With two weeks of NFL preseason action in the bag, it’s time to toss cold water or fuel on the preseason hype flames. Andrew Erickson and Derek Brown went through all 32 NFL teams combing through snap counts and production to share usage nuggets that should influence (at least slightly) how we view various situations in fantasy football.

Break out your best mug and the magnifying glass. It’s time to read the tea leaves.

Beyond our fantasy football content, be sure to check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you prepare for your draft this season. From our free mock Draft Simulator – which allows you to mock draft against realistic opponents – to our Draft Assistant – that optimizes your picks with expert advice – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football draft season.

AFC

Baltimore Ravens

Rookie tight end Isaiah Likely had a massive day because the Ravens are so hurt at the WR position. Likely basically played WR at Coastal Carolina – although listed as a tight end – and dominated production.

His 95.2 PFF receiving grade (third), 1,513 receiving yards (first), and 2.87 yards per route run (sixth) since 2020 is beyond impressive. Only fellow rookie TE Trey McBride and Kyle Pitts have a higher PFF receiving grade over that span.

At 6-foot-4 and 245 pounds, Likely is the archetype as a pass-catching tight end – which is exactly what fantasy footballers should gravitate toward. It’s rare to find tight ends who come into the league with this kind of receiving profile and mismatch potential against slower linebackers/safeties.

He might have some sneaky upside in two TE, TE premium or deeper leagues. It’s not outlandish to think he could carve out the No. 3 pass-catching role because there’s nobody established outside Mark Andrews and Rashod Bateman on the roster.

Back in 2019, the Ravens used three TEs between Mark Andrews, Hayden Hurst and Nick Boyle. Baltimore ranked second in TE targets and 1st in TE target share (43%)

Buffalo Bills

Gabriel Davis played 100% of the snaps with the starters. The last time he played a full snap share – the last 6 games of the 2021 season including the postseason – he averaged nearly 20 PPR fantasy points per game.

Devin Singletary is still the Bills RB1. Played all the snaps with starters and did not rotate.

Other guys didn’t come to the second quarter.

Isaiah McKenzie is clearly operating ahead of Jamison Crowder as the Bills’ WR3.

Cincinnati Bengals

Chris Evans appears to still be No. 3 on the RB totem pole, with Samaje Perine getting the night off for the second straight preseason game with the other starters on offense.

Cleveland Browns

Rookie David Bell projects to see the majority of his work from the slot. Donovan Peoples-Jones and Amari Cooper locked in to start on the outside.

Bell might lose snaps when Cleveland runs 12 personnel. Browns rank top-5 in pass rate in two TE sets the last two seasons.

Denver Broncos

Broncos coach Nathaniel Hackett on playing Albert Okwuegbunam into the fourth quarter: “A guy who needs the reps.” Clearly.

Albert O’s sub-50% route participation paints a grim picture of what we might get from him in fantasy to kick off the year.

He’s still looking very much like a work in progress. Seems more likely to get lost in the target shuffle behind the WRs, RBs along with other TEs.

I’d be bearish drafting him as my starting fantasy TE1 ahead of Week 1.

Not off my draft radar entirely, but someone I’d pair with another late-round tight end as a precaution.

Houston Texans

Dameon Pierce did not play in the second preseason game, which makes it seem like he’s locked up the RB1 role at least on early downs. Rex Burkhead came in on third down and got the work in the 2-minute offense in the second preseason game. Also lost a fumble.

The Texans’ opening schedule features the likes of the Colts, Broncos, Bears, Chargers, and Jaguars – some of which figure to be either close divisional contests or run defenses that can be exploited.

I’d feel comfortable taking Pierce in Round 7 at this point.

Tight end Brevin Jordan played 76% of snaps played with starters – 84% route participation – although Pharaoh Brown also did not play.

He’s got fantasy TE1 upside if he can continue to carve out a larger gap between him and the other Houston TEs. He’s the preferred pass-catcher among the bunch.

