Who Should I Start? Adam Thielen or Russell Gage

Sunday, January 7, 5:35 PM

Carolina Panthers wide receiver Adam Thielen caught two of his three targets for 12 yards in a 9-0 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 18. Thielen was quiet in the season finale, although his 12 receiving yards were good enough for second-most on the team on an afternoon where Bryce Young only threw for 94 yards. Thielen finishes his first season with the Panthers with 103 catches for 1,014 yards and four touchdowns. He's under contract with Carolina for two more seasons with a potential out after the 2024 campaign.

Monday, March 11, 6:31 PM

Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Russell Gage (knee) is now a free agent. When the team reworked his deal last year, it included an option for the 2024 season, and the team has declined to pick it up. The move clears what would have been $10 million in salary, but the Bucs will take on roughly $6.9 million in dead money from old restructures. Gage signed a three-year, $30 million in free agency before the 2022 season to give quarterback Tom Brady another weapon in the passing game. He did have a career-high five touchdowns in 2022, but he also had a disappointing 51 catches for 426 yards and didn't play at all last year due to a torn patellar tendon that he suffered in training camp in August. The 28-year-old should resurface with another team, but coming off a major knee injury, it's unlikely that he'll be able to make much of a fantasy impact wherever he lands.