Coming off the Indianapolis Colts' Week 1 matchup with the Baltimore Ravens, head coach Shane Steichen said that wide receiver Alec Pierce's left hand/wrist is fine, according to Mike Chappell of FOX59.
Following Sunday's game, Chappell wrote that Pierce briefly exited the game and was taken to the locker room after his left wrist hit the helmet of Ravens' linebacker Roquan Smith at some point in the first half.
Chappell added that Pierce's X-rays came back negative. He then spoke to the Colts' wideout about the injury after the game.
"It's good,'' Pierce told Chappell. "I just bruised up my hand. No worries.''
Pierce underwent offseason ankle surgery that landed him on the PUP list for much of training camp. He has spent the past few weeks ramping up, which included taking on a smaller role in Sunday's game.

#chappell #pierce

The Baltimore Ravens will begin the Jesse Minter era against an Indianapolis Colts team that scored 466 points and fielded a top-10 offense last season.
Here are five legitimate concerns entering Sunday's opener.
Taylor rushed for 1,585 yards and 18 touchdowns. Baltimore ranked 10th against the run, but its rebuilt defensive front must prove it can contain one of the league's most explosive backs.
Jovaughn Gwyn is scheduled to start at center, with rookie Vega Ioane at right guard. Their first **** ignment comes against DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart.
Jones completed 68% of his passes, averaged 8.1 yards per attempt, and produced a 100.2 passer rating. Before his injury, he operated Shane Steichen's offense with timing and confidence.

#colts #here

Indianapolis Colts' head coach Shane Steichen received some recognition for his play-calling abilities from several of his counterparts.
The Athletic's Jeff Howe spent the offseason speaking with a total of 20 GMs, head coaches, coordinators, and NFL execs, asking them to vote on various categories.
One question asked by Howe was, "Who are the three best offensive play callers in the NFL not named Sean McVay or Kyle Shanahan?"
Steichen earned four votes, which ranked tied for sixth among those who received votes.
Through 10 games last season, we saw the full effects of what the Steichen offense can be. Jones was among the most productive quarterbacks in football, while the offense was among the highest-scoring units during that first half of the season.

#steichen #offense #colts

As Indianapolis Colts' wide receiver Alec Pierce continues to ramp up following offseason ankle surgery, head coach Shane Steichen provided some good news after Thursday's practice.
Pierce had been on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list for nearly all of training camp, going through the rehab process. Up to this point, he had taken part in individual work.
However, according to Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan, Steichen said that Pierce was a full participant on Thursday and took part in the team portion of practice.
On Tuesday of this week, GM Chris Ballard said that the "plan" was still for Pierce to be available for Week 1.
While we have to see how next week unfolds and what Pierce's practice status is at that time, he appears to be trending in the right direction.

#however

INDIANAPOLIS — Anthony Richardson and Riley Leonard are getting ready for one last chance to prove themselves outright for the Colts' No. 2 quarterback job.
Richardson will start Saturday and play the first quarter, then give way to Leonard for the second quarter. Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen hasn't made a decision on his No. 2 yet, and on Thursday, he gave both quarterbacks a chance to play with the No. 1 offense in practice as a chance to get ready for the preseason finale against the Lions.
The two quarterbacks produced mixed results.
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Richardson's first chance was a little herky-jerky, misfiring on two throws after an early completion to Coleman Owen and taking a "sack" from Laiatu Latu, although Richardson finished that play — the Colts coaches told him to play on — by firing a laser to Owen at the back of the end zone.

#chance #owen #ready #quarter

Head coach Shane Steichen has already announced that many of the Indianapolis Colts' starters will play in the preseason finale on Saturday against Detroit.
And included in that group will be wide receiver Keenan Allen and defensive tackle DeForest Buckner.
We won't see Allen, Buckner, or any of the starters for that long. Steichen said on Tuesday that they would be on the field for a series or two, or "8-12" plays.
Allen was signed recently to give the wide receiver room a boost, and he's made an immediate impact in practice, quickly becoming a favorite target of Daniel Jones with Alec Pierce and Josh Downs not taking part in 11-on-11 work.
Buckner has continued to ramp up since returning to the field from a neck injury that required surgery early in the year.

