Detroit Lions quarterback Nate Sudfeld completed just 13 of 24 passes for 96 yards, zero touchdowns, and one interception during Thursday's preseason opener against the New York Giants. He also rushed three times for an additional 14 yards on the ground. The 30-year-old played most of the game, only ceding reps to Hendon Hooker (head) in the third quarter. (Hooker departed after two drives and entered concussion protocol, bringing Sudfeld back into the game.) Neither player led a touchdown drive, and while Hooker was quite impressive on the ground, his new injury could give Sudfeld the early advantage in the fight to be Jared Goff's backup. If Hooker is expected to miss time, Detroit could add another quarterback to compete with Sudfeld ahead of the 2024 campaign.

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Detroit Lions running back Sione Vaki rushed four times for 29 yards during Thursday's preseason loss to the New York Giants. He broke off a solid 15-yard run in the effort, but perhaps his best play was a fumble recovery after a Giants defender lost the football on an interception return. A fourth-round pick out of Utah, Vaki projects to make the 53-man roster, slotting in behind David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs on the running back depth chart. He's an appealing option in deep dynasty leagues (and even deeper redraft formats) given that he could earn a handful of opportunities if Montgomery or Gibbs miss any time in 2024.

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Detroit Lions wide receiver Isaiah Williams caught all four of his targets for a total of 35 yards during Thursday's preseason loss against the New York Giants. Undrafted out of Illinois, Williams is now firmly in the mix for a depth role after a solid showing in Week 1 of the preseason. He showcased considerable quickness and change of direction skills in the loss, even earning a shoutout from head coach Dan Campbell following the game. Williams has less than one month (and two more games) to show the coaching staff why he's worthy of a coveted 53-man roster spot.

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Detroit Lions quarterback Hendon Hooker (head) completed five of nine passes for 36 yards during Thursday's preseason opener against the New York Giants. He was also productive on the ground, rushing four times for a team-leading 34 yards on the ground. Nearly half of his yardage came on a 16-yard run, which was the Lions' biggest gain on the ground in their loss to New York. On a more negative note, Hooker departed the game in the second half and has since entered concussion protocol. It remains to be seen if he'll miss additional time and whether an extended absence could spoil his chance of winning the backup quarterback job over Nate Sudfeld.

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New England Patriots wide receiver Kayshon Boutte caught three of his six targets for a total of 53 yards during Thursday's preseason win over the Carolina Panthers. The former LSU receiver saw his snaps alongside quarterbacks Joe Milton and Bailey Zappe, who are competing for the third-string role ahead of the 2024 season. Boutte himself is competing for a roster spot after an uninspiring rookie campaign in which he was active for just five games, catching two of the seven passes thrown his way. A misdemeanor underage gambling charge and felony computer fraud charge also made his status a bit murky, but he's been cleared of those charges as of mid-July. Boutte has one month (and two more preseason games) to show the new Patriots coaching staff why he's worthy of a roster spot. Even if he does make the team, he'll be buried on the depth chart, keeping him off the fantasy radar in most formats.

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New England Patriots quarterback Joe Milton completed four of six passes for 54 yards and one touchdown during Thursday's preseason win over the Carolina Panthers. He was also effective on the ground, rushing five times for 22 additional yards. The Tennessee product is believed to be competing for the No. 3 quarterback job given that it would take an enormous turn of events for him to surpass Jacoby Brissett or Drake Maye on the depth chart. New England should carry three quarterbacks into the season, though, and a strong preseason could give him the edge over Bailey Zappe. Nevertheless, he remains off the fantasy radar.

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Carolina Panthers quarterback Jack Plummer completed 11 of his 21 passes for 86 yards in the team's loss to the New England Patriots. Plummer played the first three-quarters of the game and was eventually relieved by Jake Luton. The 24-year-old signed with the Panthers after going undrafted in this year's draft and looks to be locked into the QB3 position behind Bryce Young and Andy Dalton. He remains off the fantasy radar for the upcoming season.

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Carolina Panthers tight end Jordan Matthews caught all three of his targets for 48 yards in the team's loss to the New England Patriots, leading all pass-catchers in yards on the night. The bulk of his yardage came from a 28-yard pass from Jack Plummer in the second quarter. The 31-year-old spent the majority of last season on Carolina's practice squad. With the addition of rookie tight end Ja'Tavion Sanders, Matthews will likely remain on the practice squad this season and is off the radar from a fantasy perspective.

