4 new scoring rules for 2025!

Chicago Bears running back Travis Homer (calf) has been placed on injured reserve with a return designation, per an announcement from the team. The return designation means Homer must miss the first four games of the season, but will have a chance to play in 2025. With or without Homer, the Bears are thin at running back behind D'Andre Swift. Chicago's top RB2 candidates, Roschon Johnson (foot) and Kyle Monangai (undisclosed), are both dealing with injuries of their own. The Bears are a logical candidate to bring in some help at the running back position before the regular season begins. If they do not, Swift could be in line for a heavy workload and may be a value for fantasy managers in the middle rounds of drafts.

From RotoBaller

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Chris Godwin (ankle) has passed his physical, according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. That will clear Godwin to be activated from the physically unable to perform list and allow him to begin practicing within the first four weeks of the season. Godwin suffered a dislocated ankle in Week 7 of 2024 and has since undergone two surgeries. The 29-year-old still may not be ready for game action until October, so he's a risky late-round pick in fantasy but one with upside if he can rediscover his form from before he got injured last season. With Godwin sidelined, Buccaneers rookie wide receiver Emeka Egbuka should be heavily relied upon early in the season.

From RotoBaller

The Los Angeles Chargers have released quarterback Taylor Heinicke, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network. Heinicke was outplayed in the preseason by Trey Lance, who has made the team and will serve as the backup to Justin Herbert in Los Angeles. The 32-year-old Heinicke has played seven seasons in the NFL and made 29 starts. He's been a capable backup for stretches of his career and should be able to find a new home rather quickly. For fantasy purposes, a Herbert injury would now make Lance a priority waiver-wire addition due to his dual-threat ability at the quarterback position.

From RotoBaller

The Carolina Panthers released veteran wide receiver Hunter Renfrow on roster cutdown day on Tuesday, according to Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network. Renfrow's comeback will have to happen elsewhere unless he returns to Carolina on their practice squad. The 29-year-old former Pro Bowler dealt with health issues at the end of his tenure with the Las Vegas Raiders and spent 2024 out of football. Even if Renfrow had made the Panthers' 53-man roster, he would have been buried on the depth chart behind rookie Tetairoa McMillan, Xavier Legette, Adam Thielen and Jalen Coker. At this point, it's a long shot for Renfrow to regain his Pro Bowl form that saw him catch 103 passes for 1,038 yards and nine touchdowns in 17 games in Vegas in 2021.

From RotoBaller

The Dallas Cowboys placed wide receiver Jonathan Mingo (knee) on Injured Reserve on Tuesday but designated him for a return, which means that Mingo will be eligible to rejoin the active roster after missing the first four games. The 24-year-old wideout is still recovering from a PCL sprain in his right knee that he suffered in the middle of August in a preseason game against the Baltimore Ravens. The earliest that Mingo would be able to make his 2025 debut would be in Week 5 on Oct. 5 against the New York Jets. CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens are Dallas' top two receivers, and with Mingo now sidelined at least four games, Jalen Tolbert and KaVontae Turpin will battle it out for WR3 duties. Neither Tolbert nor Turpin will really be rosterable in 12-team fantasy leagues unless one of Lamb or Pickens miss time with an injury.

From RotoBaller

Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Darnell Mooney (shoulder) has avoided landing on Injured Reserve to start the 2025 season, even though he has not practiced since the first day of training camp in late July, according to Marc Raimondi of ESPN. It means that the Falcons think Mooney could be available within the team's first four games of the season in September. Still, the 27-year-old can probably be considered more of a long shot to suit up in Week 1 against the division-rival Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, Sept. 7. When healthy, Mooney could serve as the team's No. 2 wideout behind Drake London in starting three-wide sets, although the uncertainty surrounding his injury makes him no better than a late-round dart throw in fantasy drafts as a WR4/5. In his first year in Atlanta in 2024, Mooney bounced back in a big way with a 64-992-5 line on 106 targets over 16 starts.

From RotoBaller

The New England Patriots announced their 53-man roster on Tuesday, and both rookie Efton Chism III (ankle, foot) and Kendrick Bourne (leg) were included despite dealing with injuries during training camp. The 23-year-old Chism was a nice story in training camp after going undrafted out of Eastern Washington. While he turned heads during practices this summer, Chism's most direct path to playing time in 2025 will most likely come on special teams. Bourne, 30, is a surprise addition to the 53-man roster after having not practiced or played since injuring his leg on Aug. 1. He had an outlier season in 2021 with 55 catches for 800 yards and five touchdowns, but since then he's totaled 1,145 yards and six touchdowns in three seasons. Bourne is buried in a crowded New England wideout room and should be avoided in the vast majority of fantasy leagues.

From RotoBaller

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Cedric Tillman (thumb) was back at practice on Tuesday, according to Scott Petrak of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram. Tillman is back on the field after missing almost a full week with a minor thumb injury. Now that the 25-year-old is back at practice, he should be good to go for the Week 1 regular-season opener on Sunday, Sept. 7, against the division-rival Cincinnati Bengals. And with limited help in the receiver room behind Jerry Jeudy, Tillman figures to operate as Cleveland's WR2 to begin the season. It might not amount to much in terms of consistent weekly production with veteran quarterback Joe Flacco leading the offense, though, and RotoBaller currently has Tillman ranked as the WR63. Tillman's 2024 was cut short due to injury, and he finished with a 29-339-3 line in 11 games (six starts).

