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The Playbook: Lineup locks, Shadow Reports for Week 1

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The Playbook: Lineup locks, Shadow Reports for Week 1


Welcome to the Fantasy Football Playbook for Week 1, which kicked off Thursday with the Cowboys at the Eagles.

This column features score projections, over/unders, win probabilities, and, of course, easily digestible fantasy advice for seasonlong leagues and DFS. This guide should help you with all sorts of decision-making, including sit/start decisions, last-minute waiver adds and lineup choices.

Additionally, we have folded the Shadow Report, previously a separate column, into the game-by-game breakdowns below. Using our play-by-play data, we’re able to identify defensive schemes and where each wide receiver and cornerback lines up on each play. By tracking these WR/CB matchups, including potential shadow situations, we can offer the best projections, rankings, sit/start advice and waiver wire suggestions each week.



All of this advice is centered on 12-team PPR leagues with relatively standard scoring and lineup settings (1 QB, 2 RB, 3 WR, 1 flex, 1 K, 1 D/ST), although I’ll often mention “shallow” or “deep” leagues for some starters. The charts show all players who have been projected for at least 6.0 fantasy points this week, as well as all D/STs. “Matchup” is automatically determined using a proprietary metric that factors in raw and volume-adjusted fantasy points allowed to each position by the opposing defense this season.

(Editor’s note: Projections and rankings will align almost perfectly, but sometimes when a projection is close, a player might be ranked slightly higher or lower because of other factors, including upside or risk. This column is subject to updates during the weekend, although at the very minimum, rankings will be updated on the site and projections will always be updated inside the game leading up to kickoff.)


TB-ATL | CIN-CLE | MIA-IND | CAR-JAX | LV-NE | ARI-NO
PIT-NYJ | NYG-WAS | TEN-DEN | SF-SEA | DET-GB | HOU-LAR | BAL-BUF | MIN-CHI


Projected score: Buccaneers 27, Falcons 23

Lineup locks: Baker Mayfield, Bijan Robinson, Bucky Irving, Drake London, Mike Evans, Emeka Egbuka

Shadow Report: Expect A.J. Terrell Jr. to shadow Evans in Week 1. Atlanta’s top corner shadowed most weeks last season, including a Week 5 showdown with Evans. Evans posted a strong 5-62-2 receiving line on seven targets in the game. Evans was out for the Week 8 meeting between the teams, but Terrell also shadowed him in Week 5 back in 2022 (where Evans posted an 8-4-81-0 receiving line), as well as in Week 7 (8-6-82-1) and Week 14 (1-1-5-0) of 2023.

Some quick math shows that Evans has produced 14.3 fantasy PPG in the four meetings with Terrell, having reached 20 points twice. With Chris Godwin Jr. and Jalen McMillan both out, Evans will be Mayfield’s top target and Terrell hasn’t been much of a detriment to his success. Evans should be locked in as a fringe WR1 and rookie running mate Egbuka should also be in lineups.

Over/under: 49.5 (4th highest)
Win probability: Buccaneers 64% (7th highest)


Projected score: Bengals 27, Browns 20

Lineup locks: Joe Burrow, Chase Brown, Ja’Marr Chase, Tee Higgins, Jerry Jeudy, David Njoku

Fantasy scoop: Second-round rookie Quinshon Judkins has yet to sign with the Browns, which positions Jerome Ford and fourth-round rookie Dylan Sampson as Cleveland’s Week 1 lead backs. Ford played six full games as the team’s lead back last season and was productive, averaging 14.0 touches, 78.0 yards and 14.0 fantasy points. He was also the team’s lead back for most of 2023 and finished 16th in RB fantasy points (25th in PPG) while piling up 1,132 yards and nine TDs. It’s yet to be seen how much Sampson will contribute, but Ford is safe to view as a RB2/flex option this week against a suspect Bengals defense.

Over/under: 47 (6th highest)
Win probability: Bengals 73% (3rd highest)


Projected score: Colts 23, Dolphins 22

Lineup locks: Jonathan Taylor, De’Von Achane, Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle

Shadow Report: Free agency and injuries have devastated Miami’s cornerbacks room, leaving the likes of Storm Duck, recently signed Rasul Douglas and Day 3 rookie Jason Marshall Jr. as the probable Week 1 starters. This opens the door for Colts receivers to get off to a fast start with Daniel Jones under center. Upgrade the likes of Michael Pittman Jr. and Josh Downs. Rookie tight end Tyler Warren also makes for a fine starting option in his NFL debut.

