Who Should I Start? Ihmir Smith-Marsette or Xavier Gipson

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.

Saturday, August 16, 8:16 PM

New York Jets wide receiver Xavier Gipson (shoulder) exited Saturday's preseason game against the Giants and is questionable to return. Gipson had already entered the contest with the same injury, making this setback concerning for the third-year receiver. Across his first two NFL seasons, the former Stephen F. Austin product has recorded 27 catches for 268 yards and one touchdown. Gipson is firmly on the roster bubble and needed strong preseason performances to secure his spot. His absence could open the door for Brandon Smith to carve out a role as the Jets evaluate their depth chart.