Fantasy: Analysis and projections from 2nd day of free agency
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The second day of the NFL's legal tampering window featured several offensive moves with important fantasy implications.
Let's take a look at all the notable skill-position signings from Tuesday and what they mean for fantasy managers.
Big moves
Lions sign WR D.J. Chark, keep WR Kalif Raymond
Chark's contract: 1 year, $10 million
Raymond's contract: 2 years, $9.5 million
For a team with many needs to fill, the Lions were shockingly quiet on the first day of the legal tampering period.
That changed bright and early Tuesday, as Detroit added Chark - a promising young receiver with a couple quality NFL seasons on his resume, including a 73-catch, 1,008-yard, eight-touchdown campaign in 2019.
Chark's star has definitely faded since then, and he's currently working his way back from a broken ankle that cost him 13 games last season. But getting the 25-year-old on a one-year, prove-it contract is a smart move by the Lions' front office.
Unfortunately for Chark, this isn't a great fit.
Jared Goff is a conservative passer who is hesitant to take chances downfield. A burner like Chark will draw defenses away from the line of scrimmage, letting Goff pepper other options like sophomore wideout Amon-Ra St. Brown, tight end T.J. Hockenson, and running back D'Andre Swift on short and intermediate routes.
Chark's presence will also create more competition for targets in an offense that prefers to be run-heavy if game scripts allow it.
For fantasy, Chark will be more of an inconsistent field stretcher and someone you'll have trouble trusting in your lineup most weeks. And after a career-high 48 catches, Raymond's role will likely decline to fourth or fifth on the depth chart - with his main contributions coming on special teams.
While it's intriguing watching the Lions rebuild from the ground up, Swift will likely be the only member of this attack worth considering at his ADP in fantasy drafts.
Chark's 2022 projection (17 games): 51 receptions, 764 receiving yards, 5 TDs
Raymond's 2022 projection (17 games): 16 receptions, 192 receiving yards, TD
Buccaneers sign WR Russell Gage
Contract: 3 years, $30 million
A return to the receiver-needy Falcons seemed like the best move for Gage's fantasy value, but instead, he pivoted to join Tom Brady and the Buccaneers' juggernaut offense.
With Mike Evans and Chris Godwin forming one of the league's best wideout tandems, Gage will settle into the third WR spot vacated by Antonio Brown.
While Rob Gronkowski has yet to commit to Tampa for 2022, Brady's decision to come back for at least one more year should prompt Gronk to do the same.
In that instance, Gage will likely drop to fourth in the pass-catching pecking order. However, if Godwin isn't full strength for Week 1 after his mid-December ACL tear, Gage could carve out a much bigger target share early in the season.
We know he's capable of putting up serious stats when given the chance, as evidenced by his performance down the stretch last year. Gage posted 50 yards and/or a touchdown in six of his last seven outings, resulting in the 17th most fantasy points per game among wideouts during that span.
For now, we'll view him as a WR4 in fantasy with the potential to be a top-24 option in the opening month if Godwin is slowed or remains sidelined.
Gage's 2022 projection (17 games): 63 receptions, 761 receiving yards, 4 TDs
Bills sign RB J.D. McKissic
Contract: 2 years, $7 million
The Bills continue to make savvy additions to augment their offense and inch them closer to a Super Bowl berth.
McKissic won't garner tons of headlines outside of Buffalo, but his skills as a pass-catcher out of the backfield will add a new element to the team's attack.
The 28-year-old has 157 receptions over the last three years and should be able to do more in that area than Devin Singletary or Zack Moss did with their 63 combined catches a year ago.
Though the incumbent Singletary is now unlikely to repeat the numbers he put up down the stretch this season, he should still be viewed as an upside RB3 in one of the league's most prolific offenses. That's assuming Buffalo steers clear of veteran free agents like Leonard Fournette or Melvin Gordon and avoids drafting a back in the early rounds.
McKissic will also flirt with RB3 production in PPR formats, but his lack of touchdown scoring caps his fantasy ceiling.
McKissic's 2022 projection (15 games): 52 carries, 228 rushing yards, 2 TDs
45 receptions, 401 receiving yards, 2 TDs
Patriots keep RB James White
Contract: 2 years, $5 million
White is staying in New England following a lost year due to a hip subluxation suffered in September.
The 30-year-old pass-catching specialist was his usual self prior to the injury, hauling in 12 balls and 94 receiving yards in the first two weeks while serving as a safety valve for rookie QB Mac Jones.
He's likely to pick up where he left off, but he'll be sharing the backfield with a pair of competent runners in Damien Harris and Rhamondre Stevenson.
His return will make it much more difficult to project the weekly outlooks for all three players - a situation we've grown accustomed to with the Patriots' backfield.
At this stage of his career, White can't be relied on as anything more than a stop-gap or bye-week fill-in for managers in PPR leagues.
White's 2022 projection (15 games): 41 carries, 156 rushing yards, TD
48 receptions, 374 receiving yards, 2 TDs
Minor moves
Panthers sign RB D'Onta Foreman
We were closely monitoring Foreman after he resurrected his career with the Titans in the second half of the season.
It was a long road back from a torn Achilles that sidelined him for the majority of three campaigns. But when Derrick Henry got hurt, Tennessee signed Foreman hoping he could replace some of the power back carries the offense is based around.
Within a few weeks, Foreman's role began to grow, and from Week 12 on, he was a driving force in the Titans' backfield. The 25-year-old had 80 yards from scrimmage and/or a touchdown in each of his final six appearances and was the RB23 in fantasy points per game during that time.
In Carolina, he'll likely emerge as Christian McCaffrey's immediate backup - unless the trade rumors turn out to be true, and CMC is ultimately moved. If that were to occur, Foreman would have an outside shot to be the Panthers' lead back in 2022.
Giants sign QB Tyrod Taylor
Taylor might be the perfect person to mentor Daniel Jones. After all, in his last three stops, he's helped Baker Mayfield, Justin Herbert, and Davis Mills ascend to the starting spot in their respective offenses.
Whether that was partially due to Taylor's presence or simply a fluke, the 32-year-old is one of the better backups in the NFL and still capable of stepping into the starting role if need be.
Before getting hurt halfway through the second game last year, Taylor had thrown for 416 yards and three scores while adding another 55 yards on the ground in just six quarters. It's a small sample size but a sign he can still carry an offense over short durations.
Texans keep TE Pharaoh Brown
Brown failed to follow up on his four-catch, 67-yard performance in the opener and settled in mostly as a blocker the rest of the way.
He'll be the favorite to serve in that role again with sophomore Brevin Jordan taking over as Houston's top tight end. Jordan is a late-round sleeper worth stashing after he flashed multiple times in the second half of the season.
Cowboys keep TE Jeremy Sprinkle
With the Cowboys releasing Blake Jarwin, it's possible Sprinkle could win the No. 2 tight end job behind Dalton Schultz.
However, he won't have any fantasy value unless Schultz misses time.
Chargers keep QB Chase Daniel
Daniel is a lifelong backup who continues to cash checks in the NFL despite rarely seeing the field.
Fantasy managers will be praying he doesn't get a chance to play this year, since it would mean young star Justin Herbert got injured.
Dolphins keep WR Preston Williams
As an undrafted rookie, Williams looked like he could develop into a long-term NFL starter. However, injuries during the last couple seasons have derailed his career.
Now he'll be fighting for playing time (and maybe a roster spot) on an offense that features Jaylen Waddle, DeVante Parker, Cedrick Wilson, and Mike Gesicki.
Even in deeper dynasty leagues, Williams can be dropped for someone with more upside.