Steven Jackson did not practice Tuesday. This doesn't seem to be too big of a deal as Jackson has been dealing with some hip soreness. Look for Jackson to have a good chance to surpass last year's six touchdowns with an improved offense and Josh McDaniels calling the plays.
Montario Hardesty did not take a full load of reps but participated in all of the team's drills. This isn't a surprise as it was his second practice back with the team. Remember, the team was ready to give Hardesty a decent workload until his knee injury last year. He'd have top-20 RB upside if anything happened to Peyton Hillis.
Norv Turner made a statement that Ryan Mathews will be more of the lead back than Mike Tolbert. This isn't a surprise considering the upside of each player. This sounds as if Turner is backing off something he said last week that made it sound as if the San Diego backfield would be a 50/50 timeshare between the two. If you decide to go with a QB or WR early in drafts, look for Mathews to be available in rounds 4-6.
Both Austin Collie and Pierre Garcon returned to practice. Both had minor injuries that didn't keep them out too long. Both players dealt with injuries last year (Garcon early, Collie late) and are both interesting options provided they can put in a full season.
Coach Jim Harbaugh says that Alex Smith has widened the gap between him and Colin Kaepernick for the starting quarterback position. This is how we expected the competition with the 49ers giving Smith one last shot to produce while Kaepernick gets used to the offense and being a professional player. While Harbaugh didn't rule out signing Daunte Culpepper it's very unlikely he would see a lot of game action should that occur.
Fred Davis could be fantasy worthy the first few weeks of the season given his performance in camp and the injury to Chris Cooley. Davis is an extremely agile player for the position and has shown he can perform with Cooley out in the past. He's not a bad endgame pick if you're looking for a second tight end with upside.
Percy Harvin left practice early. He's been dealing with some rib soreness so this is the likely cause. Unless the word "migraine" pops up, take this news with the proverbial grain of salt.
Andre Maclin is not a credible news source. The brother of Jeremy Maclin claimed that some light would be shed on his brother's secretive illness on Tuesday but no word came out of the Eagles camp. It's possible within the next few days we'll find out what's been ailing the Eagles' wide receiver.
Donnie Avery might not play Saturday and a spot . on the roster could be in jeopardy. The speedster continues to deal with the knee injury that has plagued him since last season. With the Rams having a healthy corp of receivers already, it's possible they could part ways with the former 2008 second round draft pick.
Ryan Torain has been cleared to take handoffs. However the Redskins' running back can't take any contact for time being which has him falling even further behind Tim Hightower in the pecking order. It's possible that sleeper Roy Helu Jr. could surpass Torain before too long as the #2 player in the Washington backfield.