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Carolina Panthers running back Mike Boone rushed the ball eight times for 34 yards in the team's loss to the New England Patriots, leading the team in touches and yards on the night. Boone also reeled in three catches for 13 yards through the air. The 29-year-old signed with Carolina in January of last season but remained on the practice squad for the entirety of the 2023 season. Boone will look to find his way onto the 53-man roster while rookie Jonathan Brooks remains on the PUP list but is firmly off the fantasy radar heading into the 2024 season.

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New England Patriots running back Kevin Harris rushed eight times for 22 yards and one touchdown during Thursday's preseason opener against the Carolina Panthers. In the passing game, he hauled in one of three targets for an additional six yards through the air. Harris is heading into his third pro season, but he's still just 23 years old. Rumors out of Patriots training camp suggest that Harris has out-performed JaMycal Hasty, putting him in line to open 2024 as the No. 3 running back. Nevertheless, he won't be a reliable contributor during the regular season. He can be avoided in fantasy football.

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New Orleans Saints rookie wide receiver Mason Tipton (hamstring) left Wednesday's practice early with a hamstring injury. The severity of the injury is unknown, but this certainly puts his chances of playing in the Saints preseason opener in jeopardy. Tipton has been a standout at camp thus far and is making his case for a roster spot. The Yale product is smaller in stature (5-foot-9) and never eclipsed 1,000 yards in a season during his tenure as a Bulldog. However, he did run a 4.33 40-yard dash, and New Orleans does not boast impressive depth at wide receiver. In fact, behind Chris Olave and Rashid Shaheed (hamstring), this WR room is ripe for the taking. Tipton is nothing more than a late-round dart throw (NFFC ADP 331) or deep-league stash, but someone to monitor, considering the hype.

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Detroit Lions quarterback Hendon Hooker (undisclosed) was removed from Thursday night's game against the New York Giants to be evaluated in the locker room. Hooker scrambled on a play-action boot and truck-sticked a Giants defender for an impressive 16-yard gain. The drive would stall, though, after his pass was later batted down at the line of scrimmage. After the possession, the second-year quarterback was getting looked at in the medical tent, and he then made his way to the locker room. There have been no further updates from the team, though it is possible he was getting checked for a concussion. He completed five of nine pass attempts for 36 yards and rushed for 34 yards on four attempts in Thursday's win. Hooker is listed as the third-string quarterback on the Lions unofficial depth chart behind Nate Sudfeld and Jared Goff.

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San Francisco 49ers running back Jordan Mason is making the most of his opportunities in camp in the absence of superstar running back Christian McCaffrey (calf). San Francisco is hurting right now with Elijah Mitchell (hamstring) and rookie Isaac Guerendo (hamstring) also dinged up. Mason has been running with the first team recently, and while others have rotated in his stead, he has impressed his coaches thus far. Most notably, the third-year running back has made it a point to improve his pass-blocking prowess -- previously his kryptonite. During one rep, Mason was 1-on-1 with a blitzing Fred Warner and delivered a blow that sent the All-Pro linebacker flying off his feet. With McCaffrey unlikely to play during the pre-season and other critical depth pieces injured, there is a path to playing time here for the former undrafted free agent if he can continue his momentum. RotoBaller has Mason ranked 73rd among all running backs, but that would change if he became the one to handcuff behind CMC.

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When asked about contract talks regarding star wide receiver CeeDee Lamb on Thursday, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said he doesn't "have any urgency to get it done." This standoffish stance paints a drastically different picture than Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones did just two weeks back when he said a new offer had been sent and conversations were good. It's an interesting development for Dallas, as Lamb has missed voluntary workouts and mandatory minicamp and is yet to attend training camp despite being subject to fines. Jones' comments swiftly made their way to the Cowboys' fifth-year wideout, and his response was a wry "lol." Even Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott said, "I got urgency for it to happen." It would appear there is some turmoil in Dallas -- at least for the time being -- and while it is likely that Lamb ends his holdout at some point before the season, there is some risk here as he has yet to participate in any football action. The University of Oklahoma alum is currently the second pick off the boards in NFFC ADP as the 1.02 behind running back Christian McCaffrey.

