Fantasy Football Weekly News Roundup: Will Brandon Aiyuk Get Traded?
Ted breaks down the fantasy implications of the biggest stories from a slow news week, including Brandon Aiyuk's trade demand and Nick Chubb's workout heroics.
We are currently in the dead season for fantasy football news. Draft season is well and truly over, but we aren’t deep enough into training camp season to have real insight into teams’ depth charts; hype trains are still firmly in the station.
Instead, we are left reading between the lines of whatever small drips of news come out, from viral workout clips to coachspeak to roster moves. However, there are still some important things to take away from the little news we do get. Here are the top storylines from the last week that could have fantasy football implications:
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Fantasy Football Implications Of This Week’s Biggest NFL News
Brandon Aiyuk Requests A Trade
On some level, this was by far the most consequential thing that happened in the NFL this week. But on another level, it really doesn’t mean much. We already knew that Aiyuk and the 49ers were at an impasse in contract discussions. This is simply the next step in the all-too-familiar dance that occurs in these situations. We saw the 49ers’ other star receiver, Deebo Samuel, request a trade when his contract negotiations were stuck … and sign a long-term contract not long thereafter. I don’t think Aiyuk is going anywhere.
With that said, if Aiyuk were to be traded, it would have huge fantasy implications. Starting with the most obvious: Unless the 49ers receive a star receiver in return for Aiyuk (Davante Adams?), his departure would be a huge upgrade for Deebo Samuel, George Kittle, and the rest of San Francisco’s complementary weapons. From a fantasy perspective, the 49ers’ offense has often had too many mouths to feed in recent years, and Aiyuk’s departure would mean a lot more targets to go around.
It’s harder to predict the impact a trade would have on Aiyuk’s own fantasy value. On the one hand, he would almost certainly see more total targets as the (almost certainly) undisputed top weapon on his new team. But he would also certainly see a decrease in per-target efficiency away from Kyle Shanhan’s wizardry and Brock Purdy’s competence. With that said, Aiyuk led the entire NFL in yards per target last year at an absurd 12.4. He also finished top three in each of PFF Receiving Grade (second), yards per route run (third), and ESPN Recevier Score (first). From a pure talent perspective, Aiyuk is easily one of the best WRs in the league … but he saw just 101 total targets, the 31st most among WRs. That number would skyrocket on a less-stacked offense, and volume is king in fantasy football. If he does get traded (I still don’t think he will), Aiyuk will immediately be a top-10 WR on my board.
We Get Some Insight Into How The Falcons Will Use Bijan Robinson, Kyle Pitts
You know it’s a slow fantasy week when the second biggest piece of news was a press conference by Atlanta’s offensive coordinator. However, Zac Robinson’s comments trended on fantasy Twitter for a good reason: They’re exciting. The two key quotes that circulated were that the Falcons plan to “find creative ways to get [Bijan] the ball like the Niners do with Christian McCaffrey” and that Kyle Pitts is “learning two different positions” to play both tight end and wide receiver.
Taken at face value, these quotes are great for each player’s fantasy outlook. CMC sets the standard for elite fantasy usage at the RB position, while tight ends playing outside is always a boost to their fantasy value. However, I wouldn’t put too much stock into either. For the Bijan quote, Zac Robinson wasn’t the one to bring up McCaffrey — he was responding to a reporter who suggested using Bijan similarly to CMC. And as for Pitts, his playing both as a WR and TE is nothing new: He already had the highest ADOT of any qualified TE, ran 85% of his routes from the slot or out wide, and was asked to pass block just 10 times all season. That’s wide receiver usage, and that’s already a big part of why we love Pitts so much as a potential fantasy star. Similarly, everyone was already very excited about Bijan seeing workhorse dual-threat usage now that Arthur Smith is out of town — that’s why his ADP is RB2 overall, second to only CMC himself. These quotes are fun, but I wouldn’t move either player up your board as a result: They’re just telling us things we already know (or hope we know).
Nick Chubb Squats 540 Pounds 8 Months Removed From Surgery
Unfortunately, as impressive as this clip is, I think this is another case of news-starved fantasy Twitter making something out of nothing. While it is great to see Chubb regaining some of his legendary strength, strength is not the issue when recovering from a significant knee injury (Chubb tore his MCL and ACL in Week 2 of last season). The biggest hurdle for the 28-year-old RB will be regaining his lateral agility and quickness, and I’d wait for positive news on that front before getting excited about a comeback season in 2024.
Injured Players Land On PUP, NFI Lists
With training camps around the league opening up for the first time, a handful of players were placed on injury lists. Here are some of the biggest fantasy names:
WR Chris Olave, New Orleans Saints (NFI)
Olave was placed on the NFI list by the Saints but reportedly has just minor back tightness and will be fine. Back injuries can linger and reoccur, so this is certainly worth keeping an eye on, but the third-year wideout is very likely to be on the field come Week 1.
TE Juwan Johnson, New Orleans Saints (PUP)
Sticking in New Orleans, fifth-year tight end Juwan Johnson landed on the PUP list after undergoing surgery for a foot injury he suffered earlier in minicamp. There is a chance he will be ready in time for the start of the season, but this is certainly not a good sign for a player already fighting for fantasy relevance.
WR Mike Williams, New York Jets (PUP)
Williams, who tore his ACL in Week 3 of last season while playing for the Chargers, begins his Jets career on the PUP list. At 29 years old, Williams will be hard-pressed to return to the player he once was coming off a major injury. Unless he is activated off the PUP soon with positive news, I recommend avoiding him in early fantasy drafts.
WR Ricky Pearsall, San Francisco 49ers (NFI)
Like Olave, Pearsall was placed on the NFI list with a reportedly minor injury. However, unlike with Olave, I am worried about what this means for Pearsall, the 49ers’ first-round pick in this year’s draft. Pearsall was already going to have a tough time emerging as a consistent threat in this loaded San Francisco offense, and the historical record of rookies who miss time in camp is very bad. I expect Aiyuk’s trade demand will generate some hype for Pearsall as a potential replacement if a trade does happen, but I wouldn’t recommend spending more than a very late-round dart throw on the Florida product.
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