Texans wide receiver Will Fuller announced on his Instagram page this afternoon that he has been suspended six game for violating the leagues drug policy stemming from what he says was medication prescribed to him that was on the leagues banned substance list.
Fuller was having a career season as the Texans top receiver having caught 53 passes for 879 yards and eight touchdowns through 11 games this season. Fuller was coming off a monster Thanksgiving Day performance in Week 12 against the Lions which saw him catch six passes for 171 yards and two scores.
With Fuller now out of the lineup the Texans have a big gap to fill but so do the fantasy players that had Fuller on their roster and were getting WR1 type production. Let’s take a look at some options that fantasy players should be looking to pick up.
On the Texans Already
Keke Coutee - Coutee has played just three games this season, totaling six catches on nine targets for 38 yards and a touchdown. Fantasy players are no stranger to Coutee as he has been on the roster since 2018 and has often been used in place of Will Fuller when Fuller was injured in past seasons. Coutee definitely has some upside and likely jumps to the top of many waiver lists this season. As it stands right now is owned in just 0.3-percent of ESPN leagues and 1-percent of Yahoo leagues.
Steven Mithell/Isaiah Coulter – Who?? Yeah, so neither of these two have caught a pass this season, in fact, Coutler has yet to be active for a game. That said, one, if not both will likely see some playing time moving forward. Coulter was a fifth-round pick of the Texans this season while Mitchell has been with the team since 2018, having caught two passes on six targets over five career games. Mitchell was active for the Texans Thanksgiving game win over the Lions, playing 14-percent of the offensive snaps but did not see a target.
Jordan Akins – Yes, I know Akins is not a wide receiver, but he is the team’s top receiving tight end. Akins laid a goose egg on Thanksgiving, catching zero passes on two targets but he has had some big games this season, notably Week 11 when he caught five passes for 83 yards against the Patriots and Week 2 when he caught seven passes for 55 yards against the Ravens.
Through the Wire
Michael Pittman, IND – Yes, I know Pittman was a top waiver claim last week but his ownership still sits below 50-percent in most platforms. Pittman struggled against the Titans, catching just two passes for 28 yards but he was targeted nine times. Up next is another soft matchup against the Texans.
Deebo Samuel, SF – I’m sure many of you are reading this and saying that Samuel is not available in your league but that’s not the case in nearly half of standard leagues on the major platforms where his ownership sits between 50-to-60-percent. If you are lucky enough to be in the 40-percent of leagues where he is on the waivers you should be picking him up this week after he torched the Rams for 133 yards on 11 catches in Week 12.
Nelson Agholor , LV – The Raiders offense was horrible in Week 12 but Agholor still pulled off five catches for 54 yards. In Week 13 they get the “slump busters” in the New York Jets. Over the last three weeks Agholor has seen 19 targets.
Denzel Mims, NYJ – Mims has seen eight targets in three straight games. It seems to matter not who is under center for the Jets as he is going to get the volume over the final weeks of the season. One of these weeks he is going to have himself a big touchdown play and a matchup against the Raiders in Week 13 could provide that opportunity.
Player News
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell said the team does not “have any feelings on competition” when asked about the quarterback room.
O’Connell was asked about a potential quarterback competition on the Rich Eisen Show Wednesday and was unclear on whether J.J. McCarthy would have to compete to start. He said, “we’ve got an obligation as coaches to put our players in position to attack that competition phase.” O’Connell discussed first putting Brett Rypien and the newly acquired Sam Howell in a position to play before any competition would occur. He continued that McCarthy is “owning it” this offseason and is taking snaps from starting center Ryan Kelly. After missing last season with a torn meniscus, McCarthy has been ramping up workouts in the offseason and is the front-runner to start for the Vikings in 2025. As of now, Howell looks to be reinforcement at the backup spot in case it turns out McCarthy is not ready to start.
Texans re-signed DT Foley Fatukasi.
Fatukasi initially joined the Texans last offseason on a one-year contract. The 30-year-old was a rotational defensive lineman, tallying four tackles for loss and one sack. He returns to Houston for 2025, where he will be a part of a deep Texans front seven.
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reports Tyreek Hill’s second wrist surgery was part of the original plan and his timeline remains unchanged.
Hill announced the second surgery on social media and Pelissero quickly added some context to the situation. The speedy receiver suffered the wrist injury just before the start of the season and it lingered throughout the year, though he never missed a game because of it. If the second surgery truly is a non-story, an offseason to recover might be what Hill needs to return to form after a down 2024 season. On the other hand, Hill is 31 years old, played his worst football last year, and his offense prioritized targets for Jonnu Smith and De’Von Achane. As it stands, Hill might have the highest risk-reward split in fantasy drafts.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reports there are “multiple people in the league who believe the new regime is not so high on Travis Etienne.”
Fowler also noted Tank Bigsby’s fumbling issue but didn’t directly relate that to the feelings of the new brain trust in Jacksonville. The Jags clearly felt they were lacking at running back this offseason and addressed that opening via the draft with Bhayshul Tuten in the fourth round and LeQuint Allen in the seventh. The pair of additions complicate an already-messy backfield by committee. Etienne is entering the final year of his rookie deal and is a long-shot to be brought back in 2026. The Jags could opt to move on early by trading him, clearing $6.1 million in cap space in the process. If the team does trade Etienne, Tuten would likely be the team’s top back in the long run, making him a high-upside bet in early fantasy drafts.
Broncos signed third-round pick WR Pat Bryant to a four-year contract.
The deal includes $1.4 million guaranteed and is worth $6.6 million in total. Sean Payton compared aspects of Bryant’s game to those of Michael Thomas in his post-draft press conference and there are at least a few similarities in their profiles. Bryant stands at 6'2/204 and ran a 4.61-second Forty at the combine. Thomas measured in at 6'3/212 and clocked a 4.57-second Forty. Though the two have similar physical characteristics, Thomas was known for his proficiency from the slot while Bryant primarily played on the outside as a field-stretcher at Illinois. Bryant’s transition to slot duties may take some time, but third-round draft capital makes him worth a shot in dynasty leagues.
Colts EDGE Samson Ebukam (Achilles) said he is expected to be cleared for training camp.
Ebukam suffered a torn Achilles in training camp last year and did not play in the 2024 season. He broke out in 2023 with a career-high 9.5 sacks in his first season with the Colts. He now has one year left on his deal and will be looking for a rebound season as he stares down free agency in 2026