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What’s Happening:
Adam Thielen left practice after sustaining a leg injury. However, Andrew Kramer reports that the injury is not serious and Thielen is expected to be ready for Week 1. Thielen broke out in 2017, catching 91 passes for 1276 yards and four touchdowns last season. He has a chance to be even better than that with new quarterback Kirk Cousins who should help the Vikings open up their offense. While Stefon Diggs has looked like Cousins top target out of the receivers so far, Thielen runs a lot of the shorter and intermediate routes that Cousins loves to throw. He is a high-end WR2.
Alshon Jeffery will miss at least two games to start the season, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN. This is disappointing news after Jeffery was apparently making progress towards being ready for Week 1. In his absence, Nelson Agholor , Mike Wallace , and Mark Hollins get a nice boost in value, but the offense as a whole could be a bit stagnant if Carson Wentz , Jay Ajayi , and Jeffery are all out.
Brandon Marshall is expected to be released by the Seattle Seahawks. Marshall had reportedly been good in camp, but may be behind because of injury or the Seahawks may be impressed with Amara Darboh enough to let the veteran walk. Darboh has nice hands and a big body which makes him a perfect player to lineup opposite of the smaller, speedy Doug Baldwin . Darboh could be an interesting sleeper candidate in deeper formats as most people have never heard of the second year wideout.
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Quick hits:
George Kittle returned to practice today after hurting his shoulder in a preseason game.
Jerick McKinnon was seen doing drills today at the 49ers practice. If he cannot get ready for Week 1, Alfred Morris should be the starter.
Steelers offensive coordinator Randy Fletcher stated today that Le'Veon Bell is expected to handle his normal workload in Week 1.
Bear head coach Matt Nagy stated he does not expect tight end Adam Shaheen to go on IR.
According to Dez Bryant , Dez Bryant “will play ball this year.” Bryant apparently turned down a one-year deal from the Browns during the Josh Gordon absence, so he expects to get some calls after the start of the season. It’s nice to see that unemployment has hurt his ego.
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Burning Questions:
How hurt is Doug Baldwin ? Doug Baldwin stated on Tuesday that his injured knee will not be 100% at all this season. This is perturbing news after head coach Pete Carroll came out a few days ago saying that Baldwin would be ready for Week 1 and while that still may be true, the optimism expressed now seems a bit half-hearted. Baldwin has a ton of talent and is the main target in the passing game, so as long as he is on the field, he should be good, but how long can he stay on the field if he can’t get 100% healthy?
How healthy is Sony Michel ? Michel is back at practice this week after missing some time after having to get his knee drained. While he was limited in practice yesterday and today, he got rave reviews from Ivan Fears who said that Michel was everything “we expected him to be.” Michel may not be ready for Week 1, but he appears to be a dynamic player that the Patriots are excited to employ.
Who starts at QB Week 1 for the Eagles? Head coach Doug Pederson is expected to name his Week 1 starter on Monday. Nick Foles may have won the Super Bowl for the Eagles, but he has looked atrocious in the preseason. However, the Eagles may decide to play it safe for the first week and not throw Carson Wentz straight into the fire without his top receiver and potentially his top running back in Jay Ajayi .
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