Who Should I Start? Collin Johnson or Ihmir Smith-Marsette

Thursday, May 1, 3:56 PM

The Las Vegas Raiders signed free-agent wideout Collin Johnson on Thursday, according to NFL.com. The former Texas Longhorn was originally a fifth-round pick by the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2020. However, he spent just one year with the team before a two-year stint with the New York Giants and two seasons with the Chicago Bears. Overall, Johnson has hauled in 31 passes for 394 yards and two touchdowns in 38 career games. After the Raiders selected Jack Bech in Round 2 and Dont'e Thornton Jr. in Round 4 of the 2025 NFL Draft, it would be a surprise if Johnson makes the active roster and is on the fantasy football radar next season.

Saturday, August 24, 9:36 PM

Carolina Panthers wide receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette (ankle) left the team's preseason finale against the Buffalo Bills early on Saturday after landing awkwardly completing a catch in the second quarter. The 24-year-old hauled in 2-of-3 targets for 11 yards while contributing 27 yards on two punt returns and a field-flipping 46 yards on his lone kick return. Smith-Marsette was productive before he picked up the injury and is expected to be the team's returner this upcoming season. Barring the severity of his ankle issue, that could still be the case. It's a bit early to tell how impactful the NFL's new kickoff rules will be come the start of the regular season. However, fantasy managers may want to keep the Iowa product on their radar as a sneaky option, depending on how your league values return yards. His Yahoo! ADP is far down enough that he'd be best suited as a prospective waiver-wire add.