#indianapolis

After collapsing to end the 2025 season, the Indianapolis Colts have high aspirations for a major rebound in 2026. Daniel Jones is healthy again, and everyone gets another year to work within head coach Shane Steichen's program. One of the more important players in a possible Colts rebound will be playmaker Alec Pierce.
However, at the time of this writing, Pierce remains on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list as he recovers from offseason ankle surgery. He has yet to practice with the team during training camp. But Tuesday finally provided a meaningful update about where Pierce stands and how the Colts want to progress before a Week 1 home matchup against the Baltimore Ravens.
When discussing Pierce's current status, Steichen sounded optimistic about the receiver returning to practice soon, even as soon as this week. With still a few weeks before the start of the regular season, that's a great sign for where Pierce stands if he can start practicing in short order:
#colts HC Shane Steichen says WR Alec Pierce (ankle/heel) will not practice TODAY, but he hopes he can practice this week. Says he's in "a really good spot."

CB Charvarius Ward Sr. (back) will practice today. Hasn't practiced since Aug. 9.
Pierce is coming off the first 1,000-yard season of his career. He's also still just 26 years old and is ostensibly only hitting his physical prime. Here's hoping, for his and the Colts' sake, that he finds his way back to the field very soon.

#pierce #practice #season #alec

As the Indianapolis Colts return to the practice field on Tuesday, head coach Shane Steichen provided several injury updates.
Wide receiver Alec Pierce will not be practicing on Tuesday, although Steichen did say that "hopefully" he can practice at some point this week.
Pierce remains on the physically unable to perform (PUP) list, recovering from offseason ankle surgery.
Per #colts HC Shane Steichen, WR Alec Pierce (ankle) will not practice today, but "he's in a really good spot." Said "hopefully" he'll practice this week.

They haven't had conversations about keeping him on PUP.

CB Charvarius Ward Sr. (back) will return to practice today.
Back at practice will be cornerback Charvarius Ward. He has been sidelined for about two weeks dealing with a back injury.

#steichen #pierce #alec

Two Indianapolis Colts position groups are ranked in the top five of the NFL entering the 2026 season.
ESPN's Mike Clay recently went through and ranked each position group from 1 to 32. Coming in at No. 1 was the Colts' running back room, led by Jonathan Taylor.
The depth of this position has its unknowns, with the Colts likely relying on rookie seventh-round pick Seth McGowan to be the No. 2 option, but Taylor's production and ability to shoulder a heavy workload put the Colts' running back unit at the top of Clay's list.
"He's one of the league's best backs and handles a massive bulk of the team's touches," wrote Clay. "Taylor had a terrific 2025 campaign in which he led the NFL in carries (323) and touchdowns (18), while also finishing third in rushing yardage (1,585). Once a minimal part of the Colts' passing game, Taylor also ranked the top-10 among backs in routes, targets, catches and receiving yards, setting career highs in each."
Taylor is the engine for the Colts' offense. With a strong and steady run game to lean on, that keeps the Colts out of predictable long down-and-distance situations and opens up the playbook for Steichen.

#position #ranked #backs #game

INDIANAPOLIS — The Colts offense may finish out the preseason without its top two receiving options at tight end.
Backup tight end Will Mallory missed Saturday's preseason loss to Atlanta with a thumb injury, days after the Colts lost star tight end Tyler Warren to a mild groin strain on the first day of joint practices against the Falcons. Mallory participated in Thursday's practice and it's unclear when he was injured.
Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen did not offer a timetable for Mallory's return. The fourth-year tight end, who opened the preseason by catching six passes for 80 yards against the Patriots, spent the entire 2025 season on the 53-man roster as insurance for Warren, although Warren stayed healthy enough as a rookie that Mallory rarely saw action.
Mallory has been one of the team's most productive receiving options throughout training camp.
The Colts offense has spent the entire training camp operating without its No. 1 receiver, Alec Pierce, and the team only signed veteran Keenan Allen this week to fill the hole in the starting up. With fewer reliable targets outside, Indianapolis quarterbacks have targeted the tight ends heavily, peppering passes to both Warren and Mallory.