Indianapolis Colts

Mo-Alie Cox did not play. He’s the TE1 on the offense with a massive red-zone upside.

Meanwhile, Parris Campbell and Alec Pierce are still duking it out for WR2 duties. Campbell played the slot in 11 personnel with Pierce lining up on the outside in 2WR sets.

Jacksonville Jaguars

Christian Kirk played from the slot and ran a route on 92% of Trevor Lawrence‘s 24 dropbacks. He also posted an impressive 36% target rate per route run.

Behind Kirk in routes run were Evan Engram (84%) and Zay Jones (79%). Engram’s usage was an improvement from the 1st week of the preseason action when he was splitting more snaps with Chris Manhertz and Luke Farrell.

Snoop Conner and ETN split snaps closer to 50/50, but Etienne got the majority of work in the 1st quarter and earliest on each series. Also nearly earned the same touches (8) on similar snaps played to preseason Week 1.

Probably a solid floor projection of ETN’s expected workload when James Robinson is healthy.

Kansas City Chiefs

It was disappointing to see Skyy Moore not play “more” with JuJu Smith-Schuster and Mecole Hardman sidelined. Instead, Justin Watson mixed in with the starters with Marquez Valdes-Scantling reprising his full-time role on the outside.

However, Moore did get reps with the 1st team which was an improvement from Week 1.

He does not have a concrete starting role on offense at the moment. But as a talented second Round pick, his playing time should increase.

Clyde Edwards-Helaire got the start, but Isiah Pacheco was in with the starters on their second possession. Jerick McKinnon also sprinkled in on third downs with the 1st team. Ronald Jones didn’t log a single snap in the first half.

Travis Kelce is not nearly playing close to an every-down snap share.

On 19 Patrick Mahomes dropbacks – Kelce ran a route on seven (37%). Less than Noah Gray. Same as Jody Fortson – who also caught two TDs.

I’d be hesitant to take Kelce in Round 1 entering his age 33-season. In 2021, the Chiefs tight end posted his worst points per game average (16.6) dating back to 2017 while also posting a career-low in yards per route run (1.84) and PFF grade (81.8).

Las Vegas Raiders

Healthy scratches for Week 2 confirming my priors:

RB Josh Jacobs is the starter on early downs.

RB Ameer Abdullah is the starting 3rd down back.

WR Mack Hollins is the favorite for No. 3 WR (deep threat) – the perfect cherry on top of Derek Carr Raiders’ best ball stack.

Meanwhile, RB Zamir White (Jacobs backup) and RB Kenyan Drake (Abdullah backup) are nothing more but backups, with White offering much more draft appeal. Especially considering the Raiders are planning on releasing Drake.

Embrace the Abdullah Year 8 breakout.

Los Angeles Chargers

Joshua Kelley drew the start, followed by Larry Rountree then Kelley again. Isaiah Spiller didn’t play till the beginning of the second quarter.

Kelley “looks” like the RB2, but I’d say he’s hardly locked it up to the point. Spiller still has a chance to overtake him at some point.

As alluded to last week – feeding a Chargers RB a LOT in preseason games is not necessarily a good thing.

If Kelley sees little to no work rest of preseason (not including w/starters)

He could be the No. 2 back to open.

Last year’s No. 2 — Justin Jackson — saw limited preseason work.

— Andrew Erickson™ (@AndrewErickson_) August 16, 2022

But Spiller did suffer an ankle injury that has been labeled “week-to-week” so it could be a while before we see him hit the field. Therefore, Kelly will have the opportunity to take over the RB2 role from here on out. But if he falters, look for Spiller to shake things up as he returns back from the injury.

Josh Palmer should be viewed as the Chargers WR3 because he’s #good. He’s currently in concussion protocol, but that shouldn’t affect his status for Week 1.

Gerald Everett did not play…ergo, TE1 status. Remains one of my favorite late-round options to target LATE.

