NFL Player News

Jaguars offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch wants to make better use of 6-foot-6 tight end Marcedes Lewis.

"We need him to be more than just a blocker," Fisch told the Associated Press. "We're trying to use this camp to see what he does best. There's a lot of positives. He's 6-6 and 260 pounds. When you have a guy like that, you have to find ways to get him the ball."

After catching 10 touchdown passes in 2010, Lewis has grabbed four in the past two seasons combined. He did go off for seven catches and 103 yards in the 2012 regular-season finale at Tennessee.

The Jeremy Maclin leg injury sounds pretty serious. It's terrible because the Eagles receiving corps isn't exactly rich with established talent and Maclin himself was poised to work hard in a contract year. Drafting him is a mistake until we know more about his situation. 

In the event his injury is season-ending, expect tall receiver Riley Cooper and speedster Damaris Johnson to see a lot of work in his place (Arrelious Benn would also be a factor except he, too, is battling an injury). These receivers shouldn't be drafted outside of deeper leagues but could be useful off waivers once byes kick in. 

Another move the Eagles could do is lean on tight end-heavy formations. For now Philadelphia has three intriguing tight ends in Brent Celek, James Casey and rookie Zach Ertz. All have had time with the first-team offense in the early days of camp. It wouldn't be a shock to see two of the three, if not all three, on the field at the same time. The Eagles could then look for mismatches in the quick-hitting passing game. 

Of the three tight ends, Casey is the one with the most upside, especially after a report last week suggested Casey was one of two receiving tight ends while Celek was more of a blocker. 

In addition to tight end Heath Miller, the Steelers placed linebacker Sean Spence, defensive lineman Alameda Ta'amu and tight end David Johnson on the PUP list to begin training camp. 

Tight ends have long been important in Chip Kelly's offenses, being involved in a dozen plays per game or more over Kelly's tenure at Oregon. So knowing the roles for Brent Celek, James Casey and Zach Ertz in the Eagles offense this season is pretty important. 

According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Celek is considered a blocker while Casey and Ertz will battle for work as pass catchers. That's a bit of a surprise considering Celek has 280 career catches in the pros while Casey and Ertz have combined for less than 200 in their respective times in college and the pros.

But the thinking is that Celek is the least athletic of the three and might be the easiest to cover in space, making Casey and Ertz both deep sleepers this summer. There's also a decent chance both Celek and one from Casey and Ertz will play a lot in two-tight end sets. Kelly has even hinted at using three tight ends at once. 

This is an interesting spot to watch in training camp, particularly if Casey comes alive. He's a giant with some good speed and could be a mismatch nightmare for opposing defenses -- not to mention a boon to whoever is quarterbacking the Eagles this year. He's on the deep sleeper list. 

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports Eagles tight end Brent Celek is considered a blocker for the time being while James Casey and rookie Zach Ertz will compete for playing time as pass catchers. Celek has 280 career catches in the pros while Casey has 66 and Ertz had 112 over his three years at Stanford.

Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Tuesday he expects tight end Tony Moeaki to participate in training camp. Moeaki has struggled with knee problems for years. 

The Eagles have cleared tight end James Casey and center Jason Kelce for training camp, reports the Delaware News Journal.

Quietly, Marcedes Lewis is becoming a late-round Fantasy Football sleeper thanks in part to the high praise heaped upon him by his coaching staff. The Florida Times-Union believes Lewis will be freed up more to run routes rather than block, making him a bigger part of the Jaguars' passing game in 2013. 

"I like what Marcedes can do," offensive coordinator Jedd Fisch said. "He's one of those guys who is big and strong and physical and can run block and pass protect. And he's been able to make the tough catches."

"I liked him then and after watching him on tape [as a pro], I like him even more,” added tight ends coach Ron Middleton, who scouted Lewis when he came out of college. "I think he's progressed nicely in his career. He brings some things to the table that can go hand-in-hand with this offense."

In our recent 12-team standard mock draft, Saints tight end Jimmy Graham was selected in Round 2 at No. 14 overall. That's a good spot to draft him if you want him on your team.

His Average Draft Position on CBSSports.com is No. 23 overall, and he should definitely be drafted in the second round in all formats. You have to consider Graham as an elite receiver when drafting your team. That means putting Graham in the mix with all the receivers after Calvin Johnson which includes A.J. Green, Brandon Marshall, Dez Bryant and Julio Jones.

Last year, Graham had 144 Fantasy points in a standard league, which would have made him the No. 18 wide receiver. But in 2011, when he was healthy and had coach Sean Payton calling plays, he had 187 Fantasy points. That would have made him the No. 6 receiver in 2012.

A smart plan when drafting Graham is to pair him with a No. 1 running back like Trent Richardson, LeSean McCoy, Ray Rice or Alfred Morris. You can then take your first receiver in Round 3 -- Roddy White, Randall Cobb or Percy Harvin should be there -- or another running back (consider Lamar Miller, David Wilson or Montee Ball).

Graham gives you a strong advantage at a weak position like tight end, and it pays to invest a early pick on him if you want to build a strong Fantasy roster.

Packers tight end Andrew Quarless was noticeably more explosive during OTAs after taking a full year to recover from a torn ACL and MCL, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

"Coming out of OTAs was the first time I really ran on it, running routes and stuff like that," Quarless said in May. "But I think it was just the preparation, getting the strength back and doing all the workouts that prepared me. They kind of threw me into it, which is not a bad thing. I kind of want to push it myself. This OTA was the first time, I've been cutting and stuff so it feels good."

Quarless' re-emergence has coach Mike McCarthy thinking Quarless will have a role in the offense in 2013.

"I really look for him to make an impact and definitely give us that player that we all felt that he was coming on there at the end of his rookie year," McCarthy said during OTAs. "He's the one guy that has shown the ability to play on the line and off the line and we're challenging the other tight ends to do so. He can clearly play all four positions for us in the tight end playbook, so he looks good."