#tight #preseason

The Indianapolis Colts are hosting the Atlanta Falcons for Week 2 of the NFL preseason. With wins and losses taking a back seat this time of the year, our attention turns to individual performances with playing time and roster spots up for grabs.
So who should we have our eyes on during Saturday's game? Here are several players to watch for.
Of course, all eyes will be on the backup quarterback battle. After Richardson started last week, it's now Leonard's turn. Head coach Shane Steichen mentioned after Thursday's joint practice that both players have flashed this summer, but each has had their ups and downs as well. Steichen added that there is no timetable for when he will make a final decision will be made. Presumably the competition is quite close, but perhaps there's a little extra pressure on Leonard to perform against Atlanta, with Richardson having the better outing against New England.
We haven't talked much about the offensive line unit, but beyond the starters, there are questions up front for the Colts. For one, can Dalton Tucker provide a steady presence at center if needed? He's had quite a few off-target snaps this summer. Also, who will be the top tackle option off the bench? It looked like Luke Tenuta would fill that role, but he has missed time as of late with a knee injury. UDFA Nolan Rucci has been sidelined as well.
Whether or not the Colts can generate steady pressure on the quarterback remains to be seen. Last week we saw flashes from rookie George Gumbs, while Caden Curry was a standout performer. However, Micheal Clemons and Jaylahn Tuimoloau had quiet nights. If Curry can continue to consistently be disruptive, he deserves the opportunity to compete for more regular rotational snaps.

#steichen #curry

The Colts expect to be without Tyler Warren for a little bit, so they made a move on Friday to give themselves some more depth at tight end.
They announced the signing of JJ Galbreath to the 90-man roster. They waived cornerback Jai'Onte' McMillan in a corresponding move.
Galbreath signed with the Steelers after going undrafted out of South Dakota in 2025 and spent the season on the practice squad. He opened camp with the team, but was waived two weeks ago.
Warren injured his groin in practice this week and head coach Shane Steichen said that he's expected to miss about a week while he recovers.

#warren #move #practice #colts

NFL Insider Jordan Schultz has reported that the Indianapolis Colts will sign WR Keenan Allen on a one-year deal.
Allen's deal will be worth up to $8.32 million for the 6x Pro Bowl wide receiver. The move will reunite Allen with Colts head coach Shane Steichen from their days with the Chargers.
A 2013 third-round selection in the NFL Draft, Allen played for the Chargers for 11 seasons, the Chicago Bears for one year, then back to the Chargers for the 2025 season.
With Colts wide receiver Alec Pierce being on the PUP list (Physically Unable to Perform) with an ankle injury, it appears that he may join camp as WR2 behind Josh Downs.
For his career, Allen has 1,055 regular-season catches for 12,051 yards and 70 touchdowns.

