It feels like draft season rather than summer, with pumpkin spice lattes already appearing. We are four games into Week 3 of the NFL preseason as we prepare for the 2026 season. Many of you may be doing fantasy football drafts this weekend.
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One big development is the potential suspension of Packers RB Josh Jacobs, who was charged on Thursday. Here are more headlines for fantasy.
Tua Tagovailoa will start on Friday against his former team, the Dolphins, in the preseason finale. This is usually a spot where the starting QB would sit and rest for Week 1. It also appears Michael Penix Jr. will not play on Friday, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport. Rap also said Tua hasn't looked good during camp and preseason, leading Atlanta toward Penix as the starter.
Penix is participating in 11-on-11 drills at practice and looks good, per Rapoport, but hasn't seen live action. He looks ready to play Week 1 coming off another torn ACL suffered last season. If Penix is good to go, he could be the starter to open 2026 against the Steelers. That could help the Falcons' passing game if Penix is healthy and throwing well, most notably for Drake London and Kyle Pitts Sr. Penix isn't someone to consider in fantasy outside of deep 2-QB leagues, but he's a name to file away as a potential waiver in some cases if he starts.
This could lead to Atlanta trading or cutting Tagovailoa, opening a path for him to sign elsewhere if a team lacks QB depth. It would be surprising to see Tua exit Atlanta and land a starting job on another team at this point in the preseason.
The Raiders played their final preseason game on Thursday night against the 49ers, and both Kirk Cousins and rookie Fernando Mendoza played snaps. Cousins started the first two drives, and the Raiders got a field goal on each drive. Mendoza struggled again and threw another pick. While Klint Kubiak hasn't made anything official yet, the expectation should be Las Vegas starting Cousins in Week 1.
The Raiders moved the ball well, which is a good sign for players like Ashton Jeanty (upon injury return), Brock Bowers, and even potential sleepers like WRs Jalen Nailor, Tre Tucker, and rookie RB Mike Washington Jr., who had another solid game on the ground with 8 carries for 49 yards.
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Deshaun Watson was named the starting QB in Cleveland over Shedeur Sanders on Monday, leaving the Falcons' battle as the final competition this offseason. The Browns owe a lot of money on Watson's contract, so this move isn't surprising. He hasn't been very good during preseason action but did enough to beat out Sanders.
Neither Watson nor Sanders played in the Browns' preseason finale on Thursday against the Patriots. Dillon Gabriel was lights-out, tossing three TDs with a perfect passer rating. Rookie QB Taylen Green flashed his athleticism again with eight carries for 66 yards, including a 30-yard long. He's an interesting name for dynasty and keeper formats.
Depending on how the season goes, Sanders could start games at some point, either if Watson is benched or the playoffs are out of reach. In any case, don't expect big things from the Browns' passing game, though the team could be in some positive scripts. Youngsters Quinshon Judkins, Harold Fannin Jr., and KC Concepcion should be the main producers. We'll see if Watson holds back the offense or keeps it steady enough for fantasy points. Watson comes in as the consensus QB34; Sanders is QB32 in Yahoo's rankings.
The Colts activated Pierce off the PUP list and he told reporters on Thursday that he plans to play in Week 1. He still has to work his way back to full speed at practice, but has plenty of time before the regular season starts.
That's a positive for Pierce's fantasy outlook, as his ADP has dropped significantly over the past few weeks. It's down to 108 over the past seven days on Yahoo, though expect a rebound as we get more reports from practice. If Pierce looks good and doesn't suffer a setback, he has potential as a late-round WR3 with spike-week potential. Josh Downs and Tyler Warren are both on the mend with minor injuries for the Colts.
In other injury news, Titans WR Wan'Dale Robinson is being evaluated for a concussion. We're awaiting more details on
Source: www.aol.co.uk — Read the original article
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