Team news: New England Patriots | Page 7

The Patriots are hosting free agent RB Ezekiel Elliott on a visit today. The team has also had Dalvin Cook on its radar as it examines backfield additions behind starter Rhamondre Stevenson.

Related Players: Rhamondre Stevenson, Pierre Strong Jr, Ty Montgomery

This would be a gigantic damper on Stevenson's early down role, but it looks like the team is determined to find a FA veteran RB in the mix. Hopefully a prospective signing will continue to put a damper on his ADP, as he should still have a majority role in the offense.

Vikings rookie WR Jordan Addison was cited just after 3 a.m. today for speed and reckless driving in St. Paul. He was driving 140 MPH in a 55, according to the Minnesota State Patrol.

Related Players: K.J. Osborn, Jalen Reagor, Jalen Nailor

This is a *very* tough look for the rookie, particularly with the sort of outcome that happened with a young former NFL player just a couple of years ago. As of now, it looks like maybe no one was hurt but that doesn't rule out league discipline. For fantasy purposes, Osborn has proven to be a reliable target when given the opportunity. We will watch for more news updates.

The Patriots & WR DeVante Parker reached an agreement on a 3-year new contract worth up to $33M.

Related Players: JuJu Smith-Schuster, Kendrick Bourne

This number seems astronomical. Parker barely cleared 30 receptions in 13 games played last season and this receiver group doesn't look much different than 2022. Regardless of this incentive-laden contract, he is still a WR5/6 in fantasy terms.

The New England Patriots have waived running back James Robinson after signing him to a two-year, $4M deal this offseason.

Related Players: Rhamondre Stevenson, Ty Montgomery, Pierre Strong Jr.

The contract had only $150,000 in guaranteed money, which was a red flag, to begin with. This strengthens the case even further for Rhamondre Stevenson to be an absolute fantasy stud this season and possibly opens up the door for a little more usage from Strong.
There has been a light buzz on more Ty Montgomery usage, but that has been circulating for about three seasons across multiple teams, so we would do well to ignore that.

Per Fortier, who was at the presser with head coach Ron Rivera; Rivera still considers it a competition between Sam Howell and Jacoby Brissett.

In a later conversation, Fortier asked if it was important for Brissett to receive first-team reps. The veteran responded with "we'll cross that bridge when we cross that bridge."

This is clearly an annoying situation for fantasy owners. The easiest thing we can boil this down to at this point; Jacoby Brissett represents a clear floor for both himself and his pass catchers in Washington. On the other hand, Sam Howell offers a very intriguing ceiling while offering what amounts to an incredibly low floor.

We'll have to wait and see how this develops.

Austin Hooper is signing a one-year deal with the Las Vegas Raiders for $2.75M, with upside to $3.5M.

Related Players: O.J. Howard

O.J. Howard and Austin Hooper will attempt to fill in the shoes of two great pass-catching tight ends; Darren Waller and Foster Moreau. Neither will be roster-worthy through draft season but could be intriguing as a streamer if one severely out-snaps the other.

Former Dolphins tight end Mike Gesicki is signing a one-year deal with the New England Patriots.

Related Players: Hunter Henry, Durham Smythe

With Miami passing on re-signing the tight end/slot receiver, they now have a huge need to attack the position in the NFL Draft. For the Patriots, Gesicki essentially fills in for Jonnu Smith, who they shipped off earlier in free agency. Hunter Henry's fantasy stock has been an entire roller coaster in the span of one week.

The Washington Commanders are signing QB Jacoby Brissett to a one-year deal worth up to $10 million and $8 million guaranteed. Washington gets a starting option for a quarterback who played well for Cleveland last year.

Related Players: Sam Howell

This constitutes one of the first quarterback competitions of the 2023 offseason, so buckle up. This contract is essentially double what the Browns paid him on a one-year deal, so we can take that as a hint as to how Washington perceives Brissett. Howell only started one game during his rookie season, so it's difficult to compare them statistically, but one can assume that Brissett has the leg-up at the moment.

Patriots and JuJu Smith-Schuster reached an agreement on a three-year, $33 million deal with $22.5 million earned over the first two years of the deal.

Related Players: DeVante Parker, Nelson Agholor, Kendrick Bourne

New England continues its never-ending bid to have deep pockets of WR3s. Smith-Schuster performed well enough last season as the Kansas City Chiefs used an interesting approach to replace Tyreek Hill's lost production. JuJu did his part and finished as fantasy's WR29. His floor and ceiling are much lower with the Patriots.

Commanders ruled out RB Antonio Gibson for the New Year’s Day matchup vs. the Browns.

Related Players: Brian Robinson, Jonathan Williams

This should be the Brian Robinson show on Sunday, as he becomes an RB2 with definite high-RB1 upside.