#colts #chargers #insider

With Alec Pierce recovering from off-season ankle surgery the Indianapolis wide receiver room was beginning to feel concerning. A single injury to Josh Downs (who recently left practice with what was described as an "upper body injury") could have been catastrophic to the offense's chance to repeat the success it had during the first half of 2025.
Enter Keenan Allen.
In the weeks leading up to training camp and the preseason, many speculated that Indy could be interested in Allen in the days and weeks leading up to the start of the season. It made sense. He needed a team, the Colts needed a receiver, Indy has an offensive playcaller familiar with the veteran receiver and more importantly, Allen's familiarity with Steichen's offensive system. Most of the time moves this obvious don't happen for one reason or another but this ended up being the rare NFL scenario of what seemed like such an obvious solution, actually happening.
Time will tell if this signing will move any needles for an Indy offense that will likely lean hard on second year tight end Tyler Warren and it's ground game headed up by Jonathan Taylor, as always. But on paper signing a former six time Pro Bowler who caught 81 passes a season ago, this move though not flashy, could end up being just what the offense needs to continue to grow, evolve and produce the kinds of results everyone in the Colts' building is hoping for and expecting.
I have been told that this deal has taken quite a bit of time to hammer out and it isn't something the Colts recently decided to do. If that's true (and I have no reason to believe it isn't) there's no reason to panic over Alec Pierce's ankle or Josh Downs' recent practice injury. At least not yet.

#receiver #injury #alec #downs

Keenan Allen is headed to Indianapolis.
The Colts struck a one-year, $8.32 million deal with the veteran wide receiver on Monday night, according to NFL insider Jordan Schultz.
Allen has spent nearly his entire career with the Chargers organization, which first selected him in the third round of the 2013 NFL Draft. He was on a one-year, $3.02 million deal with the franchise last season, and became a free agent this summer.
The 34-year-old had 777 receiving yards and four touchdowns on 81 catches last season with the Chargers. He's earned six Pro Bowl nods throughout his career, and has six 1,000-yard seasons to his name. He earned Comeback Player of the Year honors in 2017, too, after missing nearly all of the 2016 season with a torn ACL.
Now that he's found a home for the 2026 campaign, Allen will get to reunite with longtime Chargers **** istant Shane Steichen in Indianapolis. Steichen, who is entering his fourth season as the Colts' head coach, worked his way up through the Chargers' coaching staff and was their offensive coordinator for two seasons with Allen as one of their primary targets.

#year #indianapolis #deal #nearly

The Colts are expected to sign longtime Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen, a source confirmed to IndyStar. It adds a six-time Pro Bowler who in eight of his 13 seasons in the NFL has caught at least six touchdowns and at least 80 ***** seven times – including last year.
Allen lands in Indianapolis after a one-season return to Los Angeles in 2025 to rejoin the franchise that drafted him 76th overall in 2013 and where he spent the first 11 seasons of his career – and 12 of 13 overall. Allen was traded to the Chicago Bears in March of 2024 and played a single season with the NFC North team before opting to sign with the Chargers just over a year ago during Los Angeles' training camp as a free agent.
That one-year deal made the 34-year-old again a free agent this spring, and he remains unquestionably the top free agent wideout on the market – not to mention seemingly a premier fit in head coach Shane Steichen's offense.
For a coach who prizes separation at the top of routes and a trusted pair of hands above just about anything else, Allen still fits the bill as he nears the end of his career. Though he's been one nearly his entire career, the Colts don't need Allen to be a No. 1 receiver with unquestioned WR1 Alec Pierce ascending to a more all-around this role this year coming off a season where then-rookie tight end Tyler Warren led the Colts in targets (112) and two seasons ago when starting slot receiver Josh Downs led the team in receptions (72).
But after the loss of Michael Pittman Jr. in March to a salary-dump trade to the Steelers, it was widely-believed the Colts had not done enough to replace not only his production – 80 catches for 784 yards and seven touchdowns – but his veteran leadership and presence in a room where the oldest players – free agent signee Nick Westbrooke-Ikhine (29 years old), Ashton Dulin (29) and Laquon Treadwell (31) had been fighting in training camp for the Nos. 3 and 4 WR spots in the Colts offense.

#free #receiver #seasons

Will we see any of the Indianapolis Colts' starters during the preseason this year?
In the preseason opener against New England, the Colts' starters did not play. That will also be the case this week against Atlanta.
However, in the preseason finale, Shane Steichen is at least somewhat contemplating playing his starters.
"Most likely Game 3," Shane Steichen said on Sunday, via Colts.com. "Right now, Game 2, we're obviously going to get the two joints against Atlanta; those will be the game for those guys. And then I'll make a decision for Game 3."
With most teams taking part in joint practices, that has taken the place of preseason reps for many starters, as Steichen said.

