NFL Preseason Friday Recap: The Fantasy Football Takeaways You Actually Need

Three games. Plenty of questions answered. And a few fantasy players just made themselves a lot more interesting.

Friday night gave us the second night of NFL Preseason Week 1, with the Miami Dolphins visiting the Washington Commanders, the Denver Broncos taking on the Atlanta Falcons, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers traveling across the Hudson to face the New York Jets.

The final scores aren't what fantasy managers should care about.

The usage is.

Who got the football? Who played with the starters? Who was trusted around the goal line? Which rookies looked ready for NFL snaps? And, perhaps most importantly, which performances were actually meaningful instead of preseason box-score noise?

Here's everything from Friday night that matters for fantasy football.

De'Von Achane immediately gets involved

Miami lost the game, but the Dolphins gave fantasy managers something to watch on their opening possession.

Quarterback Malik Willis completed 4 of 5 passes for 43 yards, and the drive ended with De'Von Achane scoring on a 1-yard touchdown run.

That's the important part.

Not the touchdown itself.

The opportunity.

Achane has never needed anyone to convince fantasy managers that he can make explosive plays in space. His fantasy ceiling has always been tied to how Miami deploys him and how consistently he receives high-value touches.

A goal-line opportunity on the opening possession is therefore considerably more interesting than a random preseason touchdown in the fourth quarter.

Fantasy stock: UP

Don't move Achane dramatically because of one preseason drive.

But this is encouraging.

If Miami continues using him around the goal line and in the passing game, his ceiling remains enormous.

The biggest fantasy surprise of Friday night may have been Kaytron Allen.

The rookie running back ran for 85 yards and a touchdown, while Robert Henry Jr. added 75 rushing yards and a score as Washington's running game dominated Miami.

Washington rested its starters, so there's an obvious context issue.

But Allen's performance still matters.

The rookie is competing for a significant role, and preseason games are exactly where young running backs can force coaches to give them more opportunities.

Fantasy stock: WATCH CLOSELY

Allen isn't suddenly a fantasy RB2.

He's something more useful right now:

A rookie running back whose draft-day price could become interesting if the workload continues.

The next thing to watch isn't whether he scores another touchdown.

It's whether Washington starts giving him meaningful reps with the better offensive personnel.

Allen wasn't the only Washington running back to make noise.

Robert Henry Jr. rushed for 75 yards and a touchdown.

That's important because Washington's running-back competition could become one of the more interesting fantasy situations to monitor during the rest of August.

Fantasy stock: DEEP-DYNASTY WATCH

Don't chase either player based solely on Friday.

But if one of them begins receiving first-team work while the other gets pushed down the depth chart, fantasy managers need to react quickly.

The Dolphins' offense is undergoing a significant transition, making Friday's opening drive more important than the final score.

Malik Willis completed four of five passes for 43 yards before the Dolphins' offense eventually struggled.

Miami lost 20-7, but fantasy managers shouldn't interpret that as evidence that the offense is going to be bad.

Preseason offenses are intentionally vanilla.

The more important question is how the Dolphins distribute touches.

Fantasy players to monitor

De'Von Achane — RB

Malik Willis — QB

Miami's receiving corps

The preseason should tell us much more about their roles than their final statistics.

Tua Tagovailoa's Falcons debut was rough

Friday represented the beginning of a new chapter for Tua Tagovailoa in Atlanta.

It didn't start well.

Tua finished with only 22 passing yards and lost a fumble as Denver beat Atlanta 27-7.

That's a bad box score.

But fantasy managers need to resist the urge to turn one preseason appearance into a season-long prediction.

Tua's career track record is considerably more important than what happened during one August game.

Fantasy stock: HOLD

This isn't a reason to dump Tua in fantasy drafts.

It is a reason to watch Atlanta closely.

The question is whether the Falcons can build an efficient offense around him and whether the passing game develops enough consistency to support multiple fantasy-relevant players.

The Broncos' backup quarterback Jarrett Stidham threw for 131 yards and a touchdown in the victory.

But the bigger fantasy storyline was the offensive personnel surrounding him.

Courtland Sutton produced several notable plays, while Denver's offense moved the ball effectively.

Fantasy stock: SUTTON REMAINS INTERESTING

Sutton doesn't need preseason statistics to establish his fantasy value.

What matters is whether Denver continues treating him as a primary target when the regular season approaches.

Friday provided another opportunity to watch that role develop.

Cade Klubnik gives Jets fans something to talk about

The Jets' rookie quarterback made his preseason debut Friday night.

And there were flashes.

