- Michael Crabtree might be this preseason's "best shape of his life" poster boy. Not only does he say he's finally 100% healthy, he's also trimmed 15 pounds off last season's playing weight. If Crabtree is back at full speed after his torn Achilles he'll easily slot back into the Niners top receiver slot, but that doesn't necessarily mean you should expect him to exceed or even repeat his 2012 numbers. San Francisco's offense remains run-first (and run-second), and even when Crabtree was out they couldn't seem to find enough targets for a matchup nightmare like Vernon Davis. Extrapolate Crabtree's five game return at the end of last season out to a full 16 game campaign and he ends up with just 106 targets, a figure that would have tied him with Greg Jennings for 37th in the NFL in 2013. By ADP he's currently coming off the board around the same time as players like Roddy White and DeSean Jackson, but Crabtree arguably has a lower healthy ceiling than either without having an appreciably better upside. Unless your draft room allows you to roster him at a discount from his current ADP, you might want to let someone else buy in.
- staying in the NFC West, the Seahawks backfield seemed to take better shape during Friday's preseason tilt. Marshawn Lynch returned for all of two snaps, but still has plenty of time to ramp up before Week 1. Meanwhile, Robert Turbin not only outplayed Christine Michael, he also avoided putting the ball on the ground the way Michael did. Michael has more buzz as Lynch's backup, but at the moment Turbin looks like he's ahead on the depth chart and is the far better value if you're looking for a Beast Mode handcuff.
- the Bears have signed retread Santonio Holmes to compete for their open third WR spot. Depending on how quickly he can get back into game shape, he should have the edge on the likes of Josh Morgan for the job, and he might have some utility in deep fantasy leagues as part of what could be a dynamic Chicago offense.
- the Raiders continue to troll fantasy owners, giving James Jones a start on Friday while not trotting out supposed starter Andre Holmes until the third quarter. The initial depth chart listing Holmes over Jones didn't make much sense given the big free agent contract the club handed Jones, but when does anything the Raiders do make sense? If you have to draft one or the other Jones is probably the safer bet, but the safest play of all is to just stay away from the whole mess.
- are you sitting down? This may come as a shock, but Maurice Jones-Drew got hurt in Friday's preseason game. The injury does appear to be a minor finger injury that might not be an issue by Week 1, but after he missed 11 games in his final two season in Jacksonville any injury news has to raise some eyebrows. He looked very pedestrian in his limited carries, although Darren McFadden didn't wow anyone either so MJD's slight edge in the Raiders' backfield is likely intact if he doesn't miss too much time. Really, Latavius Murray is the only Oakland RB who looks capable of running up crooked numbers this season, but it might take some intervention from the Gods of Attrition for him to get enough touches to prove it.
- other than a miscommunication with a tight end who likely won't be on the 53-man roster that resulted in a pick-six, Tom Brady looked just dandy in his preseason debut. Brady's numbers took a hit last season thanks to the extreme dink and dunk offense he was forced to employ, so a lot of his fantasy value in 2014 will be determined by whether Rob Gronkowski can stay healthy, and/or whether second-year receiver Aaron Dobson can become a reliable downfield target. If Brady has some weapons at his disposal capable of stretching the field, he should still have enough left in the tank for another 4500-yard, 30-TD year.
- Jake Locker also looked good on Friday, capping his outing with a nice fade toss to Justin Hunter for a score. The Titans QB has only played 18 games the last two seasons due to various lower body injuries, and despite the fact that he's a former first round pick heading into his fourth NFL season we still don't have a good sense of what Locker is capable of. Between Hunter and Kendall Wright he's got some decent weapons on the outside, plus rookie Bishop Sankey in the backfield, and he came into the league with good mobility so if by some miracle Locker manages to stay healthy he could end up being one of the fantasy surprises of 2014. Or, y'know, he could get hurt again and be looking for a job as someone's backup in the offseason.
- Josh Gordon returned to practice Saturday from his abdominal strain and could even play on Monday, so his owners can once again go back to poking their Roger Goodell voodoo dolls with pins and hoping for a reduction in Gordon's year-long suspension.