Who Should I Start? Michael Gallup or Luke McCaffrey

Wednesday, June 11, 10:02 PM

Washington Commanders wide receiver Michael Gallup (hamstring) is dealing with a hamstring strain that has kept him off the field for the first two days of mandatory minicamp this week, a source told The Washington Post's Nicki Jhabvala. Gallup spent the first six years of his NFL career with the Dallas Cowboys after they selected him in the third round (81st overall) in 2018 out of Colorado State before signing with the Las Vegas Raiders in free agency. The 29-year-old then abruptly retired and didn't play at all in 2024. He's making a comeback back in the NFC East, but Gallup is facing an uphill battle for playing time in D.C. behind Terry McLaurin, Deebo Samuel Sr., Noah Brown (undisclosed), K.J. Osborn and Luke McCaffrey. Gallup's hamstring injury isn't helping his cause in minicamp. He's off the fantasy radar for now.

Sunday, August 10, 3:17 PM

Washington Commanders wide receiver Luke McCaffrey (illness) returned to practice on Sunday after playing just one snap in Friday's 48-18 preseason loss to the Patriots. The 24-year-old is battling for a larger role in the Commanders' offense, and he should continue to see an uptick in reps with the first-team offense for as long as Terry McLaurin (ankle/contract) is sidelined. McCaffrey is entering his second season after being a third-round draft pick and had only one catch for negative one yard in the preseason loss. He finished his rookie campaign with a stat line of 18 catches for 168 yards and zero touchdowns. While he is not a significant fantasy contender in standard leagues, McCaffrey could be a late-round flyer in best ball formats and a much higher priority if McLaurin's contract issues linger into the regular season.