Miami Dolphins

Chase Edmonds started and played the entire 1st quarter. 10 snaps with elite usage (88% route participation). Sony Michel was the RB2 with Raheem Mostert out.

Mike Gesicki ran 6 routes on 8 Tua Tagovailoa dropbacks…but continued to play with the second team. No. 2 TE Durham Smythe played just 10 snaps and then got pulled. Gesicki is too difficult to trust in the middle-range at tight end with his new blocking role.

New England Patriots

New England rotated backs, establishing Damien Harris, Rhamondre Stevenson and Ty Montgomery as their top-3 backs. 3-WR sets featured DeVante Parker, Jakobi Meyers (slot) and Nelson Agholor with Kendrick Bourne unavailable.

Tyquan Thornton also sprinkled in with starters but left with a shoulder injury. He will miss eight weeks with a collarbone injury.

I still prefer Parker in fantasy football the most for the TD upside.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The opening 3-WR set featured Diontae Johnson, George Pickens, Chase Claypool (slot)

84% slot snap rate. 2-TE sets – Claypool came off the field.

If Pickens continues to operate as the starter in 2WR-sets and run more routes, he’ll have a solid chance of out-scoring Claypool in Year 1. Not crazy to think he might just be better than Claypool. Pickens is my favorite Steelers WR to draft at cost.

Benny Snell entered as the starting RB. Jaylen Warren came at the end of 1st quarter and got run in the second quarter.

We’ll have to see what happens in the preseason finale to see if Warren moves up the depth chart to align with what beat reporters have said about his RB2 status in the Steelers’ backfield.

Tennessee Titans

Dontrell Hilliard got the start after resting last week with Hassan Haskins mixing in as the 2nd RB. That was different from last week when Julius Chestnut got the initial nod over Haskins.

Treylon Burks is still mixing in for the No. 2 WR spot with Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and Racey McMath. Robert Woods looks locked in as No. 1 and rookie Kyle Philips projects as the slot starter.

Burks is still earning his way after playing into the 4th quarter for a second straight week.

Might take time for him to capture a massive receiving role. Remember, A.J. Brown flashed immediately as a rookie under Vrabel but didn’t become a full-time offensive piece till Week 9.

After their bye week, it was then wheels up for AJB. The Titans’ bye week is Week 6.

Be patient with Burks from Weeks 1-5. Buy-low and trade for him from a frustrated manager while he sits on his bye week. I’d also be buying the ADP dip in upcoming fantasy drafts.

NFC

Arizona Cardinals

The Arizona Cardinals backup running back to target behind James Conner remains a quagmire. Eno Benjamin has received the camp buzz, but he saw action in Week 1 while Darrel Williams got to rest. This week Benjamin played 21 snaps compared to Williams’ four. This could indicate that Williams is the guy, but Jonathan Ward was knocked out of the game, so Benjamin played more in the second quarter. Continue to get equal exposure to both Williams and Benjamin in best ball drafts.

Carolina Panthers

The Christian McCaffrey handcuff remains a mystery. After splitting work with the starters last week, D’Onta Foreman (11 snaps) and Chuba Hubbard (eight snaps) again split work evenly. Whether you draft McCaffrey or not, the takeaway is to target other backfields for handcuffs.

Matt Rhule continues to do Matt Rhule things. Rhule and the Panthers acquired Baker Mayfield‘s services only to have him split reps with Sam Darnold and then limit him to only eight dropbacks in the preseason to build in-game rapport with his teammates. This is an amazing spectacle of buffoonery while handling a player who was late to camp and had to ingest the playbook and offensive system.

Chicago Bears

Continue to target Cole Kmet late in drafts. Kmet played seven of Fields’ nine snaps with starters. Yes, he only ran five routes here, but he was targeted on three of them. With the Bears still struggling for pass catchers after Kmet and Mooney, he will be highly utilized this year.

