Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kaleb Johnson turned eight carries into 20 rushing yards and hauled in one of two targets for six receiving yards in a 31-25 preseason win against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The rookie handled RB1 duties for Pittsburgh in the first half before he was eventually replaced by Trey Sermon, Evan Hull, and Lew Nichols. Although Johnson could not find much room to operate on Saturday, he notably ran through the arms of a diving Travis Hunter for a seven-yard gain early in the second quarter. The fact that veteran Jaylen Warren was inactive confirms his standing as the Steelers' featured back, meaning Johnson will need to earn playing time early in the regular season. His next opportunity to showcase his talents will come against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next week.

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Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Mason Rudolph completed nine of 10 pass attempts for 94 yards and a touchdown in a 31-25 preseason victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars. Rudolph got the start on Saturday and took the field for Pittsburgh's first two series. He performed well, especially on the team's opening drive, connecting with seven different receivers and delivering a 19-yard strike to tight end Darnell Washington for a score. Rudolph is unlikely to play much in the regular season so long as Aaron Rodgers stays healthy, but it was encouraging to see the 30-year-old find success in OC Arthur Smith's offense nonetheless. He should get more exhibition action in next week's matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

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Tennessee Titans wide receiver Calvin Ridley got off to a promising start with his new quarterback, rookie No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward, in a 29-7 preseason-opening loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday. Ridley hauled in all three of his targets from Ward for 50 yards, including a game-high 27-yarder. The 30-year-old is heading into his second season with the Titans and looking for a third straight 1,000-yard campaign. Ridley racked up 1,017 yards and four touchdowns on 64 catches (120 targets) last season despite having to work with the less-than-stellar quarterback duo of Will Levis and Mason Rudolph. Ward should provide an upgrade over those two (albeit with some growing pains), and with the Titans lacking other high-end pass-catching options, Ridley will draw plenty of looks from the team's new signal-caller. RotoBaller has Ridley ranked as WR26 going into the season.

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Tennessee Titans rookie running back Kalel Mullings finished with a team-high 33 rushing yards on seven carries in Saturday's preseason-opening 29-7 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. With starter Tony Pollard receiving limited work (four carries, nine yards) and Tyjae Spears suffering a high-ankle sprain, Mullings ended up serving as the Titans' lead back. Julius Chestnut, who's competing with Mullings, totaled 18 yards on three carries and added one catch for eight yards. A sixth-round pick from Michigan, Mullings ran for 948 yards and six touchdowns on 185 attempts in his last year with the Wolverines in 2024. The 22-year-old could see an increased role during Spears' absence. If Spears isn't able to return by the Titans' season opener against the Denver Broncos on Sept. 7, it could be Mullings backing up Pollard. In the meantime, Mullings will try to build on a productive debut in preseason game No. 2 against the Atlanta Falcons on Friday.

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New England Patriots running back Rhamondre Stevenson (undisclosed) was absent from practice on Sunday, Evan Lazar of Patriots.com reports. It's unclear if Stevenson is dealing with an injury or getting a veteran rest day. The fifth-year man rushed seven times for 36 yards in the Patriots' preseason-opening 48-18 win over the Washington Commanders on Friday. Stevenson put up 801 rushing yards and a personal-best seven touchdowns on 207 attempts last season. However, after Stevenson averaged just 3.9 yards per carry and fumbled a career-worst six times, the Patriots used a second-round pick on fellow RB TreVeyon Henderson. The former Ohio State Buckeye wowed in his preseason debut with a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown to open the game. He also picked up 18 yards on his lone carry and caught three passes for 12 yards. With Henderson in the fold and looking like an intriguing weapon, Stevenson's fantasy value has dropped.

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Tennessee Titans rookie quarterback Cam Ward looked good during his NFL preseason debut in a 29-7 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday. Ward, the No. 1 overall pick from Miami, played the Titans' first two possessions and went 5-for-8 for 67 yards on 14 snaps. Ward missed on his first two passes before getting into a rhythm, and he formed a nice combination with No. 1 wide receiver Calvin Ridley. The pair connected three times for 50 yards. Ward also led a 65-yard touchdown drive before exiting. Head coach Brian Callahan was encouraged by Ward's performance, saying, "Cam played well in his two series that he got." Ward and the Titans will take on the Atlanta Falcons in their second preseason game on Friday.

