Who Should I Start? River Cracraft or Allen Lazard

Monday, August 19, 1:02 PM

Dolphins wide receiver River Cracraft (upper-body) is sidelined with an upper-body injury and is expected to miss some time in the regular season. Cracraft had a strong summer in his third season with Miami and seemed likely to start as the third receiver behind Tyreek Hill and Jaylen Waddle, especially with Odell Beckham Jr. (undisclosed) still on the PUP list. However, Cracraft's injury raises the possibility that he could be placed on injured reserve when the Dolphins finalize their 53-man roster. By August 27, the Dolphins will have three options for handling Cracraft: keep him on the 53-man roster until he recovers, initially include him on the roster and then place him on IR on August 28, or put him on IR immediately, which would count as one of the two IR moves allowed on cutdown day under new NFL rules. This situation simplifies the roster decisions and opens up a spot for Erik Ezukanma, who had an impressive preseason debut against Washington. If the Dolphins keep six wide receivers, Ezukanma could join Hill, Waddle, Beckham, Braxton Berrios, and rookie Malik Washington, who will secure a spot on the roster. With these receiver injuries, Hill and Waddle will likely see even more targets, boosting Hill's value as the top overall pick in redraft leagues.

Thursday, September 5, 12:28 AM

New York Jets wide receiver Allen Lazard is expected to have a larger workload when the regular season begins this week, according to Zack Rosenblatt of The Athletic. His additional volume is a direct result of Mike Williams (knee) opening the year on a limited workload. Lazard was quiet in 2023, catching just 23 passes for 311 yards and one touchdown. This year, however, he gets to play alongside Aaron Rodgers and will open the season with some extra volume. These factors won't be enough to put Lazard on the fantasy year, but don't be surprised if you hear his name called more often over these first few weeks of the season.