Who Should I Start? Devin Duvernay or Ihmir Smith-Marsette

Wednesday, March 19, 10:09 PM

The Chicago Bears agreed to an undisclosed one-year deal with free-agent wide receiver and two-time Pro Bowl kick returner Devin Duvernay on Wednesday, sources told FOX Sports' Jordan Schultz. Duvernay will most likely see most of his work in Chicago on special teams as a returner, but he will also provide depth behind wideouts DJ Moore, Rome Odunze and Olamide Zaccheaus. The 27-year-old former third-rounder (92nd overall) by the Baltimore Ravens in 2020 out of the University of Texas only played in 13 games (one start) with the Jacksonville Jaguars in 2024 and caught 11 of his 16 targets for 79 yards and no touchdowns on offense. Duvernay won't be an option in the vast majority of fantasy leagues entering the 2025 campaign. His best season as a receiver came in 2022 with Baltimore, when he had 37 receptions for 407 yards and three touchdowns in 14 games (13 starts).

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.