Cade Klubnik finished with 56 passing yards and helped produce a touchdown drive.

That's not a massive statistical performance.

It doesn't need to be.

For a rookie quarterback, preseason evaluation is about command, processing, accuracy, movement and whether the offense looks functional when he's running it.

Klubnik showed enough to keep the quarterback competition interesting.

Fantasy stock: WATCH

He's not a fantasy starter right now.

But if Klubnik eventually wins the job and demonstrates rushing ability, he becomes a much more intriguing late-round quarterback.

Rushing production can turn a mediocre passing quarterback into a fantasy asset very quickly.

One of the more interesting performances on the Buccaneers' side came from Michael Pratt, who played later in the game and helped Tampa Bay control the second half.

The Bucs ultimately won 24-16.

But rookie Ayden Garnes supplied the defensive highlight of the night, returning an interception 47 yards for a touchdown.

That's mostly irrelevant for traditional fantasy leagues.

It is relevant for Tampa Bay's roster competition.

The Jets also had quarterback Bailey Zappe involved in the game, and Tampa Bay's defense intercepted him twice.

The bigger Jets storyline, however, remains the development of Klubnik.

The preseason isn't about determining whether a quarterback is going to become a superstar.

It's about determining whether the coaching staff trusts him enough to give him increasingly important snaps.

Friday gave us the first piece of that puzzle.

De'Von Achane

Why: Goal-line touchdown opportunity on Miami's opening possession.

Fantasy takeaway: His usage is more important than his preseason numbers. If Miami continues putting him in scoring situations, his ceiling remains extremely high.

Kaytron Allen

Why: 85 rushing yards and a touchdown.

Fantasy takeaway: One of the biggest rookie running-back performances of Friday. Monitor his workload closely.

Robert Henry Jr.

Why: 75 rushing yards and a touchdown.

Fantasy takeaway: Washington's running-back competition deserves attention.

Cade Klubnik

Why: Productive debut and touchdown drive.

Fantasy takeaway: Not draft-worthy as a starter yet, but his rushing ability and potential starting opportunity make him a name to monitor.

Courtland Sutton

Why: Continued involvement in Denver's offense.

Fantasy takeaway: His fantasy value remains tied to his role as a primary target, not preseason statistics.

Tua Tagovailoa

Why: Only 22 passing yards and a lost fumble.

Fantasy takeaway: Bad debut, but absolutely no reason for a major fantasy panic yet.

Miami's offense

Why: Only seven points.

Fantasy takeaway: Don't overreact. The offense is still being evaluated, and preseason play-calling is deliberately limited.

There is a temptation every preseason to look at the box score and immediately declare somebody a fantasy breakout.

Don't.

The most valuable preseason statistics are often hidden between the lines.

A running back receiving:

• Goal-line carries


• Third-down snaps


• Two-minute work


• First-team reps


• Passing-game opportunities

is much more interesting than a running back who racks up 100 yards against defenders who won't make the roster.

The same applies to wide receivers.

A receiver catching three passes with the starting quarterback may be considerably more important than somebody catching eight passes against third-string defenders.

🚀 BUY THE HYPE CAREFULLY

De'Von Achane

The usage is encouraging. Keep watching the role.

👀 ROOKIE TO WATCH

Kaytron Allen

85 yards and a touchdown is impossible to completely ignore.

👀 DEEP ROOKIE WATCH

Robert Henry Jr.

Another strong Washington running-back performance makes this competition worth tracking.

👀 QUARTERBACK WATCH

Cade Klubnik

The rookie's debut wasn't statistically overwhelming, but there were enough positives to keep him on the radar.

⚠️ DON'T PANIC

Tua Tagovailoa

One preseason game doesn't erase his NFL résumé.

Three games.

Three very different fantasy stories.

Miami's offense showed flashes even in a 20-7 loss.

Washington's running game produced two young backs who deserve another look.

Denver rolled Atlanta while Tua Tagovailoa struggled through his first Falcons appearance.

And in New York, Cade Klubnik gave the Jets something they desperately needed:

a reason to keep watching.

But the real fantasy takeaway from Friday isn't found in the final scores.

It's found in the roles.

Achane getting valuable touches.

Allen and Henry competing for Washington's backfield.

Sutton continuing to look like an important piece of Denver's offense.

Klubnik getting his first taste of NFL action.

And Tua beginning the process of proving that his new situation in Atlanta can work.

The preseason isn't about finding August champions.

It's about finding September information before everyone else does.

And after Friday night, Kaytron Allen, De'Von Achane and Cade Klubnik are three names fantasy managers should be paying considerably more attention to.