- Tennessee Titans‘ QB competition: The team seems to have indicated a willingness to move on from Ryan Tannehill, drafting QB prospects Malik Willis and Will Levis in 2021 and 2023 NFL drafts, respectively. However, signing a veteran like Hopkins signals a desire to compete — which neither Willis nor Levis seems particularly ready for.
- Baltimore Ravens‘ battle for WR1: There are a lot of reasons to be excited about this receiving corps as a unit, but questions about how much Odell Beckham Jr. has left in the tank as well as Rashod Bateman’s health will pave the path for rookie Zay Flowers‘ instant flex-appeal.
- Dallas Cowboys‘ TE1 competition: None of these tight ends pop off the page when it comes to their fantasy potential, but this is a tight end group that could provide some value in 2023 given the opportunity amidst TE Dalton Schultz’s departure from the team in free agency.
Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
NFL training camps officially kicked off this week, with rookies reporting Tuesday to nine teams and more to come throughout the week. Not only is training camp a prime opportunity for players to earn their spot on the final roster — it’s also a prime opportunity to scout for potential values in your fantasy football leagues with shakeups in the depth chart.
Here are six training camp battles to watch in 2023 with the potential for fantasy impact, including predicted winners.
Quarterbacks
Tennessee Titans: Ryan Tannehill vs. Malik Willis vs. Will Levis
Predicted winner: Ryan Tannehill
Is this the QB battle nobody really wanted? Probably. However, there’s still some potential value here, particularly given the signing of star WR DeAndre Hopkins, namely in superflex or two-QB leagues. The team seems to have indicated a willingness to move on from Tannehill, drafting QB prospects Malik Willis and Will Levis in 2021 and 2023 NFL drafts, respectively. However, signing a veteran like Hopkins signals a desire to compete — which neither Willis nor Levis seems particularly ready for.
Tannehill will provide stability to this passing attack as a veteran, now presumably healthy and with a true WR1 to help boost his return to efficiency. Over the two seasons prior to A.J. Brown’s departure, Tannehill ranked seventh among QBs with an 87.0 passing grade, finishing as the QB9 and QB12. Boosting his floor for fantasy is his propensity to scramble, as well as his involvement as a rusher inside the five, having scored 20 total rushing touchdowns over his 55 starts with the Titans.
Running backs
New York Giants: Matt Breida vs. Eric Gray
Predicted winner: Eric Gray
With the potential holdout of star RB Saquon Barkley looming, the Giants are going to need to make contingency plans heading into the 2023 NFL season. Returning from last season is veteran Matt Breida, who ranked second in rush attempts last season behind Barkley, averaging just 4.1 yards per carry as a backup. Unfortunately, there is some cause for concern when it comes to Breida’s overall durability, as he has missed occasional time due to injury, never exceeding 160 rush attempts in a season.
Rookie RB Eric Gray, on the other hand, could provide the Giants with a bit more upside. The 5-foot-10, 207-pound prospect made a mark as one of the better receivers in the class, ranking seventh among FBS running backs with a 83.2 PFF receiving grade in his final season, exceeding 30-plus catches and 200-plus receiving yards in three of his four collegiate seasons. Breida offers speed that Gray doesn’t, but Gray’s bigger frame and reliable hands could provide the Giants exactly what they’re looking for in their RB2.
Buffalo Bills: James Cook vs. Damien Harris
Predicted winner: James Cook
Let’s be clear here — Cook is the better all-around running back and will likely win the job to lead the Bills in carries in the 2023 NFL season. The fantasy upside for a running back sharing a backfield with Josh Allen is undeniable. However, the Bills have had some trouble committing to a feature back, with LeSean McCoy as the last running back to exceed 190 carries in a season back in 2017. Though the fantasy community should project a split between Cook and former Patriot Damien Harris, who signed in free agency, I project Cook to lead the team in attempts and rushing yards by a decent margin.
Cook’s career started off a bit rocky with a fumble on his first carry, but the former Georgia prospect did redeem himself through the course of the season. He averaged 5.3 yards per carry on 106 rush attempts, earning a 76.8 rushing grade and showcasing his 4.42 speed with a whopping 11 rush attempts going for 15 or more yards. Fantasy managers might find some concerns regarding Cook’s potential for a full workload due to his smaller frame, but his burst should allow for continued efficiency heading into his sophomore season. The biggest concern for fantasy managers should be Harris’ potential to see carries in the red zone, having scored 15 of his 20 rushing touchdowns over the last two seasons inside the 10. However, Cook’s breakaway speed will always leave potential for to score touchdowns, even if he sees fewer valuable carries in the end zone than we’d prefer.
