The opening of training camp marks the first “real” practices for all (healthy) players on NFL teams. This is where we get a sneak peak as to how players look and often how coaches view them. Here are a few noteworthy updates from the first few days of training camp that may affect your fantasy football drafts.
Drama In The Desert
After spending the 3rd overall pick in the draft on Jeremiyah Love, OC Nathaniel Hackett has been playing the classic “veteran vs. rookie” coachspeak game:
Considering the crazy draft capital spent on Love and the 31-year-old Conner (whose contract was restructured to a one-year, $2.35 million deal) is coming off of major ankle surgery, consider us skeptical that Love won’t be the featured back here.
The history of the first Round 1 running backs taken since 2019 points to a minimum of 12 carries per game with multiple targets and at least roughly 0.5 touchdowns per game:
| Player | Overall Pick (Year) | RuAtt/G | RuYd/G | Tgts/G | TDs/G | PPR Pts/G (Rank) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Josh Jacobs | 24th (2019) | 18.6 | 88.5 | 2.08 | 0.54 | 14.7 (RB16) |
| Najee Harris | 24th (2021) | 18.1 | 70.6 | 5.53 | 0.59 | 17.7 (RB8) |
| Bijan Robinson | 8th (2023) | 12.6 | 57.4 | 5.06 | 0.47 | 14.5 (RB16) |
| Jahmyr Gibbs | 12th (2023) | 12.1 | 63 | 3.47 | 0.73 | 16.1 (RB8) |
| Ashton Jeanty | 6th (2025) | 15.6 | 57.4 | 4.29 | 0.59 | 14.4 (RB16) |
| Omarion Hampton | 22nd (2025) | 13.8 | 60.6 | 3.89 | 0.56 | 15.1 (RB13) |
While some of the running backs haven’t gotten true workhorse roles, Love’s RB13 price in the early 3rd round is acceptable. He’s already catching passes and got 7 out of the 11 carries that the first team ran.
Meanwhile, there’s been plenty of conjecture about the Cardinals’ receivers considering Michael Wilson’s scorching year with Brissett when Harrison was sidelined.
The early reports have been mixed. Harrison has once again been struggling with drops, while Wilson has consistently made plays. However, Harrison has been the one who has been on the field in one-receiver sets, and out-targeted Wilson in all 10 of his healthy games last year.
With both players as well as McBride healthy, the addition of Love and the likely regression of garbage time, this is looking like a “spread-the-wealth” option in the passing game compared to last year.
Patriots’ Standouts Are Not Who You’d Expect
After the Patriots’ blockbuster AJ Brown trade, you’d expect him to be the star receiver of camp. But that has not been the case:
Brown and Maye have struggled, with Maye going 1-7 with an interception when targeted through four days of camp. These types of things have a way of correcting themselves – good players typically perform in the regular season – but it’s a reminder that the Patriots have a healthy cache of boundary receivers between Brown, Boutte and Romeo Doubs.
At the running back position, the boring veteran may once again get in the way of TreVeyon Henderson’s hype. Rhamondre Stevenson has been the clear RB1 to start camp, with Henderson working with the second team. They clearly trust Stevenson in pass protection more than Henderson, and Stevenson has quietly been one of the better receiving backs in the league:
Lastly, let’s not forget that when the stakes were highest, Henderson took a major backseat to Rhamondre. Henderson clearly has more explosive rushing ability and should be in for a nice sophomore season, but a healthy Stevenson may render Henderson’s 4th/5th round ADP problematic:
Ricky Pearsall Is Hurt…Again
2024 first rounder Ricky Pearsall has been good…when healthy. Here were his splits last year when he saw 5+ targets:
Unfortunately, Pearsall has appeared in only 20 games since being drafted, and is once again hurt. He re-aggravated his PCL injury from last year, and “all options are on the table,” including surgery. It doesn’t look good:
At this point, it sounds like it would be a surprise if he was on the field anytime soon. With Brandon Aiyuk going off the deep end, the 31-year-old George Kittle recovering from a January Achilles tear, and Christian Kirk already doubtful for Week 1 with a calf strain, fellow elder-statesmen Mike Evans and Christian McCaffrey are going to be given all the work they can handle.
One wild card is 33rd overall pick De’Zhaun Stribling. Many considered him a major reach at that cost, and his draft profile (will turn 24 in December and had an ugly 1.68 YPRR) leaves a lot to be desired. The only positives are his athleticism (4.36 40 at 207 points) and him being hand-picked by Kyle Shanahan for a potentially poor man’s Deebo Samuel-esque role. But it shouldn’t surprise anyone if they bring in a veteran receiver.
Malik Nabers Looking Good
One of the most devastating injuries of 2025, it appeared Malik Nabers may not be ready for the start of the season. He not only underwent surgery for both an ACL and meniscus injury, but had a clean-up procedure in the spring.
However, he pleasantly surprised everyone by not starting camp on the PUP. But it was his performance the past few days that has really turned heads:
We highly recommend watching this video of him running a route. While he may not truly be 100% until October, the outlook is a major improvement from a few weeks ago when there was still speculation he would miss the first month or so of the season.
His ADP is almost certain to jump from the 3rd/4th turn to at least the mid-3rd. He’s still arguably the most talented young receiver in the league.
Travis Hunter and Bhayshul Tuten Updates
Last year’s 2nd overall pick has had maybe the strangest start to a career of any player in recent memory. Playing mainly offense and some defense until a season-ending injury last year, Travis Hunter’s 2026 role has an extremely wide range of outcomes. On one hand, it’s rare not to feature a 2nd overall pick in his sophomore season. But with Brian Thomas Jr., newly-extended Jakobi Meyers, and 2025 breakout Parker Washington, Hunter may somehow be their WR4.
So will he play mainly defense? The current answer does not bode well for his fantasy football prospects:
His ADP is late enough that he is worth a flier, but his floor is a complete zero. He’s certainly a better redraft than bestball pick.
While the offensive news isn’t great for Hunter, fellow sophomore Bhayshul Tuten’s hype train keeps gaining steam:
With Rodriguez only “planning” to be back for Week 1, there shouldn’t be much in the way of Tuten being the lead back of one of the better (and potentially more run-heavy than people realize) offenses in the league.
