Buccaneers WR Mike Evans, who left last Thursday's practice with a "tweak" of his right hamstring, was back in action in today's OTA practice.

It's nice to hear that the hamstring tweak wasn't serious. Evans finished as the #11 receiver in standard formats and #13 in PPR. He should enjoy a quarterback upgrade this year and should continue to develop as a receiver. Expect more of the same.

Buccaneers WR Mike Evans exited in the waning stages of practice with an apparent right hamstring injury, but coach Lovie Smith didn't seem fazed. The second-year player injured his left hamstring during the first offseason practice last year and missed an extended period of summer work.

"He tweaked it a little bit; he'll be fine," Smith said.

Evans finished as the #11 receiver in standard formats and #13 in PPR. He should enjoy a quarterback upgrade this year and should continue to develop as a receiver. Expect more of the same from Evans, though we'd like him to be able to practice to develop a strong rapport with new QB Jameis Winston.

Jameis Winston has only been on the field for two days of Organized Team Activities, or OTAs, but Head Coach Lovie Smith already sees progress in his rookie quarterback.

“We are seeing marked improvement, like it should be,” Smith told the media on Thursday following the Bucs' OTA practice. “Going from the minicamp to now, he is feeling more and more comfort in the pocket. There is a lot you ask a rookie to do, but Jameis is picking it all up just like we thought he would right on schedule.”

Winston is a shoo-in to start immediately, so opportunity is plentiful. He has two established weapons to throw to in receivers Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson, and TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins is expected to make strides in his second season. The situation from a skill position standpoint is very good, though the offensive line isn't. The Bucs did add two offensive linemen in the 2nd round, so there should be improvement up front. Rookie QBs are generally poor fantasy bets, but Winston should be a committee/streaming option in 12-team leagues.

Offensive coordinator Dirk Koetter praised the rookie quarterback, citing Jameis Winston's recall and football intelligence during the draft process as reasons he impressed the organization.

Koetter added that coming from a pro-style system at Florida State has prepared Winston to play right away.

"Florida State was probably installing more stuff per day than we do," Koetter said, via ESPN.com. "I've known about (FSU coach) Jimbo Fisher and his style of offense for a long time. They truly do run an NFL-style system. They ask a lot of their guys mentally. Jameis is as well-prepared as most any guy could be right now."

Winston is a shoo-in to start immediately, so opportunity is plentiful. He has two established weapons to throw to in receivers Mike Evans and Vincent Jackson, and TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins is expected to make strides in his second season. The situation from a skill position standpoint is very good, though the offensive line isn't. The Bucs did add two offensive linemen in the 2nd round, so there should be improvement up front. Rookie QBs are generally poor fantasy bets, but Winston should be a committee/streaming option in 12-team leagues.

With Dirk Koetter running the offense in 2015, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers finally will be able to unleash their pace plan.

"A guy that just, you know, he loves, loves fast tempo, loves to get the ball up field," offensive tackle Demar Dotson said of Koetter, via JoeBucsFan.com. "He loves to go a lot of no-huddle. That's going to be something that's more different than what we're used to. So it's going to be a lot of up-tempo stuff. You know, so that's something he loves doing. It's got its ups and downs, but I'm looking forward to being a part of it."

Last season with the Atlanta Falcons, Koetter ran the sixth-fastest offense in the NFL, per Football Outsiders' pace stats.

While both Koetter and Smith want to play fast in 2015, their ability to perform with pace will be dictated by how quickly Jameis Winston picks up the system.

If the team is successful in running an up-tempo offense, it should further boost Winston's fantasy value as a rookie. Mike Evans, Vincent Jackson and Austin Seferian-Jenkins would also benefit, along with whoever is running the ball in Tampa. But it's one thing to want to play fast and another to successfully do so.

In a radio interview on Monday, Browns head coach Mike Pettine said what we all knew was true: Josh McCown is the heavy favorite to be the team's starting quarterback.

Johnny Manziel is fresh out of a 10-week stay in a rehab facility. McCown is a stable veteran with a career completion percentage near 60. This wasn't difficult.

"We just look back to when he was in Chicago, when he had a pretty good supporting cast around him, and he was able to be more than functional. He had a very successful year," Pettine said on WKRK-FM, via the Beacon Journal. "When you build the team right, it minimizes the importance of the quarterback."