From RotoBaller

Dynasty | The Seahawks have released wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Dynasty Analysis: Seattle really wanted MVS to be part of things this year but Tory Horton outplayed him and sewed up the WR3 job behind Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Cooper Kupp early in camp. Since he doesn't contribute on special teams, Seattle had to eat about $3 million and cut him loose. MVS should find work elsewhere as a situational deep threat but this was a disappointment.

Dynasty | The Browns have named Dillon Gabriel their QB2. Dynasty Analysis: Gabriel wasn't great this season but the Browns saw enough of him and Shedeur Sanders to apparently feel confident enough to ship Kenny Pickett to the Raiders. Should something happen to Joe Flacco, it seems now set in stone that Gabriel would be the next man up and Sanders may not even be active on game days outside of being an emergency replacement. Gabriel has been the better roster stash all along and this solidifies it, though he really hasn't looked like an NFL quarterback as of yet.

Dynasty | The Tampa Bay Bucs have released wide receiver Trey Palmer. Dynasty Analysis: Palmer has had some nice moments but also had no chance at playing time behind Mike Evans, Chris Godwin or Emeka Egbuka when they're all healthy, so this could be a good thing. A deep roster stash in many leagues, Palmer will look to latch on elsewhere later this week. He could still be kept in deep leagues as we see what happens with him in the coming days.

Dynasty | Quarterback Desmond Ridder was released by the Cincinnati Bengals. Dynasty Analysis: Ridder was a one-time starter in Atlanta but failed to live up to expectations. He was battling Jake Browning to be the backup to Joe Burrow but it didn't work out for him in the end. Ridder should find work elsewhere but he can be dropped in any league, including deep superflex formats.

Dynasty | The Dallas Cowboys have placed wide receiver Jonathan Mingo on IR with a designation to return. Dynasty Analysis: It sounds like he's going to be out 4-6 weeks. While still a bit of a deep league sleeper, Mingo just hasn't looked great over the past two seasons. The Cowboys will go with CeeDee Lamb, Jalen Tolbert and George Pickens to start the year and it's tough to see Mingo making much of a difference after catching just five passes for them after being traded mid-year from the Panthers. Mingo is a tough hold in dynasty leagues, despite being a second round pick not long ago.

Dynasty | The Saints have released running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire. Dynasty Analysis: It's another tough break for the one-time first round pick of the Kansas City Chiefs. CEH has been plagued by injuries, ineffectiveness and an unfortunate battle with PTSD that has simply derailed his career. The Saints could bring him back but he's clearly behind Alvin Kamara, Devin Neal and Kendre Miller, making him value-less in dynasty leagues.

Dynasty | The Giants have released quarterback Tommy DeVito. Dynasty Analysis: The Giants were always destined to keep Russell Wilson, Jameis Winston and Jaxson Dart in the end but DeVito gave it his best shot. He's shown some ability through the years but may need to find a practice squad to get a second shot. At this point, he has no business on dynasty rosters.

Dynasty | The Broncos have released running back Blake Watson. Dynasty Analysis: A dynasty rookie darling at this time a year ago, Watson couldn't unseat Jaleel McLaughlin or Tyler Badie (at least at the moment) to crack the roster of the Broncos. He seems like a player who could resurface on another roster, especially as it seemed there was some teams rumored to be interested in trading for him prior to him spraining his knee this week. Dynasty managers should keep their eye on him but he's no longer a priority on rosters.

Dynasty | The Browns have traded quarterback Kenny Pickett to the Raiders. Dynasty Analysis: We pretty much called this one in our player news updates over the last 24 hours after Aidan O'Connell fractured his wrist. The Raiders needed a backup quarterback, the Browns really didn't need four signal callers and it just made too much sense. Pickett has been banged up over the off-season and Cleveland apparently saw enough from Shedeur Sanders and Dillon Gabriel to feel comfortable having a fifth round pick instead. Pickett's dynasty value will fall now that he has no chance of starting without a Geno Smith injury and those who took a chance on Gabriel or Sanders could be rewarded.

Dynasty | The Bears have released running back Royce Freeman. Dynasty Analysis: It looks like Chicago is going to go with Kyle Monangai to back up D'Andre Swift and Roschon Johnson this year. As for Freeman, he's starting to run out of chances. After spending time with Denver, Carolina, Houston and the Rams without ever really showing much in long stretches, Freeman has no business being on dynasty rosters. Such is life for running backs, even those who were once thought of very highly in dynasty circles.

Dynasty | The Chiefs have released quarterback Bailey Zappe. Dynasty Analysis: Zappe just hasn't been able to recapture the magic he once had in a stretch with New England years ago. After spending time with Cleveland last year, he failed to beat out Gardner Minshew for the backup job to Patrick Mahomes this year. Zappe should land on his feet somewhere as a developmental backup-type but his dynasty value has cratered.

Dynasty | The Raiders have signed wide receiver Amari Cooper. Dynasty Analysis: It's a fun reunion of sorts for Cooper, who started his career with the Raiders back in 2015. After spending his first three and half years in Silver and Black, Cooper has spent time with the Cowboys, Browns, and Bills over the past few seasons. He isn't the same player he once was, but Cooper is an interesting addition to a depth chart with Jakobi Meyers, Tre Tucker, and not much else proven for Geno Smith. While tight end Brock Bowers should remain the top target in the offense, Cooper has a real chance to provide some value in dynasty leagues this year and his ADP will rise yet again with the move.