I'm starting to worry about John Brown. The small, but talented Cardinals receiver is having trouble recovering from a concussion; Brown was held out of practice yesterday due to recurring headaches stemming from said concussion. The diminutive WR was able to return to non-contact drills on Thursday, but was forced to depart practice early; though no reason was given for Brown's exit, it's hard not to assume it has something to do with the lingering effects of the concussion. Concussions are no joke, as we were again reminded with the scary stories surfacing about Tre Mason and the effects concussions have had on his ability to function as an adult, and he's only 23 years old. While I'm not implying anything like this with Brown, I would like to see him back at full strength before I draft him right now, at least where he's currently going.
Training Camp Notes: Down on Brown
While the Brown situation should present a real worry for Arizona, it appears they don't need to worry about Larry Fitzgerald; Fitz wasn't expected to be able to practice Thursday as he continued to recover from a minor MCL sprain, however the veteran was spotted in pads by the media prior to the start of individual drills. Regardless of how involved Fitzgerald was in the practice period (no media allowed), it's clearly a positive sign that he's back on the field and will be a boon for the Cardinals, especially if Brown' situation lingers longer than expected.
Tom Brady will make his preseason debut in Friday night's tilt with the Panthers. Brady, of course, will be sitting on the sidelines for the first four weeks of the season, so don't expect him to play much; even Brady won't want to steal precious first-team snaps from Garoppolo in what will be the most important opportunity for the kid to prepare for his first NFL start. Either way, it'll be fun to see Brady out there and you can be sure he's going to come back with a vengeance in Week 5, as he is the king of taking a chip on his shoulder and translating it into success on the field.
Ok, so this is one of those stories that could (and likely will) never amount to anything. The odds say in fact it won't. But, if it does, it could have a legitimate effect on your fantasy teams. A.J. Green's wife is due to have their first child on Friday, Sep. 30, which happens to be the day after the Bengals battle the Dolphins on Thursday Night Football. And guess what? Green said he will miss that game should it conflict with his ability to be there for the birth of his child. Again, this is very unlikely to happen, but if the unlikely becomes reality, you can expect a lot of angry A.J. Green fantasy owners come Week 4 of the season.
Julio Jones left Thursday's preseason contest vs. the Dolphins with an apparent ankle injury. While I'm sure many a Julio Jones fantasy owner gasped with horror when he went down, it luckily doesn't appear to be serious as the WR was seen lobbying coaches to return to the game after having the injury checked out. Obviously, keep an eye on the situation just in case, but it looks like Julio owners have dodged their first bullet of the season.