Over/under: 44.8 (9th highest)
Win probability: Colts 55% (14th highest)


Projected score: Patriots 25, Raiders 19

Lineup locks: Ashton Jeanty, TreVeyon Henderson, Jakobi Meyers, Brock Bowers

Shadow Report: Stefon Diggs is a bit risky as he makes his New England debut while returning from last season’s torn ACL. The good news is that he has an appealing Week 1 matchup at home against a suspect Raiders cornerbacks room. Ex-Packer Eric Stokes will be joined on the perimeter by third-round rookie Darien Porter and slot man Darnay Holmes. Diggs and fellow starting WRs DeMario Douglas and Kayshon Boutte can be upgraded.

Over/under: 44.2 (11th highest)
Win probability: Patriots 69% (4th highest)


Projected score: Cardinals 24, Saints 19

Lineup locks: Kyler Murray, James Conner, Alvin Kamara, Marvin Harrison Jr., Trey McBride

Fantasy scoop: Week 1 will give us our first look at Spencer Rattler in Kellen Moore’s offense. Rattler — a 2024 fifth-round pick — appeared in seven games as a rookie and did not show particularly well. He completed 57% of his passes, averaged 5.8 yards per attempt and managed four TDs and five INTs. Especially against an improved Arizona defense, Rattler’s presence makes the Saints’ pass catchers very risky fantasy plays. Chris Olave (a 4-54-0 receiving line on five career targets from Rattler) and Rashid Shaheed (1-11-0 on seven targets) are no better than flex options in deeper leagues.

Over/under: 42.1 (15th highest)
Win probability: Cardinals 68% (6th highest)


Projected score: Steelers 20, Jets 18



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Tigers manager criticizes his own pitcher after he hit Red Sox batter, sparking benches to clear

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Tigers manager criticizes his own pitcher after he hit Red Sox batter, sparking benches to clear


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Detroit Tigers pitcher Framber Valdez drew the ire of his own manager on Tuesday night after he hit Boston Red Sox batter Trevor Story with a pitch in the fourth inning, causing the benches to empty.

Valdez struck Story after allowing home runs to Willson Contreras and Wilyer Abreu. Valdez’s pitch to Story’s body came in at 94 mph. Story stared down Valdez as Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler and home plate umpire Adam Beck got in between the two.

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Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch talks with Boston Red Sox catcher Willson Contreras after Trevor Story was hit by a pitch during the fourth inning in Detroit on May 5, 2026. (Jose Juarez/AP)

Players and staff from both teams came out of the dugout, but no punches were thrown.

Tigers manager A.J. Hinch wasn’t too pleased with Valdez after the game.

“We play a really good brand of baseball here. That didn’t feel like it,” Hinch said, via ESPN. “It’s not judging intent; I have no idea. But I know when you go out on the field and you end up sort of in those confrontations, you usually feel like you’re in your right. And it didn’t feel good being out there.”

“So I understand their frustrations. I understand the moment, and it was a low moment of a frustrating night,” Hinch continued.

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Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Framber Valdez throwing a pitch during a baseball game.

Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Framber Valdez throws during the first inning against the Boston Red Sox in Detroit on May 5, 2026. (Jose Juarez/AP)

Valdez, who was ejected, said through an interpreter that his actions weren’t intentional.

“It was not intentional,” he said. “It might look like it, but it wasn’t. I was trying to throw strikes after the two consecutive home runs. I was trying to go back in the zone and that pitch came out of my hand.”

Story disputed Valdez’s claim.

“It’s pretty undisputable,” he said. “I was in there ready to hit and it showed up way behind me and off the numbers. We all know what’s what.”

Boston Red Sox's Willson Contreras celebrating with coach Chad Epperson after hitting a homerun

Boston Red Sox’s Willson Contreras is congratulated by interim third base coach Chad Epperson after hitting a homerun during the fourth inning against the Detroit Tigers in Detroit on May 5, 2026. (Jose Juarez/AP)

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Boston won the game, 10-3.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



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Iran demands Fifa guarantee IRGC will not be insulted at World Cup

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Iran demands Fifa guarantee IRGC will not be insulted at World Cup


Iran’s national football team pose on the pitch before a friendly match with Costa Rica, in Antalya, southern Turkiye, on March 31, 2026. — AFP

Iranian FA (FFIRI) chief Mehdi Taj said that FIfa must guarantee that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is not insulted by the United States if the national team is to travel to the country to play at the World Cup in June.

