Fantasy News Home

Jets will hold QB competition
Wednesday, May 1, 2013, 10:06am

Jets HC Rex Ryan said there’s no guarantee Mark Sanchez or rookie Geno Smith will be the team’s starting quarterback next season, but did say the public would see the best Sanchez they’ve ever seen.

"There is no guarantee that Mark will be our starter, there’s no question," Ryan said on ESPN Radio. "That job’s going to have to be earned."

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:33pm

Vikings WR Cordarrelle Patterson is a raw route-runner who probably will need many of his touches manufactured out of the gate, not unlike Percy Harvin did the past four seasons. That leaves Jerome Simpson as the starting split end and Greg Jennings as the flanker, with Jarius Wright a situational threat in the vertical passing game.

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:30pm

Cardinals GM Steve Keim on RB Andre Ellington (6th round) — “Obviously after taking Stepfan Taylor, we did not anticipate taking a back, but sticking to our board and staying true to it, we wanted to take the best player available. The fact that most likely we are going to keep four backs on our roster, we feel that Andre is a guy that can bring a diffferent style to the table. His run style, his elusivness, his play speed and athleticism, is different from the other top three backs on our roster.”

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:27pm

Cardinals GM Steve Keim on WR Ryan Swope (6th round) — “A guy that B.A. and I have had our eyes on for quite some time. We were extremely excited that he started to slide. He is a guy that not only can stretch the field vertically but has some underneath quickness. He kind of reminds me of Brandon Stokely a little bit.”

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:26pm

Cardinals GM Steve Keim on RB Stepfan Taylor (5th round) — “Extremely productive running back. Three consecutive years with over 1,000 rushing yards. Not a burner with tremendous top-end speed but a guy that runs with balance, strength and fits Bruce’s offense very well with his ability to protect in pass protection situations.”

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:23pm

If second-round pick Le'Veon Bell of Michigan State does not take command and become a quick starter for them, then the Steelers may rue their choice there.

"Running back is a position, probably more so than most, that you have a chance to come in and make an impact," offensive coordinator Todd Haley said about Bell. "Obviously, there's a lot of work ahead of him. He's a young guy, but he's coming from a pro-style offense. A lot of the runs will be very similar to the runs that he was running. So I expect him to get into the mix and be a factor."

Justin Blackmon suspended four games
Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:17pm

Jaguars former first-round pick WR Justin Blackmon is being suspended four games by the NFL, per league sources.

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:09pm

Titans WR Justin Hunter tells The Midday 180 he'll start out at the Z position. That's opposite Kenny Britt, who's the X.

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:04pm

The Eagles released TE Evan Moore.

Tom Couglin "concerned" about unsigned Victor Cruz
Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:03pm

WR Victor Cruz is the only restricted free agent still unsigned by the Giants, and Tom Coughlin is concerned.

Speaking on WFAN Monday afternoon, Coughlin said he hoped at this point Cruz would have signed a deal and been involved in offseason workouts. The deadline for another team to sign restricted free agents to an offer sheet was April 19.

"It has to be a concern because when the restricted free agency period is over, you would hope that things would move fast. What we want is exactly what I said the other day. We want a win-win. We want Victor to be proud to be a New York Giant, proud of his contract," Coughlin said.

"The New York Giants want him back as badly as we've ever wanted anybody," Coughlin said, "And so we like the thing to be settled and over with and we wish it would be that way so that he could be in here working with the quarterback in the offseason. And the sooner it gets settled, the better off we will be."

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 4:00pm

Redskins QB Robert Griffin III did a few jumping jacks, jogged in place and bounced up and down on the stage.

The fans cheered. And chanted his name. And cheered some more.

For many of the thousands gathered at the stadium, nothing the Washington Redskins did during the three days of the NFL draft meant more than the brief appearance by the franchise player on Saturday.

"I'm good. You guys saw me jumping. I mean, I can run a little bit," he said, running in place some more. "I'll be good. No worries. I'll take it slow, but at the same time I'll be ready to go."

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 3:58pm

“We are hoping it gets easier,” coach Mike Munchak said of QB Jake Locker, the eighth overall pick of the 2011 draft. “There is a lot of stress on a quarterback. But when you can run the football like we are hoping we can do with the changes we’ve made there, then that takes pressure off him. We have receivers we’re hoping could stretch the field and do things — go up and catch a tough ball and go up and make plays when the ball is not perfectly thrown every time.

“Two years ago, we made the decision on a quarterback that we felt was going to lead this team to the Super Bowl. Now, it’s up to us to surround him with people that can help him do that. I think we are doing that. … Obviously he’s excited, but he understands that there is a lot on him, too. He needs to have a good year and he’s doing everything he can to do that.”

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 3:57pm

At the moment, Rams WRs Brian Quick and Chris Givens project as the starting outside receivers, with Tavon Austin in the slot. The Rams could pair those three up in two tight end sets with Jared Cook and Lance Kendricks in what would be an empty backfield. Three- and four-receiver sets figure to see more use at the Edward Jones Dome than they have since the days of Mike Martz.

Cook alone could line up on the line, in the backfield, in the slot and out wide.

As for Austin, the possibilities are just as numerous. When asked Thursday if Austin will line up in the backfield as a ball-carrier, HC Jeff Fisher smiled and said: “Maybe. We’ll see.”

Actually, Austin let the cat out of the playbook earlier that night while on a conference call with St. Louis reporters.

“They showed me all the positions that I did when I played for Coach (Dana) Holgorsen,” Austin said, referring to the West Virginia head coach. “They’re going to use me in the backfield. Coach Fisher talked to me about special teams, and I’m definitely a slot receiver. So, they definitely have a plan for me.”

Tuesday, April 30, 2013, 3:55pm

The Bengals are hoping that receiver Mohamed Sanu is fully recovered from a broken foot that cut short his rookie season. Sanu, a third-round pick from Rutgers last year, had worked his way into the starting lineup when he broke his left foot and needed surgery on Dec. 3.

Sanu caught 16 passes for 154 yards with four touchdowns in nine games last season, ran five times for 15 yards and threw a 73-yard touchdown pass to Green out of a Wildcat formation.

Sanu expects to be at full speed for the team's offseason workouts in May.

Monday, April 29, 2013, 10:07pm

Once the team landed QB E.J. Manuel, the Bills had accomplished a prime objective. "Our goal coming in was to bring in another bell-cow quarterback to compete for the job [with newly signed Kevin Kolb and holdover Tarvaris Jackson], and we did that with E.J.," CEO Russ Brandon said. "Then we added some new tools in the toolbox."