Week 3 of the Preseason is in the books! There are a lot more notes that that can be added to perfect your cheat sheet and Top 300 list. This is also here to make sure you have the best possible start you can have for kickoff, keeping in mind it is now right around the corner, so lets get to it!
NFL Preseason Week 3 Recap
The biggest player that needs to be talked about in my opinion is Martavis Bryant; his four-game suspension was upheld by the league, and he will serve it for violating the substance abuse policy. This is a mighty hit if you banked on him to make those catches when Antonio Brown gets all the attention. It’s a shame because this stud just had a tremendous game. But as Martavis Bryant’s stock goes down, Markus Wheaton’s stock goes up. Wheaton makes for a solid WR4 in drafts.
The next big name will be missing time is Julius Thomas; turns out his hand is “OK” as we thought. He will have to have surgery to repair the torn ligaments and miss up to five regular season games. Julius Thomas is getting a second opinion regarding his hand. Tre Mason is another key player that has found his way to the injury list. Head coach Jeff Fisher conveyed that Tre Mason is questionable for Week 1. Randall Cobb had what looked be a serious shoulder injury against the Eagles. After going back to the locker room and taking an MRI, it turns out that it is just an AC joint sprain and is day-to-day. Duke Johnson who looked like he was making strides in fantasy was concussed in Saturday night’s win versus the Buccaneers. He needs to be cleared obviously before he can partake in team activities and will be week-to-week until then.
There weren’t only injuries of course, so here is some of the standout players for the preseason in Week 3. For starters, Jeremy Maclin was one of those players putting up 7 catches for 65 yards and a score. Granted he did catch Alex Smith on a great day (16-18 for 171 yards and two touchdowns). Following that performance we have Phillip Rivers, the veteran quarterback who had a nice game, going 13-19 for 140 yards. Branden Oliver caught a 70-yard touchdown pass not thrown by Rivers, and Oliver is slated to be the guy to pickup the extra slack until Melvin Gorgon gets his NFL legs.
Another quarterback that showed a touch of greatness in Week 3 was all of the Buffalo Bills quarterbacks. The one that stood out the most nonetheless was E.J. Manuel, going 7-8 tacking on 170 yards and 2 touchdowns. Rex Ryan liked that he got “all three quarterbacks playing at a high level” due to the competition at the position. Tyrod Taylor has been named the starting quarterback for the Bills, and he makes for a great late-round flier as a QB2 or QB3 in dual-QB leagues. Sticking to quarterback controversies, Robert Griffin III has looked terrible recently, and Washington announced that Kirk Cousins will be the starter. Jay Gruden said “It’s Kirk’s team.”
I’m sure that you saw this next name coming after throwing 3 touchdowns for 121 yards and a perfect 10-10 passes. That’s right, Sam Bradford is the man of the night and simply shined against Green Bay. He is a highly-touted Fantasy Couch sleeper QB, but due to this performance, his stock is sure to rise a little bit.
That about wraps it up for this Week 3 recap. If you already drafted, there’s still plenty of time to to make adjustments before the real fun begins. And if you haven’t drafted yet, make sure you make your last-minute changes to your draft kits. So study hard, keep a weather eye on the horizon, because you never know what could happen tomorrow and always, trust in the Couch!
