We sincerely hope you are enjoying TreVeyon Henderson Fantasy Hype Week — yes, we took a brief detour into Jacory Croskey-Merrit Hype Week, but quickly course-corrected.

It is now once again Henderson’s moment.

More accurately, it’s a moment in which fantasy analysts are shouting over each other about Henderson’s outrageous supernova upside. He’s been one of the NFL’s buzziest camp stories, because the highlights simply won’t stop. Henderson is scoring on wheel routes, he’s scoring on kick returns. He’s also scoring in the traditional manner of the best NFL running backs, dragging would-be tacklers into the end-zone:

 

He’s been ridiculous.

Also ridiculous: Henderson’s leap in average draft position. Back in July, his ADP in National Fantasy Football Championship (NFC) leagues was 60.47. After the calendar flipped to August, it soared to 48.09. Over the past five days, it’s 37.42.

That is wild movement within a draft range in which a three- or four-spot jump is notable. A 23-spot climb should probably trigger a national alert system. NFC drafters are, of course, more inclined than others to chase ceiling outcomes, so they were already getting aggressive on Henderson in mid-summer. These days, the NFC crowd is as all-in as it gets.

So is the frenzy justified?

Well, there’s really no arguing about Henderson’s explosiveness. It was evident at Ohio State and it’s been no less obvious during his first NFL preseason. Henderson has also shown both willingness and aptitude in pass protection — normally a hindrance to rookie RBs earning playing time — so that’s not a serious concern. Durability was an issue at the college level, but the Buckeyes managed his workload last year and maximized his efficiency. He never carried the ball more than a dozen times in any game, yet he still topped 1000 yards for the season while averaging an obnoxious 7.1 YPC.

Henderson won’t be alone in New England’s backfield, we should note. Rhamondre Stevenson isn’t leaving the game plan for New England. This is actually an ideal scenario for Henderson in reality, but it’s gonna cause fantasy managers to absolutely rage as the season unfolds.

If you happen to be a veteran of the Melvin Gordon-Javonte Williams Wars of 2021, then you know what’s coming. Prepare for something at least as vicious. A certain segment of the fantasy community will have zero tolerance for any snaps played by Stevenson this season, but he’s likely to emerge as a classic buzzkill back.

Still, Henderson is a cartoonish playmaker, fully capable of validating an early-fourth round ADP. But if he climbs much higher than 37.42, he’s probably going to need to shove Stevenson aside in order to deliver a significant profit.

Jaxson Dart was dealing again in his final preseason game

It seems clear the New York Giants are going to start the season with Russell Wilson at quarterback, but it does not seem at all clear that Jaxson Dart isn’t ready to play. He just concluded a stellar preseason with an 81-yard, 1-TD performance against New England on Thursday night — and it could have been sooooo much better if Jalin Hyatt’s hands were fully functional.

Dart is an obvious stash in SuperFlex leagues at this point. It’s inconceivable he won’t be starting games for the Giants as a rookie. If it doesn’t happen relatively soon, it’s an act of coaching negligence. The only glaring weakness in his game based on exhibition play is a reluctance to slide, but surely that’s a correctable issue. Dart has absolutely passed the eye test.

Buzz on Ollie Gordon gets louder

Based strictly on draft capital, simply making Miami’s 53-man roster would be a great outcome for Gordon. He was only a sixth-round pick; the Dolphins themselves passed on him five times. Gordon has been a preseason revelation, however, delivering a series of highlight runs, all of which seem to end in violence and devastation.

On Thursday, Jaylen Wright suffered an injury during practice, leaving Gordon to handle nearly every rep. (De’Von Achane is still sidelined by a calf issue.) At this point, it seems likely Miami will add running back depth, either via the discard pile or trade. Gordon definitely isn’t a lock to open the regular season in any sort of rotation with Achane … but hey, if he actually did, he would certainly become a player of interest.

As it is, you should probably make him an end-of-draft priority.

Tampa Bay has lost yet another receiver to injury

Chris Godwin is apparently not yet running or cutting on his surgically repaired ankle and Jalen McMillan is currently in a neck brace, expected to miss roughly half the season following a preseason injury. Neither player has been ruled out for the year, but this is still a messy situation, leaving Baker Mayfield with a pretty thin receiving corps. If you haven’t yet dropped Mayfield a few spots (and a tier) in your pre-draft ranks, now would be the time.

First-round rookie Emeka Egbuka now has an uncluttered path to playing time and he’s made serious noise throughout camp:

If you aren’t willing to take Egbuka inside the top-35 receivers, you aren’t getting him in a competitive draft.

Let’s also please remember Tampa basically built its entire passing game around Cade Otton last season when injuries wrecked the receiving room in October. During a four-game midseason stretch, he was targeted 39 times, catching 30. He’s a sneaky bet to produce top-12 tight end numbers in the early weeks of 2025.

Washington’s backfield remains a crowd

You might have thought jettisoning Brian Robinson would simplify things in Washington’s backfield, but not really. We know the aforementioned JCM will handle a share of the rushing workload and we should assume Austin Ekeler will continue in last year’s perfectly Ekelerish role. We also learned on Thursday, via Ben Standig’s fine questioning, that Chris Rodriguez will continue to vulture goal-line opportunities. You shouldn’t be any less enthusiastic about Croskey-Merritt — a fun player enjoying a strong summer — but we need to recognize he’s the head of a committee, not an every-snap workhorse.

Also, no one should be sleeping on Deebo Samuel’s potential contributions on the ground. Jayden Daniels isn’t too shabby as a runner, either.

Our weekly note about the timeless greatness of Matthew Golden

Not a day goes by without a clip from a camp drill or joint practice in which Golden is chewing up some overmatched defensive back. Here’s his latest:

Green Bay has rolled out a deep-but-starless group of receivers ever since Davante Adams left the building. Golden is beginning to look like the WR1 the Packers have been lacking.

Ben Sauls was cooking against Carolina

If you’re a subscriber to Jake Ciely’s premium newsletter, All In Kick, then you already knew about Ben Saul. He was one of Jake’s favorite deep sleeper dynasty kickers. Saul drilled all four of his field goal attempts against the Panthers on Thursday night — all of them down the center, never a doubt.

Chris Boswell’s job isn’t at risk, but Sauls has demonstrated he should be kicking for someone in 2025. Yet another incredible call by Ciely. Nobody grinds kicking tape like Jake.

(Photo of TreVeyon Henderson: Brad Rempel / Imagn Images)