#england #however

Colts special teams coordinator Brian Mason will be working from a new spot for the rest of the preseason.
Mason tore multiple ligaments in his knee when he was involved in a sideline collision during the team's first preseason game and has been working at the team's practices using a large brace. Head coach Shane Steichen indicated that he is passing on having surgery for now, but the team will have him coach from a booth upstairs for their two remaining games this summer.
"He's pretty tough," Steichen said, via Joel A. Erickson of the Indianapolis Star. "Obviously, he's back out here in a brace. I think, right now, he's going to let that thing heal. He has some serious injuries, which is wild, but he's going to be up in the box for these next two preseason games, just for precautionary reasons."
Steichen said that Mason wants to remain on the sideline, but the head coach feels there's too much risk to have that happen in the next few weeks.

#mason #coach #sideline #going

Following Sunday's training camp practice, Indianapolis Colts' head coach Shane Steichen provided some brief injury updates on Charvarius Ward and Alec Pierce.
Ward did not travel with the team to New England for the joint practice or preseason game last week as he works through a back injury. GM Chris Ballard said Ward was dealing with some "pain and irritation."
He did not practice on Saturday or Sunday either.
"He's just dealing with back pain right now," Steichen said, via Colts.com. "And that's where it's at right now. When I get another update, I'll let you guys know."
Pierce has not yet returned to the practice field since undergoing offseason ankle surgery. Ballard mentioned that the plan was for Pierce to be ready for Week 1.

#week

WESTFIELD — Colts special teams coordinator Brian Mason will coach the two remaining preseason games from the press box on the orders of head coach Shane Steichen.
Mason suffered multiple torn ligaments in his left knee when two players rolled up his leg on the final play of the Colts' preseason tie against the Patriots. Indianapolis team doctors realized immediately that Mason was dealing with something significant.
But the Indianapolis special teams coordinator waved off the cart and walked off the field at Gillette Stadium, and he immediately returned to practice when the Colts were back on the field Saturday. From the sounds of it, Mason is not planning to have surgery on the joint.
"He's pretty tough," Steichen said. "Obviously, he's back out here in a brace. I think, right now, he's going to let that thing heal. He has some serious injuries, which is wild, but he's going to be up in the box for these next two preseason games, just for precautionary reasons."
Mason has coached from the field the last two days, wearing a sizable brace on his left leg.

#colts #field #special

WESTFIELD — Colts special teams coordinator Brian Mason will coach the two remaining preseason games from the press box on the orders of head coach Shane Steichen.
Mason suffered multiple torn ligaments in his left knee when two players rolled up his leg on the final play of the Colts' preseason tie against the Patriots. Indianapolis team doctors realized immediately that Mason was dealing with something significant.
But the Indianapolis special teams coordinator waved off the cart and walked off the field at Gillette Stadium, and he immediately returned to practice when the Colts were back on the field Saturday. From the sounds of it, Mason is not planning to have surgery on the joint.
"He's pretty tough," Steichen said. "Obviously, he's back out here in a brace. I think, right now, he's going to let that thing heal. He has some serious injuries, which is wild, but he's going to be up in the box for these next two preseason games, just for precautionary reasons."
Mason has coached from the field the last two days, wearing a sizable brace on his left leg.

