Matthew Berry

Roschon Johnson played 15. It, of course, is bad news either player was even dressed for tonight’s meaningless exhibition tilt, though the Bears have several injuries in their backfield, leaving them with limited options. Someone had to play in Canton. It is nevertheless confirmation both holdover backs are seemingly miles behind free agent addition D’Andre Swift on the depth chart, and could be left fighting for rotational reps come Week 1.

It’s praise, though lighter praise than Payton heaped on Javonte Williams Thursday. Payton said Williams looked like a “completely different player” another year removed from injury. Williams is shaping up as a solid favorite to retain No. 1 duties, but McLaughlin and company still have several weeks to fight for touches.

“This time last year, in fairness to him, he was recovering still, inside of eight months (removed from) an ACL (tear),” Payton said. “He’s fully healthy now. You can see it in his play.” Payton has been singing Williams’ praises since the Broncos reported, though we are still in the early days of camp and what is a supposedly sprawling Broncos running back battle. Payton also praised second-year pro Jaleel McLaughlin and rookie Audric Estime on Thursday. Williams began the competition as a light favorite, but a favorite nonetheless. It now appears he should be considered a better bet to earn the lion’s share of the Broncos’ touches. He still has several Payton teacher’s pets to stave off, however. It could be a long month of “Report:"s.

It’s a reminder that 36-year-old Dalton is becoming increasingly injury prone as he ages. He’s an experienced but extremely low upside backup behind second-year project Bryce Young. This is one of the league’s most underwhelming quarterback rooms.

Coach Mike Macdonald declined to name the body parts, but it’s reportedly Smith’s knee and hip. He has missed back-to-back practices and isn’t supposed to go on Friday, either. This is a good reminder that Smith, despite his relatively light career workload, is going on 34. Whatever it is doesn’t seem likely to imperil his Week 1 status, at least yet. It is a concern in that Smith is losing time to learn and install Ryan Grubb’s new offense. Smith remains best treated as a QB2 streamer in fantasy.

It’s good news in that it’s not a season-ending injury, but high-ankle issues are quite frequently season-altering issues. One silver lining here is that there are no current games to rush back for. Diaby might not be 100 percent by Week 1, but he will be much closer to it than most high-ankle sprain sufferers are when they return. Diaby notched 7.5 sacks as a third-round rookie last season, and profiles as a major part of the Bucs’ 2024 pass rush.

Some fantasy managers had probably already assumed this based on Lloyd’s draft status and AJ Dillon’s paltry contract, but Dillon has also been earning rave reviews for being in better shape. “Lloyd’s shiftiness and burst have been noticeable since the offseason program and his total skill-set might be enough to unseat Dillon as the primary backup to Josh Jacobs,” was Schneidman’s exact report. It’s one report on August 1, but Lloyd garnering early puff pieces is certainly better than the alternative. Packers coach Matt LaFleur seems to prefer committees, and we would have to assume a strong camp would put Lloyd ahead of plodder Dillon.

This is a tough blow to the Titans receiver room, as Kuharsky reports Hopkins “could miss four to six weeks” with his recently sustained injury. That would put him at risk of potentially missing the team’s Week 1 opener against the Bears. According to Kuharsky, Hopkins left the practice field late on Tuesday with the Titans’ top medical guy and didn’t return to the field. He was spotted with a wrap on his knee during Thursday’s portion of practice but didn’t appear to be running at top speed in a short video posted to social media. Hopkins caught 75 passes for 1,057 yards and seven touchdowns in his first season with the Titans and is an intriguing fantasy option playing in his first season under head coach Brian Callahan, who should move the team away from their old run-heavy ways under Mike Vrabel. Hopkins profiles as a high-end WR2 in the Titans offense if Will Levis can take a leap in his second year as a starter.

While, in some ways, this is one teammate hyping up another, this isn’t the first time Iosivas has received offseason praise from the Bengals. Earlier this summer, Iosivas’ personal receiver coach said the second-year receiver “made the fastest improvement of any player [he’s] ever had.” On top of that, Iosivas is also expected to work as the third receiver in 11 personnel, possibly filling the void left by Tyler Boyd in the slot. The 6-foot-3, 212-pound speedster could see significant work in an offense that’s expected to feature plenty of three-receiver sets. He could make for an interesting late-round dart throw in deeper PPR leagues.

Muhammad was hit with a PED suspension late last season while on the Colts practice squad. The veteran EDGE has totaled 12 sacks in his six-year career and will likely have a chance to carve out a role on a Cowboys roster that recently lost pass-rusher Sam Williams to a torn ACL. Muhammad recorded six sacks during his 2021 season with the Colts but didn’t play a regular-season snap last season. He’s not a lock to make the 53-man roster.