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Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Rondale Moore (knee) is expected to miss the 2025 campaign after suffering an injury to his left knee in Saturday's preseason opener against the Houston Texans, ESPN's Adam Schefter reports. Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell called it "a pretty significant" injury and added that it's "heartbreaking" for Moore. While with the Atlanta Falcons last year, Moore suffered an injury to his right knee in early August and sat out the entire 2024 season as a result. Moore, who signed with the Vikings in free agency, incurred his latest injury on his first play back on a punt return. He had been in line to serve as the Vikings' No. 4 receiver and return man, but now Moore will have to go through the arduous process of rehabbing another devastating injury.

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Injured New England Patriots wide receiver Ja'Lynn Polk (shoulder) won't practice during the upcoming week, Doug Kyed of the Boston Herald reports. Polk left the Patriots' 48-18 preseason-opening win over the Washington Commanders on Friday after landing awkwardly on his right shoulder on an end-around. It's a particularly alarming injury for Polk, who underwent surgery on the same shoulder in the offseason. Even though he was the 37th overall pick in last year's draft, Polk already finds himself fighting for a roster spot after pulling in a meager 12 catches on 33 targets for 87 yards and two touchdowns as a rookie. The 23-year-old missed some time in training camp with muscle tightness, and this latest injury won't do him any favors as he looks to get up to speed with a new coaching staff. The Patriots are scheduled to play their second preseason game on Saturday against the Minnesota Vikings, but Polk may not be available.

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Denver Broncos wide receiver Trent Sherfield Sr. continued to impress in the team's 30-9 win over the hosting San Francisco 49ers in the preseason opener on Saturday night. Sherfield caught all three of his targets for a team-high 73 receiving yards and also found the end zone on a pretty 36-yard catch in the front corner of the end zone. The 29-year-old has done nothing but impress during training camp practices and carried that over into the first preseason game. He should also contribute on special teams for the Broncos this year, but Sherfield's work already this summer should make him a lock for the 53-man roster going into Week 1 for at least WR and special-teams depth. The seven-year NFL veteran caught only eight of his nine targets for 83 yards and one touchdown in 17 games (one start) for Minnesota a year ago.

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Denver Broncos wide receiver Courtland Sutton and the rest of the team's first-team offense was quiet in the 30-9 win over the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday in the preseason opener. Quarterback Bo Nix spread the ball around but looked rusty overall during the first quarter of play. Sutton connected with Nix on one of his three targets for a gain of only two yards. The 29-year-old had his second 1,000-yard campaign in 2024 in Nix's first season, leading to the Broncos signing him to a four-year extension last month. Sutton was Nix's clear top target in the passing game last year in head coach Sean Payton's offense, and that should continue to be the case in 2025, even after the team added tight end Evan Engram in free agency. Consider him a low-end WR2 in fantasy this fall. Sutton and the rest of the first-team offense will look to bounce back next weekend against Arizona.

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Arizona Cardinals quarterback Jacoby Brissett turned in a very good performance in the three-point win over the Kansas City Chiefs in the team's preseason opener. The veteran signal-caller finished the game with 81 yards and two touchdowns on 5-for-8 passing and one carry for 10 yards. His first score of the game came on a screen pass to Emari Demercado, while the second was on a great throw to second-year receiver Xavier Weaver in the end zone. Brissett has proven to be a reliable backup option, which could come in handy in case Kyler Murray runs into any health issues throughout the course of this season.

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Denver Broncos running back J.K. Dobbins wasn't very involved in the team's preseason opener on the road on Saturday against the San Francisco 49ers in a 30-9 victory at Levi's Stadium. Dobbins didn't see a single carry but caught his only target for a gain of four yards. Meanwhile, rookie second-rounder RJ Harvey carried the ball seven times for 25 yards and caught one of his two targets for four yards. The 26-year-old figures to be heavily involved in Denver's backfield in his first year with the team in 2025, but it was notable that Harvey saw most of the early-down work with the first-team offense in the first quarter on Saturday evening. Given Dobbins' extensive injury history, don't be surprised if Harvey is Denver's 1A back sooner than later, with Dobbins serving in more of a third-down, pass-catching role. Dobbins is an RB3/flex target in fantasy, preferably in PPR formats.