#teams #coordinator

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- The Colts plan to start Anthony Richardson against New England in Thursday's preseason opener, then turn to Riley Leonard in the second half.
Leonard will start and play the entire first half against Atlanta in next week's preseason home opener, then turn it over to Richardson for the second half.
Daniel Jones will not play in either of the first two preseason games. Indianapolis head coach Shane Steichen does not want to risk any injury to Jones, who is coming off a torn right Achilles tendon.
Joel A. Erickson and Nathan Brown cover the Colts all season. Get more coverage on IndyStarTV and with the Colts Insider newsletter.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Colts announce preseason plan for QBs Anthony Richardson, Riley Leonard, Daniel Jones

#richardson

In the latest Indianapolis Colts training camp practice, defensive tackle DeForest Buckner looked like DeForest Buckner.
As noted by the Indy Star's Joel Erickson, Buckner would have two wins during the offensive line vs. defensive line one-on-one period on Sunday. Then, during the final team period, he made his way into the backfield twice and had a run stop.
"Whenever Buck is out there, you can definitely feel him," Shane Steichen said, via Colts.com. "It's great to get him out there getting some team reps. Again, monitoring him through training camp, where his body's at, but he feels good. He feels good where he's at."
Buckner has been ramping up during training camp. After sustaining a neck injury last season that required surgery, he spent the offseason rehabbing.
Recently, Buckner has been taking part in the 11-on-11 periods after initially only taking part in individual drills early in camp.

#training #team #feels

According to head coach Shane Steichen, the Indianapolis Colts will rotate their two primary backup quarterbacks, Anthony Richardson and Riley Leonard, during the team's upcoming Thursday night preseason opener on the road against the New England Patriots (via The Athletic's James Boyd):
Rather unsurprisingly, Colts starting quarterback Daniel Jones, who's seemingly shown no signs of his torn Achilles suffered last year so far during team training camp, will not play in the team's Preseason Week 1 game—especially on newly installed turf that the Patriots field crew is rushing to get down in Gillette Stadium by Thursday night.
Both Richardson and Leonard have shown inconsistency so far throughout training camp, with neither quarterback arguably clearly separating from the other competitor for the Colts' QB2 job behind Jones.
That means it could come down to their respective preseason performances, as well as their work behind-the-scenes, which is the key reason why Jones bested out Richardson for the Colts' QB1 job last year after rather even on-the-field performances throughout last year's training camp and preseason games.
If Richardson doesn't clearly separate himself through all three facets: training camp, preseason, and off-the-field work, then the default to me, would be Leonard ultimately winning the QB2 job for the Colts going forward.

#colts #preseason #leonard #field

WESTFIELD -- Colts quarterback Anthony Richardson told reporters Sunday he's uncertain of the status of his request to seek a trade from February.
"I haven't really talked to my agent about that recently," he said in his first interview since the start of training camp. "I haven't really talked to anyone about that recently, so I'm not necessarily sure what's going on with that."
Richardson earned the starting quarterback spot as a rookie and in his second season but lost a competition with Daniel Jones last season. He is now competing with Riley Leonard to be Jones' backup. Richardson and Leonard will split snaps in Thursday's preseason opener against the New England Patriots, through coach Shane Steichen has not said who will start.
Richardson triggered a $4.2 million roster bonus Aug. 1, leaving just his $1.145 million base salary as the final cash owed to him on the final year of his rookie contract. That makes Richardson a more appealing option for a team in need of an addition to their quarterback room. Whether that might happen is anyone's guess – Richardson included.
"If that's what the team wants, that's what I want," said Richardson on Sunday when asked if he expected to be on the Colts' regular season 53-man roster. "I just want to be able to help the team, and if it's this team, then I thank God for it. I'm just ready to showcase what I can do and be a winning piece to help this team win."

#quarterback #season #haven 't

WESTFIELD — The Colts were treated to a familiar sight in Sunday's practice.
A sight Indianapolis sorely missed in the second half last season.
DeForest Buckner looked like the game-wrecking nightmare that he's been for most of his career.
"Whenever Buck's out there, you can feel him," Colts head coach Shane Steichen said.
Buckner hasn't been on the field as much as usual through the first nine practices of training camp. The Colts defensive captain's season ended prematurely due to a herniated disc in his neck, an injury that forced Buckner to undergo surgery on New Year's Eve to repair the issue. Indianapolis team doctors cleared Buckner right before the start of training camp, but the Colts coaches have been careful with him, limiting his participation in the first two weeks.