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New York Giants quarterback Drew Lock (hip) suffered a hip injury in Thursday night's preseason opener against the Detroit Lions and is considered questionable to return. Given that this is a preseason contest, we highly doubt that Lock will return to this game. The 27-year-old made the start for the G-Men with the Giants sitting starting QB Daniel Jones. Before leaving with a hip ailment, Lock went 4-for-10 for 17 yards and an interception while running for 12 yards on two carries. He was replaced by Tommy Devito under center. We should have a better idea of the severity of Lock's hip injury on Friday. The former Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks signal-caller will open the 2024 season in the Big Apple as the Giants' backup to Daniel Jones, leaving him with virtually no fantasy appeal.

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Los Angeles Chargers rookie wide receiver Ladd McConkey (lower body) returned to training camp practice on Thursday and was seen in a helmet and in uniform. McConkey returned to the practice field for the first time since getting injured on Saturday. Because of the injury, it seems unlikely that the Chargers will run the 22-year-old out there for the preseason opener on Saturday against the Seattle Seahawks. With Keenan Allen and Mike Williams no longer in town, McConkey, a second-round pick in this year's draft, is fully expected to start in three-receiver sets right away alongside Joshua Palmer and DJ Chark. McConkey's route-running skills could help him excel at the next level, but there are concerns about target volume in an offense that's expected to be much more run-heavy under new head coach Jim Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Greg Roman.

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Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell said that the team will play the majority of their players in the preseason opener on Saturday against the Las Vegas Raiders. Quarterback Sam Darnold will start under center, and then rookie first-rounder J.J. McCarthy will get "a significant amount of work." Jaren Hall will come in after McCarthy. Nick Mullens, who has the most experience in the system, might not play much but will get more playing time later in the preseason. Unsurprisingly, Darnold, a former first-rounder himself, was listed atop the team's preseason depth chart and is fully expected to open the year as the starter as the Vikings slowly develop McCarthy as the long-term starter at QB. The 27-year-old Darnold is in the best offense talent-wise of his career, but he still won't be much more than a low-end QB2 in superflex fantasy formats.

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Seattle Seahawks quarterback Geno Smith is not expected to play in Saturday's preseason opener against the Los Angeles Chargers, according to head coach Mike Macdonald. Along with Smith, some other offensive starters won't play, either. Smith certainly won't be the only starting signal-caller around the league to sit out of the first preseason games this week. The 33-year-old also missed some practice time early in training camp due to hip and knee injuries, so the Seahawks aren't going to take any chances with the veteran early in the preseason. In new offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb's system, Smith could look more like he did in his career-best season in 2022 than he did in 2023, especially with one of the best receiver trios in the game in DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Smith is a high-end QB2 with QB1 upside in favorable matchups.

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Arizona Cardinals rookie first-round wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. will play in the team's preseason opener on Saturday night against the New Orleans Saints, according to head coach Jonathan Gannon. Harrison will take his first official snaps in the NFL this weekend, but he won't be working with starting quarterback Kyler Murray, who won't play at all this preseason. Harrison, 21, has one of the highest ceilings of any rookie wideout in recent memory and will be taken as a WR1 in fantasy drafts despite having yet to play in a regular-season NFL contest. The fourth overall pick probably won't play more than an offensive series or two on Saturday with either QB Desmond Ridder or Clayton Tune. Harrison will instantly become Arizona's No. 1 receiver this year and should be targeted heavily by Murray.

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To this point in trade discussions, the San Francisco 49ers have not been satisfied with the Pittsburgh Steelers' offers and would like a receiver in return for Brandon Aiyuk as art of a trade, but they are also open to players at other positions, according to league sources. The New England Patriots dropped out of the Aiyuk sweepstakes the other day, so it's believed that the Steelers and Cleveland Browns are the front-runners for his services. If Aiyuk is dealt before the start of the regular season, his fantasy appeal as a low-end WR1/high-end WR2 is going to drop as he leaves Kyle Shanahan's offense in the Bay Area. And in San Francisco, a departure of Aiyuk would mean that rookie first-rounder Ricky Pearsall would likely start in three-receiver sets immediately alongside Deebo Samuel Sr. and Jauan Jennings.

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