When to draft Le'Veon Bell? Check out some training camp fantasy storylines

By foxsports
Published

You shouldn't get too excited about training camp news -- depth charts, coachspeak about impressive players, "Player X put on 20 pounds of muscle," etc. Such information can be miseleading, and therefore not helpful to your fantasy fortunes.

However, there are a handful storylines that bear watching for fantasy owners right now.

1. Le'Veon Bell's suspension

Reports have surfaced that the Steelers think Bell will win his August 18 appeal and be ready to roll in Week 1. Unfortunately, this adds confusion for fantasy owners drafting between now and then. Is Bell a candidate for the top overall fantasy pick, or a third-rounder who will play eight regular-season fantasy games?

2. The PUPs

Sometimes the "Physically Unable to Perform" list is used as a precaution, and other times it's used for players who are really hurt. Either way, it scares the daylights out of fantasy owners. How can you draft a guy on the PUP list? That's asking for trouble, right?

Two important fantasy players were removed from their team's PUP lists over the weekend: Seahawks RB Thomas Rawls and Patriots WR Julian Edelman. The Seahawks will ease Rawls back into practices and seem to think he'll be ready for Week 1, while Edelman is already in pads and should be just fine moving forward.

Other PUP players to keep an eye on are Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles, Redskins WR Josh Doctson, Bengals TE Tyler Eifert, Seahawks TE Jimmy Graham, Steelers TE Ladarius Green, Patriots RB Dion Lewis, Packers WR Jordy Nelson, and Ravens WRs Breshad Perriman and Steve Smith. Eifert, Graham and the two Ravens are the players who warrant the most concern.

3. Rookie RBs

Barring further injury or other strange circumstances, Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott is primed for a monster fantasy season. However, there are plenty of other rookie backs who could earn playing time, and training camp might help (or hurt) their quests. Here are some to watch:

Derrick Henry, Titans (RB43 in FOXSports.com consensus rankings) -- The Heisman Trophy winner figures to share early-down work with DeMarco Murray. Will that role generate enough carries to be productive?

Kenneth Dixon, Ravens (RB50) -- The fourth-rounder from Louisiana Tech is in a crowded situation with Justin Forsett, Buck Allen and Terrance West. Maybe Dixon will get buried, but since he can run and catch, he sounds like a good fit for OC Marc Trestman's offense. The other three backs aren't stars, so a strong camp might make a difference for Dixon.

C.J. Prosise, Seahawks (RB53) -- Nursing a hamstring injury at the moment, Prosise is a former college wide receiver who could provide PPR value as Seattle's third-down back.

Devontae Booker, Broncos (RB60) -- Are you a believer in C.J. Anderson? Booker will probably start the season as a backup, but a productive preseason could cement his case as a reliable option who could play later this season.

Jordan Howard, Bears (unranked) -- Howard is a bruiser who could snipe short-yardage work (and more) from Jeremy Langford.

Paul Perkins, Giants (unranked) -- The former UCLA star was drafted in the fifth round and will compete for carries with Rashad Jennings, Shane Vereen and Andre Williams. Perkins has impressed so far in camp, and even though Jennings looks to be the clear lead back to start the season, he's never carried more than 200 times in a year. Keep an eye on Perkins and consider him as a late-round stash if roster parameters allow. (Note: I took Perkins as my RB6 in the 15th round of last week's FLEX Leagues PPR draft.)

4. Josh Gordon's return

Gordon is the kind of player whose preseason will help us determine his fantasy status. He played five games in 2014 and missed last season, so it's not a guarantee that we'll see the 2013 version of Gordon this season OR EVER.

Gordon was taken in the fifth round of the August 6 FLEX Leagues PPR draft, which was very aggressive considering his extended absence and four-game suspension to start the year. However, he's only 25, so a bounceback certainly isn't out of the question. Let's hope he's on the practice field soon so we can see his progress for ourselves.

5. The Dolphins' offense

New head coach Adam Gase starts with a reputation as an offensive guru, but who will benefit from his alleged genius? The 'Fins have Arian Foster and Jay Ajayi at running back, an emerging DeVante Parker to go along with Jarvis Landry, Kenny Stills and rookie Leonte Carroo at wide receiver and the recently disappointing Jordan Cameron at tight end.

Will Foster take over as the lead back? Will Parker live up to his first-round potential? Will Cameron benefit from the magic that Gase has worked with tight ends? The preseason might help us figure all that out.