#season #deforest

The Colts have not had Alec Pierce on the practice field at all this summer and they were missing another wideout at practice on Saturday.
Josh Downs did not take part in the session and the Colts said that he is dealing with a groin injury. They did not offer further information about the extent of the injury or how long Downs might be out of action.
Pierce is on the physically unable to perform list after having ankle surgery this offseason and head coach Shane Steichen said earlier this week that there's no timetable for his return.
Ashton Dulin, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, and Anthony Gould worked as the first team wideouts for the Colts on Saturday.

#injury

Shane Steichen was back, and the Indianapolis Colts completed their first padded practice of team training camp, with some sizzles and surprises on the morning. Without further ado, let's get to it:

#shane #steichen #without #completed

Entering the second week of training camp practices, the Indianapolis Colts are still without wide receiver Alec Pierce.
Pierce is still rehabbing from offseason ankle surgery. Shane Steichen didn't have any specifics about when Pierce could return but did say that he is progressing.
"I know that he's working," Steichen said. "He's heading in the right direction, for sure. So I feel really good about that moving forward."
Prior to training camp start, GM Chris Ballard said that Pierce was "close" and could be back on the field in a week or two.
Without Pierce in the lineup, Ashton Dulin and Laquon Treadwell have taken the bulk of the outside wide receiver reps with the starters. The two, along with Nick Westbrook-Ikhine, are competing for the WR3 role.

#still #entering

We all make mistakes. Sometimes they happen in life, at our jobs or even when playing fantasy football (believe it or not). It's important not to dwell on these mistakes and, instead, learn from them. Our Yahoo fantasy football ****** ysts are sharing one thing they did in 2025 that they aren't going to carry into 2026 for fantasy.
Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Football league for the 2026 NFL season
Over the years I've become especially value-driven with my salary cap drafts. I'm trying to leverage the market, I'm trying to find under-appreciated players. There's nothing wrong with that strategy, but often I come out with rosters that are more about leftovers than they are about players I actually like. This year I'm going to try to remember that it's okay to "overpay" occasionally for a player I really believe in, or a player I especially need at the time. Plus, heck, you're supposed to ****** emble a team you're going to enjoy following for several months. Don't forget to have some fun with it, too. — Scott Pianowski
It's probably a bit of a stretch to call Daniel Jones Shane Steichen's handpicked guy but at the same time, it was pretty clear that the Colts were putting their thumb on the scale to make him the heavy favorite in last year's camp competition. Regardless, I allowed my own bias about how Jones had played over the last couple of seasons to essentially prevent a ceiling outcome from even crossing my mind. I ended up losing out on chances at significant value for multiple Colts players—many of whom I had been a long-time defender of like Alec Pierce and Michael Pittman Jr.—late in fantasy drafts. Generally, if a sharp play-caller like Steichen taps a reclamation project passer who has shown positive signs in their career, we should be open to the possibility they bring some ADP beats up along with them. This season, I'm keeping my mind open to Kyler Murray reviving the Vikings offense, should he indeed prove to be Kevin O'Connell's Week 1 starter. — Matt Harmon
Jaxon Smith-Njigba is the perfect example — working behind or next to DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett for his opening two seasons. Very few memorable plays stood out. His role was more restricting than we hoped. It was easy to think we already knew what he was as an NFL player. Nico Collins was another perfect example back in 2023. But before the Year 2 breakout there was the Year 3 breakout. Before we believed the best fantasy ****** ets performed at their peak player immediately, we actually had some patience — especially in new situations. Whether that be a seismic coaching staff change in the form of a new play-caller, a new starting quarterback they are attached to or a sociable shift in the pecking order — and sometimes even all of the above. So Rome Odunze, Marvin Harrison Jr., Ladd McConkey, Xavier Worthy and Jonathon Brooks… you are on my radar. — Josh Norris

#year #like