Steelers at Panthers
Game Info
Kickoff: Thursday, August 29th at 7:00 pm ET
Location: Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Betting Odds: PIT -3 via Oddsshark
Network: KDKA, WSOC
Pittsburgh Steelers
Who Will Play Next to Juju
Juju Smith-Schuster is locked in as the number one WR for the Steelers. It seems that the spots behind him have finally started to crystalize. Donte Moncrief seems to have settled into the second WR spot. As I wrote in my Staff Consensus Ranks Review, I think Moncrief has some solid upside in this offense. Many people thought that sophomore receiver James Washington would become the second or third WR in the lineup, but it looks like he lost the battle. Washington has made some nice plays in the preseason games but has almost exclusively played with backup QB Mason Rudolph, who happened to be his QB in college. Ryan Switzer and Eli Rogers will likely split some slot duty when the Steelers want to move Smith-Schuster outside. Diontae Johnson looks to be behind all of them after an injury.
Vance McDonald’s Snaps
There was a lot of concern last week about Vance McDonald’s upside after some comments from Steelers offensive coordinator. Randy Fichter said that McDonald will never play the whole game this upcoming season. Many took this that McDonald will be limited in fantasy due to not having an every-down role. Please calm down. Last week McDonald played on 19 of 20 first-team snaps (which was the same as Juju Smith-Schuster). Of course, McDonald will not play every snap. It is nearly impossible for a TE to do so. No one is Travis Kelce. But McDonald will see a huge bump in playing time, which will be plenty to make him a top 8 TE this year.
Carolina Panthers
Cam Newton’s Health
During last week’s preseason game, Cam Newton was sacked and injured his left foot. He was limping when he got up and immediately left the field and did not return. X-rays came back negative and the Panthers are calling it a mild foot sprain. A sigh of relief from early fantasy drafters was heard around the country. It looks like Newton will be available week one, but we should monitor how he looks during the game. Newton’s mobility is incredibly important to his game and the foot sprain might limit his rushing early in the year.
Who Is CMC’s Backup?
Christian McCaffery is a monster. He set the record for RB receptions last year and rarely came off the field. Quietly this preseason, the Panthers have said they want to lower CMC’s snaps but not his touches. This means they want to find him some time to rest during the game but not decrease his overall workload. Well, the problem with this is who will be on the field then? The Panthers don’t have the best RB room in the league, besides CMC. Will it be fifth-round rookie Jordan Scarlett, Cameron Artis- Payne, or Reggie Bonnafon? None of these players have shown too much to earn fantasy players trust yet. Currently, it appears the rookie is in the lead for backup duties. This could be a valuable role if the Panthers decide to give some goal-line work to Scarlett, as he is much bigger than CMC.
-Frank Costanzo (@FrankQBList)