Preseason football is officially over, which means the start of the regular season is nearly here.
Many starters used the third and final week of the preseason as an opportunity to rest, though a few took the field for a handful of series to warm up for Week 1. The star of the weekend was Aaron Rodgers, who made his Jets debut against the Giants. That’s where our preseason takeaways begin:
Aaron Rodgers and Garrett Wilson Make it Look Easy
The connection between Rodgers and Wilson was evident across two series Saturday. The four-time MVP targeted the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year on his first pass attempt and the two connected for a 10-yard gain. Two plays later, Rodgers looked to Wilson again, this time for a six-yard pickup.
On New York’s next drive, Rodgers threaded the needle on a third-down pass to Wilson, who couldn’t come down with the catch but drew a defensive pass interference call kept the drive alive. Less than a minute later, Rodgers capped off the drive with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Wilson on a beautiful back shoulder throw. That was it for those two. Rodgers targeted Wilson on three of his eight pass attempts, plus the deep shot when a flag was thrown.
Fantasy managers are clearly excited about this connection considering the campaign Wilson put together with less accomplished quarterbacks than Rodgers. Wilson is being drafted as the WR10 in the middle of the second round and Rodgers is coming off the board as the QB12 in the ninth.
Damien Harris Spells James Cook in the Red Zone
The Bills called Cook’s number four times on their opening drive against the Bears and handed it off to Harris just once. All four of Cook’s carries came between the 20s before Harris took over for the second-year pro inside the red zone and punctuated Buffalo’s opening drive with a touchdown from two yards out.
Harris comes over from New England, where he scored 16 red-zone touchdowns over the last two seasons. It makes sense for the bigger back to handle the goal-line work, especially if Josh Allen intends to dial back his rushing attempts. But if Harris, who made his preseason debut Saturday, is indeed the primary red-zone running back that could put a cap on Cook’s ceiling. Where Cook can and will still add value is as a receiver — he caught two targets for 14 yards vs. Chicago.
For context, Devin Singletary led the team with 33 carries inside the 20 a season ago. He scored on just four of those attempts compared with Allen, who found paydirt six times on 25 attempts. Cook logged 11 red-zone rushes as a rookie and did not score on any of them.
Cook is being drafted as the RB29 at the top of the seventh round while Harris, the RB50, is available outside the top 150. Harris has never been a huge fantasy asset, but he did provide value in 2021 with the Patriots, when he racked up 15 touchdowns, 13 of which came inside the 20-yard line.
Tank Bigsby Sees More Snaps with Starters
Bigsby’s performance has been a story line after each Jaguars preseason game. In Week 1, he played one snap with the starters and turned heads with a 34-yard romp. The following week, Travis Etienne rested, so Bigsby started and racked up 70 rushing yards on 13 carries. And now in Week 3, with Etienne back on the field, Bigsby cut into even more of his snaps with the starters.
Etienne was in on every third and fourth down ahead of his rookie backfield counterpart and he also outsnapped Bigsby on first and second down, but the split was closer in early-down situations. The first drive ended with a Bigsby fumble after he had gained 18 yards on four carries and Etienne punched in a three-yard score to end the second drive.
Bigsby did have two more touches after the turnover: a six-yard carry and a 14-yard carry. For what it’s worth, Bigsby outgained Etienne by two yards on two fewer carries.
Bigsby’s ADP has been on the rise for some time now, but there’s still a wide gap between where he (RB49) and Etienne (RB11) are being drafted. This remains a backfield to monitor heading into the start of the regular season, especially considering how good this offense could be in 2023.
