Who Should I Start? Jack Bech or Luther Burden III

Tuesday, July 22, 9:52 PM

Las Vegas Raiders rookie wide receiver Jack Bech "has some work to do to make up ground" in the battle for a starting role next to veteran Jakobi Meyers, according to Tashan Reed. Reed writes that Bech is competing with fellow rookie Dont'e Thornton and third-year speedster Tre Tucker for playing time. He also notes that Thornton stood out in offseason workouts and that Tucker worked ahead of Bech during OTAs. The Raiders drafted Bech in the second round out of TCU in April. He recorded 62 catches for 1,034 yards and nine touchdowns in 12 games for the Horned Frogs in 2024. Bech is known as a slot receiver, but he's blocked by Meyers and star tight end Brock Bowers for that role in Las Vegas. He's still an intriguing late-round dart throw in re-draft leagues due to his talent and draft pedigree, but it appears Bech has improvements to make before he can be counted on for fantasy production.

Thursday, July 24, 1:11 PM

Chicago Bears head coach Ben Johnson is calling rookie wide receiver Luther Burden III (undisclosed) day-to-day at training camp. "The soft-tissue thing (from the spring) lingered. I'm hopeful it's just a few days," Johnson said. Although the 21-year-old second-rounder isn't ready for the start of training camp, he should be ready to go soon and be a full-go for the start of his first NFL season this fall. When he gets onto the field, Burden will mainly be competing with Olamide Zaccheaus for the WR3 role in Chicago's offense behind DJ Moore and second-year man Rome Odunze. There's definitely opportunity, but Burden has already missed a lot of development time this offseason and could struggle to make an impact or carve out a meaningful role early on. There's certainly intrigue with Burden in Johnson's offense given his after-the-catch prowess, but he'll go undrafted in standard 12-team fantasy leagues.