The problem here is that while in Chicago, McCown was throwing to Brandon Marshall, Alshon Jeffery and Martellus Bennett and now he'll be targeting Dwayne Bowe, Brian Hartline and Rob Housler. That's a serious downgrade at all three positions. McCown didn't play particularly well with Vincent Jackson and Mike Evans in 2014, there's no reason to believe that he's going to make a passing game go with Bowe, Hartline and Housler.

Cardinals WR Larry Fitzgerald, who signed a two-year, $22 million contract in February, cautioned against expecting the same kind of production we saw during his prime, when at least 90 catches, 1,100 yards and 10 touchdowns seemed to be the norm.

"No, it's not possible," he said. "And it's only that reason because of the role that I play. It's a different role. I just don't have the opportunities down the field. I'm more inside, I move the chains a lot more.

"In terms of putting up the big numbers, it will be difficult, but in terms of my effectiveness, of providing first downs, being able to make tough catches for my team, I'm still going to be able to do that."

Fitzgerald averaged 5.3 catches for 81 yards and 0.33 TD in six games with a healthy Carson Palmer. Extrapolate that pace over a full season (85-1,296-5.3) and it's about what Mike Evans (PPR) and Golden Tate (standard) scored as last season's #13 WR. If Palmer stays healthy, Fitzgerald should be a great value at his current 9th-round ADP in early PPR drafts.

Statistically, 2014 was Cardinals receiver Larry Fitzgerald's worst season since his rookie year in 2004.

His two touchdowns were a low for his career. His 63 receptions and 784 yards were the fewest since 2004. But there are reasons to think Fitzgerald can post better statistics in 2015, provided he and quarterback Carson Palmer stay healthy.

In Palmer's last five starts before a season-ending knee injury, Fitzgerald caught 31 passes for 461 yards. It was clear that he and Palmer were starting to click.

"Both guys were very comfortable in the offense," coach Bruce Arians said at the NFL owners meetings last week.

"He has progressed so much, I don't think there is any doubt they can go down on an option route, and Carson will know where he is going and the ball is on time. Larry is going to make the big, physical catches inside. He's a true mismatch inside."

$11 million per season (Fitzgerald’s re-worked deal) is a high price to pay for a soon-to-be 32-year-old who is coming off of his worst fantasy season of his career. However, there is a reason for optimism: Fitzgerald averaged 5.3 catches for 81 yards and 0.33 TD in six games with a healthy Carson Palmer. Extrapolate that pace over a full season, and it's about what Mike Evans (PPR) and Golden Tate (standard) scored as last season's #13 WR. The Cardinals obviously believe that he’s worth keeping around.

As PFT reported earlier, the Cardinals have gained nearly $13 million in cap space thanks to a new deal with wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald, guaranteeing that one of the franchise’s icons will remain in the fold after months of uncertainty because of Fitzgerald’s salary and cap hit for the 2015 season.

PFT has learned a bit more about the deal via a league source. Fitzgerald’s old deal ran through the 2018 season and was set to pay him a non-guaranteed $16.5 million in 2015 while counting $23.6 million against the cap. He was also set to make a non-guaranteed $15 million salary.

That deal has been replaced by one that guarantees Fitzgerald $11 million per year over the next two seasons.

$11 million per season is a high price to pay for a soon-to-be 32-year-old who is coming off of his worst fantasy season of his career. However, there is a reason for optimism: Fitzgerald averaged 5.3 catches for 81 yards and 0.33 TD in six games with a healthy Carson Palmer. Extrapolate that pace over a full season, and it's about what Mike Evans (PPR) and Golden Tate (standard) scored as last season's #13 WR. Assuming Palmer is good to go, Fitzgerald could be a nice middle round value heading into 2015 fantasy drafts.

Barring an early injury, Buccaneers WR Mike Evans likely will gain the three yards he needs to become the second Buccaneers rookie to reach the 1,000-yard receiving plateau.

"I've grown a lot," Evans said. "I can read coverages better. Early on, I knew the offense well, but not as well as when I was in a couple of games and then, I started playing fast. Now I know cornerback tendencies and things like that, so next year, it's going to be a lot of fun."

Not only is Evans closing in on 1,000 yards, but he's also tied for 4th in receiving touchdowns (11), making him the #12 WR in standard formats and #14 in PPR leagues.