Green Bay

Packers

Austin announced his retirement on his Instagram on Tuesday, saying “after an incredible ten years, I’m officially retiring from the NFL.” The former first-round pick was a phenom in college at West Virginia, totaling 4,446 yards from scrimmage in 52 games. The Rams selected Austin in the 2013 draft and he went on to total over 1,000 yards as a rusher, receiver, and returner each over his career. After five seasons with the Rams, he spent time with the Cowboys, 49ers, Packers, Jaguars, and Bills either on the active roster, practice squad, or offseason roster. Injuries derailed much of Austin’s career towards the end, but he will best be known as a triple-threat weapon with the Rams. Austin retires at 34, saying “just like seasons, they come to an end, and it’s time for me to enter my next chapter in life”.

Lloyd exited Saturday’s preseason game against the Browns and did not return. The rookie running back has dealt with a number of nagging injuries in camp, with Saturday’s injury being the latest setback. According to Schultz, the Packers plan to be cautious with Lloyd in the coming days, but it sounds like he’ll have a chance to play in Week 1, assuming he doesn’t suffer any additional setbacks.

Lloyd saw only two touches in Saturday’s game. He rushed once for eight yards and caught another one-yard pass before leaving with his injury. We don’t yet know the severity of his injury, but we will likely learn more after the game or in the coming days. Lloyd was dealing with a hip injury earlier in training camp and is currently thought to be behind Josh Jacobs and AJ Dillon on the running back depth chart.

Wicks remains unlikely to begin the season as a starter from 11-personnel but plays like this continue to hint at untapped upside for the second-year wide receiver. Coming off a rookie season in which he ranked fourth in route win rate against man coverage and 10th in overall route win rate, Wicks could eventually force the issue and earn additional snaps for a suddenly crowded Green Bay wide receiver room.

Reed missed a few practices with his calf injury but has now returned to the field. The second-year receiver is competing for snaps in a crowded receiver room and hoping to build on a rookie campaign in which he totaled 64 catches for 796 yards and eight touchdowns. Reed will provide fantasy managers with plenty of splash weeks this season but may struggle to provide consistent, high-end fantasy production in an offense that has several talented playmakers at the position.

It’s reportedly not a serious injury and the team is being careful with the starting wideout. Last year, Reed battled foot and toe injuries but only missed one game. His calf issue will be one to monitor as Green Bay wideouts fight for snaps in a crowded receiver room.

Kraft passed his physical and was activated from the PUP list. The Packers are expected to bring him along slowly with head coach Matt LaFleur stating that the second-year tight end would likely spend some time on the side in individual drills before eventually making his way back into full practices. Even so, Kraft was facing the possibility of missing the first four weeks of the season while on the PUP list, something that his activation seems to hint against. Look for Kraft to mix in with fellow second-year tight end Luke Musgrave in the weekly game plan this season.

The tallies come from Acme Packing Co. Team Community Producer, Justis Mosqueda, whose 2023 Family Night and preseason snap counts helped Mosqueda effectively project last year’s regular season starting lineup. Doubs (21 snaps) and Watson (19 snaps) debuted as the two-wide receiver-set winners with second-year WR Jayden Reed logging 16 snaps, WR Dontayvion Wicks six, Bo Melton five and Grant DuBose two. Doubs will be a fantasy-draft-day steal if the trend holds.

Hirschhorn said on the Rotoworld Football Show that Dillon has impressed during training camp and is positioning himself as the clear second option behind Josh Jacobs, who is dealing with a groin injury. Hirschhorn said rookie RB MarShawn Lloyd, who has a hip injury, could see something of a “red shirt” season in 2024 before being used more in the coming years. Dillon — who has underachieved throughout his NFL career — is reportedly in the best shape of his life and seemingly has a chance to function as Green Bay’s lead back should Jacobs miss time this year.

Some fantasy managers had probably already assumed this based on Lloyd’s draft status and AJ Dillon’s paltry contract, but Dillon has also been earning rave reviews for being in better shape. “Lloyd’s shiftiness and burst have been noticeable since the offseason program and his total skill-set might be enough to unseat Dillon as the primary backup to Josh Jacobs,” was Schneidman’s exact report. It’s one report on August 1, but Lloyd garnering early puff pieces is certainly better than the alternative. Packers coach Matt LaFleur seems to prefer committees, and we would have to assume a strong camp would put Lloyd ahead of plodder Dillon.