Dynasty News, Week 1

Photo: USA Today Sports

The Jonathan Taylor saga dominated the news leading up to this past Tuesday. Would Indianapolis trade Taylor? If so, for what? Well, a trade never materialized, and the star back remains a Colt. The team placed him on the PUP (Physically Unable to Perform) list, and will miss at least the first four games of the season. Taylor is not happy. The team tells him he is not worth the requested salary increase while trying to trade Taylor for a king’s ransom. We expect him to be traded in October, as this is looking like an unrepairable relationship.

Many in the dynasty community are pushing the idea that Jaylen Warren will push Najee Harris for the Steelers' starting job. Beat writer Dale Lolley threw cold water on the notion by tweeting, “This narrative that Jaylen Warren is going to ‘surpass’ Najee Harris as the Steelers’ lead back is simply not true. Both will have their roles. Harris is the No. 1. Warren is the third-down back. Both will be valuable. But Warren isn’t pushing past Harris.” The Pittsburgh coaching staff sees them as complementary. This is true for many teams. Consider how many years we thought Tony Pollard would surpass Ezekiel Elliott in Dallas. Pollard was electric and still only played a complementary role. Players are not as interchangeable as fantasy managers assume.

After not being able to trade for Jonathan Taylor, it was another blow when the Miami Dolphins placed Jeff Wilson on injured reserve. This was a surprise. He will now miss at least the first games of the season. The door is now wide open for Raheem Mostert and rookie Devon Achane to dominate the touches. Joe Schad tweeted more context to the mysterious Wilson injury, “Mike McDaniel says Jeff Wilson has a midsection injury compounded by some finger issues. The team decided he couldn’t protect himself and be himself. Needs time to heal.” Core injuries are tricky. Coach Mike McDaniel told reporters that he “wouldn’t be surprised” if Wilson returned this season. That is not comforting. The Dolphins may still be interested in Taylor once he gets healthy.

Even with the Wilson injury, it was surprising to see Miami release veteran Myles Gaskin this week. He was a holdover from the previous regime, while both Wilson and Mostert came with McDaniel from San Francisco. He has since signed with the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikings were lacking running back depth behind Alexander Mattison and Ty Chandler. In a related move, the team waived seventh-round rookie DeWayne McBride. McBride was uninspiring in the preseason, carrying the ball 20 times for 70 yards. Vikings beat writer Alec Lewis wrote that Minnesota is “very committed to Alexander Mattison being the guy.” Many wondered about Mattison’s footing after the team cut Dalvin Cook, but this seems settled for the short-term future. It is now Mattison’s time to shine in the Vikings' prolific offense.

Pierre Strong has a cult following in the dynasty community. He was buried on the New England depth chart, but the seas parted, and he was traded to Cleveland this week for tackle Tyrone Wheatley. With the Jerome Ford injury, the Browns needed depth at tailback. Strong will have a chance to challenge Ford for the title of backing up Nick Chubb. The Cleveland coaching staff loves to run the ball, so Strong may see more action than most expect.

Adam Schefter broke the Cooper Kupp news, “Sean McVay on Cooper Kupp: ‘I think we just take it a day at a time right now. We'll see. We want to be able to get him back right. We're obviously a much better team when he's available, but in his absence over the last handful of months, he's been out there leading in the way … It’s just tricky. There’s a difference between ‘return to play’ and ‘return to performance’. We want ‘return to performance’ for Cooper Kupp, and we know how special of a player, how special of a person he is. We want to make sure that we’re smart with that and getting…’” Footballguys own injury expert, Adam Hutchison, tweeted great context for dynasty managers, “Excellent question regarding Cooper Kupp (timeline for return) - hamstring injury that he Re-aggravated: WRs over 28 who had a re-injury on avg missed 7 weeks (range 6-8.5). Kupp already missed ~3.5 weeks. Assuming he really irritated it, it could be another 3-4 weeks.” So, this means we should expect Kupp to sit out at least the first month of games. McVay’s phrasing of “return to performance” should also be noted. This gives us one more layer to consider. Over the weekend, Kupp visited a specialist to better understand the injury further, which is another sign that he is not close to a full return. The Rams have very little talent on the roster, and quarterback Matthew Stafford may not be fully healthy yet. This is a team that may surprise by being at the bottom of the standings by the time Kupp returns.