This article is part of our Training Camp Notes series.
Here are some of the top fantasy football headlines from Friday.
-Boston Sports Journal's Greg Bedard passed along a quote from New England running backs coach Ivan Fears, one that was ostensibly optimistic about Sony Michel (foot) but left open the possibility of whatever worst-case scenarios the pessimist might think of. "I think he'll be ready when he has a shot to get out there. Hopefully we have some time before the first game for him to be out there. If not, we'll take him when we get him," Fears said. That's a lot of reference to hope but not much in the way of prediction, which isn't what Michel investors want to hear with Damien Harris reportedly practicing well and Lamar Miller (knee) likely to pose a formidable threat when his knee cooperates. Michel's results in the NFL haven't been good enough to keep a starting role set aside for him indefinitely, especially if Harris and Miller hold serve.
-D'Andre Swift sat out of practice Friday with a leg injury, according to the Detroit News' Justin Rogers, so his status going forward will be worth monitoring. Swift's explosiveness is undeniable and few players in the league are as frightening with the football in the open field, but durability limitations are the likely reason for why he never established himself as a workhorse at Georgia. The more time Swift misses, the more reason the Lions coaches will have to keep him in a strict workload split with Kerryon Johnson, who can't match Swift's explosiveness but probably can exceed Swift's durability. The more brittle Swift appears, the more willing the Lions might be to accept Johnson's lesser per-play returns. But it's not just Johnson -- the more time Swift misses, the more backup runners like Jason Huntley and Jonathan Williams might push for snaps.
-The Athletic Tampa Bay beat reporter Greg Auman relayed a Bruce Arians quote that the best chance for Ke'Shawn Vaughn to contribute in Week 1 might be as a kick returner. Vaughn returned one kickoff for 13 yards in his four-year collegiate career between Illinois and Vanderbilt, so Arians' statement registers as less than encouraging. Vaughn was on the COVID reserve list until August 9, so a significant part of his predicament can be attributed to that. In the meantime, though, Arians seems to envision Ronald Jones as the lead back and LeSean McCoy as the primary backup. Perhaps Vaughn will gain ground as the year progresses and his practice reps pile up.
-Dallas Goedert suffered a hairline fracture in one of his thumbs, but according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero the injury is basically a non-issue, to the point that Goedert might return to practice as soon as the upcoming week, albeit with a splint on the thumb. Although Goedert will be fine, this might be an opportunity to mention that the Eagles would likely use considerably more three-wide sets if either of their two lead tight ends miss time. If both Ertz and Goedert are healthy, it will be tough for the Eagles to get three wideouts on the field with any regularity.
-First-round pick Justin Jefferson remains behind second-year seventh-round pick Bisi Johnson in Minnesota's practices to this point, but if Johnson is Jefferson's only obstacle then it might be reason to be optimistic for Jefferson. Not only was Jefferson extremely productive at LSU, but he's both bigger and much more athletic than Johnson, who caught 31 receptions for 294 yards and three touchdowns on 45 targets last year. It's only a matter of time before Jefferson leaves Johnson in the dust, but perhaps it's fair to question whether there's enough time for Jefferson to get there before Week 1.
-Rather than 'a couple weeks' like initially reported, 9News Denver's Mike Klis reported Friday that K.J. Hamler might miss up to a month with the hamstring injury he suffered this week. Considering he's undersized and just turned 21 in July, Hamler's missed time could make it difficult for him to develop Year 1 polish for the Broncos. On the other hand, as long as Hamler gets healthy at some point his rare speed would be useful for decoy purposes at the least. That wouldn't be any use to Hamler's fantasy investors, but it would provide the Denver offense a speed element it otherwise lacks.
-Jarrett Stidham is dealing with a leg injury, which gives an advantage to Cam Newton that Newton never needed. Newton of course carries his own substantial injury concerns, but if he stays healthy then the Patriots quarterback competition shouldn't be a competition at all. Brian Hoyer technically remains involved, but...you know.
