Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Snap count drops in Week 15
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McCaffrey reeled in his lone target for no gain and played 12 of the Commanders' 78 snaps on offense in Sunday's 20-19 win over the Saints.
Coming out of a Week 14 bye, the Commanders placed No. 2 wideout Noah Brown (kidney) on injured reserve, but his absence didn't open up any more opportunities for McCaffrey. In fact, McCaffrey saw his snap count on offense get cut in half from the Commanders' previous game, when he logged 22 snaps in a Week 13 win over the Titans. Though the Commanders lost Brown to IR, Jamison Crowder (calf) was activated prior to Sunday's game and ended up leapfrogging McCaffrey in the pecking order at receiver, finishing fourth in snaps behind fellow wideouts Terry McLaurin, Dyami Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus. The 2024 third-round pick out of Rice has struggled to find his footing during his rookie season, recording just 17 receptions for 155 yards on 21 targets through 14 games.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Held to 13 yards
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McCaffrey caught both of his targets for 13 yards in a 42-19 win over the Titans on Sunday.
McCaffrey didn't get any extra playing time after starting wideout Noah Brown left with a rib injury. Dyami Brown filled in instead, while McCaffrey and Olamide Zaccheaus maintained their usual depth roles. In any case, Noah Brown may be healthy after the Week 14 bye.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Catches one pass against Dallas
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McCaffrey caught his lone target for eight yards in Sunday's 34-26 loss to the Cowboys.
McCaffrey's minimal production continues to be a result of his limited usage within Washington's offense. The rookie wideout's 26 percent offensive snap share in the contest was his lowest of the season, and the 23-year-old has recorded just 14 catches for 142 scoreless yards through 12 games. McCaffrey should remain off the fantasy radar when the Commanders host the Titans in Week 13.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Targeted once
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McCaffrey had one target and no catches in Thursday's 26-18 loss at Philadelphia.
McCaffrey played 30 percent of snaps on offense, fifth most among Washington wide receivers. He's yet to draw more than three targets in a game and isn't likely to get a big usage bump Week 12 against Dallas.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Quiet in win over Chicago
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McCaffrey secured one of two targets for eight yards during Sunday's 18-15 win over the Bears.
McCaffrey improved on his Week 7 performance, in which he failed to draw a single target in a blowout win over Carolina, but his production versus Chicago remained lackluster. His share of offensive snaps (36 percent) has been similar to Olamide Zaccheaus (35 percent) and Dyami Brown (32 percent), but well behind Terry McLaurin and Noah Brown. Heading into a Week 9 matchup against the Giants, the rookie third-round pick will remain off the fantasy radar until he's able to showcase more consistency and/or upside.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Not targeted in blowout win
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McCaffrey was held without a target in Sunday's 40-7 win over the Panthers.
McCaffrey was a complete non-factor Week 7, as the rookie was held without a reception for the first time since Week 2. The 23-year-old wideout played 26 of the Commanders' 69 offensive snaps Sunday, trailing fellow receiversTerry McLaurin (49), Noah Brown (42) and Olamide Zaccheaus (29). At this point, McCaffrey isn't seeing enough usage in Washington's passing attack to be in consideration for fantasy purposes.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Targeted once in loss
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McCaffrey caught his lone target for five yards in Sunday's 30-23 loss to the Ravens.
McCaffrey continues to get most of the slot snaps for Washington but has been targeted on just 11 percent of his routes this season, whereas fellow Washington wide receivers Terry McLaurin, Noah Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus have all been targeted on at least 25.0 percent of theirs. McCaffrey may see more passes as his rookie season progresses, but he can't be counted on for much Week 7 at Carolina.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Catches three passes
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McCaffrey caught each of his three targets for 19 yards in a 34-13 win over the Browns on Sunday.
The rookie played a season-high 66 percent of snaps on offense, taking on a bit of extra playing time with Noah Brown inactive due to a groin injury. It was only a minor change, however, as Dyami Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus took most of the snaps that normally would go to Brown. It'll still be hard to trust any Washington wideout for more than two or three targets when the Commanders head to Baltimore in Week 6.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Catches three passes for 44 yards
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McCaffrey caught each of his three targets for 44 yards in Monday's 38-33 win over the Bengals.
McCaffrey played only 34 percent of the offensive snaps on a night when the Commanders mostly led and didn't use a lot of three-wide formations. The rookie has generally looked good and had a 30-yard gain on a catch-and-run Sunday night, but his workload still isn't anywhere close to fantasy starter territory, given his limited role in an offense that's attempted fewer than 30 passes in each game so far. He'll take aim at the Cardinals in Week 4, playing on the road in a game with the largest over/under (50.5) on the slate.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Not targeted against Giants
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McCaffrey failed to record a single target in Sunday's 21-18 win over the Giants.
Despite playing a healthy 56 percent of offensive snaps Sunday, McCaffrey was not involved in the passing game on a day in which Jayden Daniels attempted 29 passes. The rookie wideout figures to see his usage fluctuate in Washington's offense as the passing attack gets things figured out with a rookie signal caller at the helm. With that said, McCaffrey should continue to develop alongside Daniels toward a stronger connection as the season progresses. Fantasy managers hoping for a quick breakout for the 23-year-old receiver should exercise patience. McCaffrey will look to take a step forward in Week 3 when the Commanders visit the Bengals.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Week 1 Waiver Priority List
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The Commanders traded Jahan Dotson to the Eagles, which opened the door for McCaffrey, Noah Brown (10 percent) and Dyami Brown (0 percent) to be the No. 2 receiver behind Terry McLaurin. None of these guys will be Fantasy starters right away, but one of them could emerge by the end of the season as an option in deeper leagues. I'd stash McCaffrey first based on upside, but this is a receiving corps to monitor early in the year.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Not separating from other WRs
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McCaffrey hasn't emerged as an obvious top-four wide receiver to open the season for Washington, John Keim of ESPN.com reports.
Even after the Commanders' trade of Jahan Dotson this week, McCaffrey hasn't earned a starting role in Washington. It sounds like Dyami Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus are pushing for playing time behind Terry McLaurin, and even slot man Jamison Crowder could be in the mix. McCaffrey is relatively new to the wide receiver position after playing it for just two seasons. If McCaffrey doesn't open the season in three-wide sets, it's not out of the question that he finishes 2024 in a prominent role.
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Commanders' Luke McCaffrey: Washington adds in third round
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The Commanders selected McCaffrey in the third round of the 2024 NFL Draft, 100th overall.
McCaffrey originally arrived to Nebraska as a coveted quarterback recruit, but he couldn't stick at the position and ended up making the switch to receiver after transferring to Rice. He's a bit thin at 6-foot-2, 198 pounds and has little catch radius to speak of, but his athleticism tested well at the NFL Combine (4.46-second 40-yard dash, 6.7-second three-cone drill), and his production at Rice was generally encouraging, especially since he just started playing wideout in 2022. It's possible that McCaffrey might need some more developmental time after switching from quarterback, but the bloodlines are obviously highly favorable, and he clearly possesses starter-caliber athleticism. Washington simply now waits to see how much he can improve with experience.