Wide Receivers
Baltimore Ravens: Odell Beckham Jr. vs. Rashod Bateman vs. Zay Flowers
Predicted winner: Zay Flowers
There are a lot of reasons to be excited about this receiving corps as a unit, but questions about how much Odell Beckham Jr. has left in the tank as well as Rashod Bateman’s health will pave the path for rookie Zay Flowers‘ instant flex-appeal. OBJ last took the field in Super Bowl LVI with the Rams, where he suffered a torn ACL that kept him out of the 2022 season. Now, he enters his 10th year in the league while turning 31 years old in November, having not exceeded 65 receiving yards per game since his final season with the Giants back in 2018. Bateman, meanwhile, will make his return from a season-ending lisfranc injury, missing OTAs in the spring as he continues the rehab process in preparation for training camp.
Regardless of talent, it’s reasonable to expect both Beckham Jr. and Bateman may need some time to onramp. Enter Flowers, who exited the rookie minicamp session with glowing reviews from coach John Harbaugh. He brings 4.42 speed and clean route running to the table, which was key to his production with Boston College, finishing his final season with 78 receptions for 1,077 yards and 12 touchdowns, tied for the 16th most deep catches (12) and ranking 11th in deep yards. His quickness and agility in open space can’t be overstated, and though size could be a concern at 5-foot-9 and 182 pounds. However, when you’re reminded of the success Lamar Jackson had targeting Marquise Brown, with similar build and speed, it becomes a lot more palatable when projecting a rookie breakout.
Tight ends
Buffalo Bills: Dawson Knox vs. Dalton Kincaid
Predicted winner: Dawson Knox
Rookie TE Dalton Kincaid has clearly won the hearts of fantasy managers this summer, being drafted on average as TE16 compared to Dawson Knox’s TE22 average draft position (ADP). However, I think training camp will serve as a reminder to all that Knox isn’t going anywhere. Though Kincaid was arguably the best receiving tight end in this class (and the Bills clearly thought so too, trading up to jump the Dallas Cowboys and ensure they didn’t lose him), production from rookie tight ends is not always immediate.
Since 2015, just four total rookie tight ends have finished a season with more than 100 fantasy points, with Kyle Pitts holding the record for most fantasy points scored by a rookie tight end to date, resulting in a TE6 finish. However, even despite his end-of-season ranking, it was a rocky road for fantasy managers to get there, with having had fewer than 50 receiving yards and no touchdowns in seven of his 17 games that season. Kincaid may pose some upside with a role playing out of the slot and opportunities as a route runner, but fantasy managers’ willingness to forget Dawson Knox (and specifically, his connection with Josh Allen in the end zone, where he’s converted 16 targets into nine TDs over the last two seasons) may have them in a bind this season.
Dallas Cowboys: Jake Ferguson vs. Peyton Hendershot vs. Luke Schoonmaker
Predicted winner: Jake Ferguson
None of these tight ends pop off the page when it comes to their fantasy potential, but this is a tight end group that could provide some value in 2023 given the opportunity amidst TE Dalton Schultz’s departure from the team in free agency. Since 2020, Schultz ranked second in team targets (282), receiving yards (2,000), and receiving touchdowns (17), only behind WR CeeDee Lamb. In that same span, QB Dak Prescott ranks sixth among quarterbacks with 7.8 targets per game to the tight end position. Even with the addition of speedster WR Brandin Cooks, opportunities will be there.
Among the available options, Jake Ferguson sticks out as a potential breakout entering his sophomore season. Given that 74.6% of his snaps came as a blocker in his rookie season, his smaller build and efficiency on limited receiving opportunities is an encouraging sign of what might be to come as a receiver. Ferguson caught 20 of his 23 targets on the season for 208 receiving yards and two touchdowns, with an impressive 154 of those yards coming after the catch, leading all Cowboys tight ends in passer rating when targeted (133.3), yards per route run (1.79), yards after the catch per reception (7.7), and receiving grade (75.2).
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