Dallas Cowboys

Rico Dowdle remains a deep league/dynasty stash. Dowdle is locked in as the RB3 in one of the league’s best offenses. He played 17 of the 18 snaps with the defacto starters while running six routes.

Detroit Lions

Speaking of locked-in RB3s, Craig Reynolds makes this list despite the signing of Justin Jackson. Reynolds was uber-efficient when called upon last year, and the coaching staff isn’t dismissing it. This week, he played 11 of the 15 snaps with the Lions’ starter group. He remains a last round of best ball-worthy selection.

Green Bay Packers

The Romeo Doubs hype train rolls on. Doubs played all 17 snaps with Jordan Love, but it’s important that we also discuss that no projected starters of note suited up in this game. Christian Watson was also just cleared to return, so while I do like Doubs, we need to pump the brakes here.

Los Angeles Rams

Lance McCutcheon continues to crush. He’s secured ten of his 12 targets with 183 receiving yards and two scores. While his redraft viability is iffy at best, in dynasty, he’s worth a stash. The former Montana State standout set school records with 1,219 receiving yards and 19.3 yards per reception last year.

Minnesota Vikings

Alexander Mattison remains one of the best handcuffs in fantasy. He’s remained the unquestioned backup to Dalvin Cook despite the coaching regime change. He played the first drive before leaving with the starters.

New Orleans Saints

Juwan Johnson again led the tight end group in snaps and routes, but with the team trotting out four guys at the position this remains an avoid spot. With Michael Thomas, Alvin Kamara, Jarvis Landry, and Chris Olave occupying the top target spots, this group won’t sniff a decent target share.

New York Giants

Daniel Bellinger and Wan’Dale Robinson remain late-round priority options. Bellinger played 20 of 24 snaps with the starters leading the team in routes (14) with this group. Robinson was in on 17 snaps as the starting slot. With Kenny Golladay still looking like a dust ball and Kadarius Toney as a high upside but a volatile option, there’s plenty of room for some surprises to come out of the woodwork in the Big Apple.

Philadelphia Eagles

Avoid the wide receivers outside of A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith. Quez Watkins, Zach Pascal and Jalen Reagor have all rotated snaps, and Deon Cain has flashed in camp. The targets could be highly consolidated here with little left for the WR3 on this team to chew on, especially if this position is split into a few pieces.

San Francisco 49ers

The running back room remains a mess. Trey Sermon has been working as the first out the gate, but he’s done little with his opportunities. Jeff Wilson and Elijah Mitchell have been sidelined, while Tyrion Davis-Price has flashed at times. Take discounts on these backs in best ball drafts when they appear, but I’m not prioritizing any of these rushers over the others right now.

Seattle Seahawks

DeeJay Dallas and Travis Homer are on the final round best ball radar. Each player has stacked explosive plays this preseason. With Rashaad Penny‘s long injury resume and Kenneth Walker recouping, each player is worth looking at near the end of drafts. Dallas played 15 snaps while Homer saw 14 with Geno Smith, and their routes were nearly identical (ten vs. nine).

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Leonard Fournette remains the team’s unquestioned bell cow. Unless Fournette misses time, another back factoring in here is slim. Fournette played all 11 snaps, with the first team running six routes and handling five carries.

Washington Commanders

We are way past the panic button for Antonio Gibson. If you’re not fading him or crossing him off your draft list at this point, you’re an ostrich. Brian Robinson drew the start this week while Gibson did factor in on third downs, but that’s simply because J.D. McKissic missed with an injury.

*Snap data courtesy of PFF*

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | Stitcher | SoundCloud | TuneIn | RSS | YouTube

If you want to dive deeper into fantasy football, be sure to check out our award-winning slate of Fantasy Football Tools as you navigate your season. From our Start/Sit Assistant – which provides your optimal lineup, based on accurate consensus projections – to our Waiver Wire Assistant – that allows you to quickly see which available players will improve your team and by how much – we’ve got you covered this fantasy football season.