An FFIRI delegation, including Taj, turned back from the Canadian border last week because of what they said was disrespectful treatment at the hands of immigration officials as they tried to attend the Fifa Congress in Vancouver.

Taj said the decision to return home had been their own choice but Canada’s immigration minister later confirmed to parliament that the FFIRI president’s visa had been cancelled while he was in the air because of his links to the IRGC.

Canada listed the IRGC, an elite military force in Iran, as a “terrorist entity” in 2024, five years after the US did the same.

Fifa Secretary-General Mattias Grafstrom sent a letter expressing regret at the “inconvenience and disappointment” the Iranians had experienced in Canada and inviting FFIRI to Zurich on May 20 for a meeting about their World Cup preparations.

Taj told state broadcaster IRIB on Tuesday that he would be seeking assurances from the governing body about the treatment of the Iranian delegation in the US.

“We need a guarantee there, for our trip, that they have no right to insult the symbols of our system — especially the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” he said on the sidelines of a pro-government night rally in Tehran.

“This is something they must pay serious attention to. If there is such a guarantee and the responsibility is clearly assumed, then an incident like what happened in Canada will not happen again.”

‘Our host is Fifa’

The US, Canada and Mexico are co-hosting the June 11 to July 19 World Cup with Iran scheduled to play two group games in Los Angeles and one in Seattle.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said last week Washington had no objections to Iranian players participating in the tournament but no one with ties to the IRGC would be admitted to the country.

Taj, who served as a high-ranking official with the IRGC in Isfahan Province before moving into soccer administration, said anything short of cast-iron guarantees could result in the Iranian delegation turning back at the US border.

“We are going to the World Cup, for which we qualified, and our host is FIFA — not Mr Trump or America,” he added.

“If they accept hosting us, then they must also accept that they must not insult our military institutions in any way.

“Because if they do, then naturally it could create the same kind of situation that happened in Canada, where there was a possibility we might have to return.

“So there must be this kind of guarantee so that we can go with peace of mind.”

Iran’s participation in the World Cup has been in question since the US and Israel launched air strikes on the Islamic Republic in late February.

With Iranian top-flight football suspended, the home-based players have been in a training camp in Tehran preparing for the tournament.

Taj said the FFIRI were hoping to set up at least one friendly with a “very good team” in neighbouring Turkiye, where Iran played matches against Nigeria and Costa Rica in late March.





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WWE star Chelsea Green reveals she underwent ‘heart procedure’ to address SVT

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WWE star Chelsea Green reveals she underwent ‘heart procedure’ to address SVT


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WWE star Chelsea Green revealed Monday she underwent a “heart procedure” as she shared photos of herself and husband Matt Cardona from her hospital bed.

Green said doctors caught her SVT. The Mayo Clinic says that SVT, or supraventricular tachycardia, is a “type of irregular heartbeat, also called an arrhythmia. It’s a very fast or erratic heartbeat that affects the heart’s upper chambers.”

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Chelsea Green enters the ring during Monday Night RAW at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Mich., on July 28, 2025. (Rich Freeda/WWE)

The two-time WWE women’s United States champion said she had been dealing with the issue for 10 years.

“After 10 years, doctors finally caught my SVT and I was able to get a heart procedure done! 3 hours later and I’m on the mend,” she wrote on Instagram.

On Tuesday, she added on X: “My latest episode during WrestleMania pushed my resting heart rate to 228 for almost 15 minutes. Yesterday, Dr. Girgis spent 3 hours working on me… and I had to be awake for the last hour of the procedure!! “

Chelsea Green waving during SmackDown at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado

Chelsea Green waves during SmackDown at Ball Arena in Denver, Colo., on Nov. 28, 2025. (Michael Owens/WWE)

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She said the procedure was minimally invasive and expected to be back to work soon.

Green has had her share of bad luck over the last few months. She suffered an ankle injury that has kept her sidelined for several months, keeping her off the WrestleMania 42 card.

In February, Green and Ethan Page dropped the AAA World Mixed Tag Team Championship to Mr. Iguana and Lola Vice.

Chelsea Green looking on during SmackDown at FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, Florida

Chelsea Green looks on during SmackDown at FLA Live Arena in Sunrise, Fla., on Feb. 20, 2026. (Craig Ambrosio/WWE)

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Pro wrestling fans are eagerly awaiting her return to the ring.



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