Who Should I Start? River Cracraft or Russell Gage

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.

Monday, August 26, 4:08 PM

The Baltimore Ravens are releasing wide receiver Russell Gage, according to NFL insider Ian Rapoport. Gage missed all of last season with a torn patellar tendon that he suffered in training camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and he is now being let go by Baltimore after signing with the team earlier this month. Since being selected in the sixth round of the 2018 NFL Draft out of LSU, Gage has racked up 244 receptions for 2,491 yards and 14 touchdowns. He had big moments with the Atlanta Falcons and Buccaneers earlier in his career, but his major injury from last year could be affecting him in 2024. Either way, there's a chance another organization will give the veteran a shot as teams cut down to 53 players by Tuesday at 4 p.m. Eastern.