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Denver Broncos quarterback Bo Nix and the first-team offense did very little in their preseason opener against the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday in an eventual 30-9 blowout win. Nix played into the second quarter at Levi's Stadium and finished 6-for-11 passing for 31 yards with no touchdowns and an interception. The 25-year-old second-year signal-caller only averaged 2.8 yards per attempt and spread the ball around to receivers Courtland Sutton, Marvin Mims Jr. and Troy Franklin and running backs J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey. Nix did nothing special on Saturday and was even charged with a safety when he threw the ball away in the end zone for intentional grounding with the rush in his face. He'll look to bounce back next Saturday against the Cardinals. After Nix's impressive rookie season in 2024, he's in play as a low-end QB1 in fantasy in 2025.

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Arizona Cardinals running back Trey Benson received the most carries out of the backfield in the team's 20-17 preseason win over the Kansas City Chiefs. The second-year back out of Florida State finished with nine carries for 29 yards and one catch for 20 yards on his lone target. The efficiency on the ground wasn't particularly shining through this game, but he did show some explosive moments and took a short pass from Kyler Murray for 20 yards near the end of the first quarter, which set them up for a field goal. Benson is likely to remain the backup to James Conner, but the Cardinals have a lot of backs getting touches so far this preseason.

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Denver Broncos backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham was sharp in the team's 30-9 victory over the hosting San Francisco 49ers on Saturday in the preseason opener, going 14-for-15 passing for 136 yards and two touchdowns while also leading the team in rushing with 36 yards on the ground on his three carries. Stidham took over for Bo Nix after the first-team offense did little with their three series, and he promptly led the Broncos to three scoring drives. Although it was a good showing for the 29-year-old signal-caller, it was against the Niners' backup defense, so it should be taken with a grain of salt. Stidham signed a two-year, $12 million deal in March to stay in Denver as the backup to Nix, who is entrenched as the team's starter after leading the team to the playoffs in his rookie season in 2024. Stidham did not attempt a single pass last year.

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Arizona Cardinals wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. carried incredibly high expectations entering his rookie season, and in some ways, failed to reach those lofty goals. Now, entering his second season, he's looking to build some better chemistry with Kyler Murray and connect more often. In their first preseason game on Saturday against the Kansas City Chiefs, Harrison caught one of his two targets for 15 yards early in the first quarter. His only other target was a terrible throw from Murray that ended in an interception. There wasn't too much to gather from this showing, but Harrison remains the WR1 and likely will benefit from having a full offseason to prepare.

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Arizona Cardinals running back Emari Demercado finished as the high man in receiving yards during the 20-17 win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Saturday. The third-year back saw three carries for seven yards, but did most of his damage through the air as he collected two receptions for 56 yards and a touchdown on two targets. Towards the end of the second quarter, Demercado caught a screen pass from Jacoby Brissett and raced 43 yards for a touchdown while making a couple of defenders miss. With James Conner and Trey Benson firmly in the rotation, Demercado is making his case to remain in the third-string role.

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Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kyler Murray saw almost one quarter of playing time in the team's first preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs and posted a solid showing outside of one big mistake. In the 20-17 victory, Murray finished with 96 yards on 7-for-8 passing with one interception, and two carries for nine yards. While the interception was quite the egregious mistake, since the throw was straight to the defense, his play overall was what everyone would expect. He found Michael Wilson for a 12-yard gain and hit Marvin Harrison Jr. for a 15-yard play, while peppering in a couple of scrambles before the first drive came to an end. In the second drive, he added a couple of 20-yard plays to two different pass-catchers and ultimately led the team to a field goal. Murray had high expectations last season and finished as a fringe QB1. He's likely to remain around the same area if he stays healthy.

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Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Jordan Addison was quarterback J.J. McCarthy's top target on Saturday, as the pair connected three times for 33 yards on Minnesota's opening drive against Houston. Justin Jefferson (hamstring) was held out, but Addison served as the clear preferred target on the only drive in which the Vikings' starting offense played. The third-year pro is facing a three-game suspension to begin the season, but has proven to be a capable fantasy WR2/flex option in spite of the Vikings' quarterback turbulence the past two seasons.

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Quarterback Sam Howell played well in his Minnesota Vikings debut, completing 11 of 13 passing attempts for 105 yards and adding a rushing touchdown in a 20-10 victory against Houston. The former North Carolina star is now on his third team in three years after Minnesota traded for him during the NFL Draft, adding a veteran option behind presumptive starter J.J. McCarthy. Howell has the inside track on the No. 2 job over journeyman backup Brett Rypien and undrafted rookie Max Brosmer, and Howell certainly looked the part of a capable backup on Saturday.

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