Who Should I Start? Deebo Samuel Sr. or Ladd McConkey

Friday, August 29, 11:49 PM

The Washington Commanders have been "blown away" by wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr.'s "commitment to recapturing as much of his prime as possible," according to Jeff Howe of The Athletic. Samuel Sr. has reportedly shed weight over the offseason after being acquired by Washington from the San Francisco 49ers. The 29-year-old is coming off an underwhelming season, recording 806 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns on 93 total touches across 15 games for San Francisco. Recapturing his peak form from 2021, when he recorded 1,770 yards from scrimmage and 14 touchdowns, may be a stretch, but Samuel Sr. could conceivably bounce back to somewhere in between his best season and his most recent one. He's the clear WR2 behind Terry McLaurin in Washington, and he may get multiple touches per game as a rusher as well. Samuel Sr. could easily end up being undervalued as a low-end WR3/high-end WR4 in fantasy drafts.

Tuesday, August 12, 6:51 PM

Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey (undisclosed) was back in 11-on-11 drills at Tuesday's training camp practice, according to The Athletic's Daniel Popper. "I feel like I'm there now. It's just about building everything back up and...getting my conditioning back to where it needs to be," McConkey said when asked how close he is to 100% health. The Chargers and McConkey haven't disclosed the nature of his injury. Now that the 23-year-old second-year wideout is back at practice, he could play in the team's third preseason contest this Saturday against the Los Angeles Rams. The second-rounder in 2024 out of Georgia quickly became quarterback Justin Herbert's go-to receiver last year and finished with an 82-1,149-7 line in 16 games played. McConkey is a low-end WR1/high-end WR2 in fantasy going into his sophomore season.