Counting down the fantasy numbers of note following the third – and most important – full weekend of exhibition play.
148 – Rushing yards on 21 carries this month for Saints’ RB Mark Ingram, who’s also added 27 yards on two receptions and has scored twice. Not only does that rushing-yardage figure lead the team, but it’s nearly as many as the team’s other seven RB/FBs combined (162). Those other seven include Pierre Thomas and Khiry Robinson, who currently own higher RB ADPs (29 & 46) than Ingram (47), who’s shaping up as a late-round steal.
113 – Receiving yards on seven catches for Jaguars’ wideout Allen Hurns in Friday’s 13-12 win over the Lions. The undrafted rookie out of Miami has caught 13 passes for 230 yards and the one score this preseason to rack up the third-most fantasy points (29.1) among WRs. Between the suspensions (Justin Blackmon, Ace Sanders) and injuries (Cecil Shorts and Allen Robinson) hampering the J’ville WR corps, Hurns has all the makings of a fantasy sleeper.
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58.0 – Percent of the Bengals’ total plays this preseason that have been passes. That’s up almost two full percentage points from Cincy’s regular-season percentage (56.2) a year ago. Yeah, sure, it’s only a three-game, exhibition-contest sample, but don’t treat offensive coordinator Hue Jackson’s off-season run-first proclamations as the absolute gospel quite yet.
54.1 – League-leading fantasy points this preseason for Seahawks’ QB Russell Wilson. The third-year starter has completed 30 of his 39 attempts for 360 yards, two TDs and no interceptions, while also rushing nine times for 61 yards and a trio of scores. Meanwhile, with an ADP of 91, Wilson is the 12th QB currently coming off the board, on average, in fantasy drafts and offers some solid value and upside as one of the last starting signal-callers being selected.
40 – Yards on two receptions for Packers’ rookie TE Richard Rodgers on Friday in a victory over the Raiders. With fellow TE Brandon Bostick out with a fractured fibula and the Pack opting not to re-sign Jermichael Finley, the impressive third-round pick out of Cal is locked in a tight battle with veteran Andrew Quarless for the No. 1 TE gig on the tundra. And while it’ll be a starting role in a high-powered Aaron Rodgers offense, the guess here is that no G.B. TE will be consistent enough to start on a week-to-week fantasy basis.
20 – Passing yards Saturday night for Robert Griffin III in a 23-17 loss to the Ravens. RGIII was 5-of-8 with no TDs and a pick in the contest, “upping” his overall preseason passing numbers to 13-of-20 for 141 yards, zero TDs and two interceptions. He’s also only rushed for 27 yards on seven carries with no TDs and a fumble lost for a grand total of 3.9 fantasy points. Not exactly inspiring August figures for those banking on a bounce-back fantasy season from the D.C. QB.
11 – Colts’ pass-catchers with three or more receptions this preseason. None of the 11, however, have totaled more than 86 yards. That group also doesn’t include veteran WR Reggie Wayne, who saw his first game action Saturday night but didn’t record a reception. Throwing in fellow WRs T.Y. Hilton, Hakeem Nicks, Griff Whalen and Donte Moncrief, TEs Dwayne Allen and Coby Fleener and pass-catching backs Trent Richardson and Ahmad Bradshaw, Andrew Luck has an overflowing arsenal of targets, but that works against the fantasy GM counting on any one of them individually.
11 – Sacks this preseason for the Saints’ defense, which trails only the Packers (12). New Orleans has notched a league-leading 19 QB hits and five fumble recoveries, while also recording three interceptions. The numbers add up to serious sleeper status for the 15th D/ST being selected in fantasy drafts this summer.
3.95 – Yards per touch in three exhibition contests for Dolphins’ RB Lamar Miller, who has rushed 14 times for 48 yards and caught five passes for 31 yards without a TD. Miller currently owns the 31st highest ADP among RBs, but rookie Damien Williams (77 total yards, 2 TDs) and free-agent acquisition Knowshon Moreno (10 rushes for 64 yards) have been the more impressive Miami backs this month.
2 – TD catches in the final 1:07 of the first half Saturday night for Broncos’ WR Emmanuel Sanders, who entered the night without a preseason target while battling a quad strain. Sanders got behind the Texans’ secondary and hauled in 64- and 29-yard scoring tosses from Peyton Manning and finished with an impressive five grabs for 128 yards. The ex-Steeler currently ranks 32nd among all wideouts with an ADP of 84, but that’s almost certain to go up after fellow Mile High WR Wes Welker suffered his third concussion in 10 months Saturday evening.
