 billion to residential users. The lawsuit alleges that, from 2011 to 2022, the NFL sold their package for out-of-market games at an inflated price and only via a satellite provider, which breaks antitrust laws. There are still many appeals to come before users see that money, but it’s a step in the right direction.
Report: Amazon Was Not Blocked From Commanders Purchase
- There was a lot of debate on whether Jeff Bezos was shut out in some way from buying the Commanders, either by Dan Snyder or the NFL itself. As it turns out, he was simply outbid. The report states that, had he gone up to $7 billion, the team likely would have been his. Turns out even the man with all the money in the world draws a line somewhere.
Brandon Aiyuk Trade Rumors Continue To Swirl
- It’s no secret that Brandon Aiyuk is looking for a raise. Recent rumors from Adam Schefter suggest that teams like the Buffalo Bills have shown interest in Aiyuk, but there is a difference in evaluation. Teams are looking to pay a WR2 price while San Francisco believes he’s an “elite WR”. If they believe he is so elite, however, you would think they might just pay him themselves. Aiyuk also had a meeting with the 49ers this week though it’s not clear what, if anything, came of it.
Kansas City Chiefs Release DL Isaiah Buggs
- The Chiefs have finally made the decision to cut ties with defensive lineman Isaiah Buggs. He was recently arrested twice on animal cruelty charges and then separate charges related to domestic violence. Unless there is some sort of serious exonerating evidence that comes to light, Buggs is probably done in the NFL.
Kansas Governor Signs Bill To Fund Chiefs, Royals Stadiums
- Kansas City is technically in Missouri, though it’s located directly on the border of Missouri and Kansas. Kansas Governor Laura Kelly signed a bill into law that would fund roughly 70% of the costs of the new stadium, with the team coming up with the other 30%, if they elected to move the stadiums over the border into Kansas. The Kansas City mayor in Missouri, Quinton Lucas, is confident Missouri will come up with a deal to keep them in state. For now, though, Kansas has thrown down the gauntlet.
Fantasy Football News & Rumors
This part focuses on important news related to fantasy football from different NFL offseason practices and meetings:
- It should never be surprising when rookie quarterbacks play like rookies in camp. But there are early reports of both Michael Penix Jr. and J.J. McCarthy struggling a bit in early practices.
- A recent report suggested that Isaiah Likely could find his way on the field more at the same time as Mark Andrews in a hybrid WR role.
- The Bears have suggested that Rome Odunze could be their primary punt returner. Plenty of guys like Tyreek Hill, Dez Bryant, Randy Moss, CeeDee Lamb returned punts but, as a rookie, Lamb was also the odd man out in 3 WR sets. With DJ Moore and Keenan Allen, Odunze could be on a similar trajectory.
- The hype for one of the most hyped players grows with a report that Anthony Richardson will be a full go at Colts training camp.
- Daniel Jeremiah reports that J.K. Dobbins is fully healthy and that you should draft him in fantasy football.
- Rookie Dylan Laube reportedly got some first team reps in practice and could serve as the pass-down back and return man.
- Drew Petzing believes Trey McBride can take his game to another level this year after his year-two breakout last season.
- After letting Will Dissly and Colby Parkinson walk, the Seahawks “have plans for Noah Fant” this year.
Player News
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler said Terry McLaurin is “not happy with where things are with an extension.”
Fowler adds that the Commanders have “a couple of weeks here to make progress” before training camp begins on July 22nd. Rookies report on July 18th. McLaurin has skipped all offseason workouts thus far, so it stands to reason he could continue the absentee strategy later this month. Training camp is a critical time for NFL teams, allowing players to safely ramp up ahead of preseason play, not to mention the regular season. McLaurin profiles as a fantasy football WR2 this year.
The Athletic’s Mark Puleo reports, Chargers head coach Jim Harbaugh “has been added as a defendant in a class-action lawsuit filed by 11 anonymous students against former University of Michigan offensive coordinator Matt Weiss.”
Weiss “has been accused of hacking the email, social media and cloud storage accounts of thousands of female athletes and downloading intimate photos and videos.” Per Puleo, “the amended complaint... alleges that Harbaugh” and “university officials knew that Weiss had been accessing the plaintiffs’ private information when they allowed him to coach in the Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 31, 2022.” Harbaugh previously told reporters that “he didn’t learn of allegations involving Weiss until after the Fiesta Bowl,” saying he was “completely shocked” and “disturbed” upon hearing the allegations. Weiss has worked for both Jim and John Harbaugh, dating back to 2007; Stanford (2007-2008) and Michigan (2021-2022) with Jim, and the Ravens (2009-2020) with John. Jim coached at Michigan from 2015-2023. Per Puleo, “allegations of computer hacking against Weiss date to 2015, when he was with Baltimore.” Neither Michigan nor the Chargers responded to Puleo’s request for a comment.
Trevor Lawrence and head coach Liam Coen complimented Dyami Brown for finding “voids” in zone coverage and his improved intermediate-depth route running this spring.
Per ESPN’s Michael DiRocco, Lawrence “was impressed with Brown during the spring and said the two seemed to click pretty quickly.” The veteran quarterback specifically praised Brown for picking up “the system really quickly,” saying, Brown has “gotten the ball a lot because it seems like he’s always in the right spot.” Coen, meanwhile, believes Brown has “validated” the team’s $9.5 million investment by improving his play on “those intermediate in-breakers, curls, maybe outcuts,” an area where “you didn’t really see him work” that much with the Commanders. Brian Thomas Jr. and Travis Hunter will reliably command larger target shares than Brown, but if Brown can develop into more than a field stretcher and part-time screen weapon, he should yield flex value this season.
Sauce Gardner’s goals for 2025 include intercepting more passes and assuming a leadership role in the huddle and in the Jets’ locker room.
Gardner has just three career interceptions and, as ESPN’s Rich Cimini notes, Gardner is not expected to have the benefit of a zone-heavy scheme this season. Serving as the Lions’ defensive coordinator last year, Jets head coach Aaron Glenn used zone and man coverage at a near even split, which qualifies as being extremely man-heavy given the NFL’s current zone coverage rates. Gardner’s focus on increasing his interception total is a positive for fantasy managers who are smartly targeting turnovers and sacks when selecting defense/special teams units, though. Glenn is also notably mentoring Gardner in both on- and off-field leadership qualities, telling Gardner to let his “influence do all the talking” rather than taking on a phony “rah-rah guy” persona.
CBS News Texas reports Cowboys WR KaVontae Turpin was arrested on two misdemeanor charges.
According to Collin County court records, the Cowboys’ wide receiver and special teams ace was arrested early Sunday on misdemeanor charges for marijuana and unlawfully carrying a weapon. We don’t know much more about his arrest at this time other than his bond was listed at $500. The 28-year-old receiver could face disciplinary action from the league once the legal process plays out, but for now, things remain wait-and-see. Turpin caught 31 passes for 420 yards and two touchdowns last season and also led the league with 904 kick return yards and an average of 33.5 yards per return.
Free agent WR Chase Claypool revealed the severity of the toe injury he suffered in July 2024.
In a social media post, the 26-year-old receiver explains that he “tore a ligament and tendon” in his second toe on his left foot and has “been rehabbing, working out, and recovering everyday for the past year.” This explains his extended absence. Following the injury, Claypool was briefly placed on injured reserve in August 2024 before being released with an injury settlement. He is “back to being the strongest and fastest” he’s ever been and is “excited to step back out on the field.”