[edit]T.J. Watt – seeking a new contract – didn’t participate in any events at the Steelers’ mandatory mini camp; similarly, Washington WR Terry McLaurin did not report to camp; and to round out the no-shows, Cincy DE Trey Hendrickson didn’t attend the Bengals’ camp (although he’s now resumed contract talks with the Bengals). Other Fantasy football stories we’re tracking include…

Projecting Regression in Pittsburgh

Despite coming off back-to-back double-digit win seasons and adding future HoF QB Aaron Rodgers, some project the Pittsburgh Steelers to win just seven games this season.

One of the big issues, as alluded to in the intro, is that a strong defense was missing its lynchpin for minicamp. Watt’s absence was concerning, especially given his obvious frustration – he hasn’t said a word to the media since the end of last season while putting a post on social media that suggests he’s not pleased with the situation.

The Steelers still maintain (at least publicly) that a deal will get done, but the longer this stalemate lingers, the tougher it gets to be bullish on Pittsburgh this year.

For what it’s worth, the last time Watt’s contract was set to expire, he did a “hold-in.” He showed up to training camp, but would not participate in any hitting or team drills. Ultimately, the Steelers inked Watt to a big time extension, and perhaps they will acquiesce again given how vital he is to the team’s defense. At least one former Steeler great believes Watt deserves a renewed contract.

Last season, his solo tackle total dipped as did his sacks, but he set career highs in assisted tackles and stuffs. Projected to be a plus starter when he came out of Wisconsin, Watt has exceeded those expectations, developing into a real terror for opposing quarterbacks with his sacks (108 in 121 career games).

Caleb Williams Is the Key

Shifting from the AFC North to the NFC North, the Chicago Bears showed nice progress in 2023, experiencing a four-win increase, and an even greater bump was expected after they landed quarterback Caleb Williams first overall last year.

Unfortunately, he didn’t exactly show franchise QB stuff in year one as the Bears finished dead last in passing yards en route to a very disappointing five-win campaign. Of course, Williams didn’t have much in the way of protection, getting sacked more than any other quarterback. Then again, a lot of that is on him, given his tendency to try to make a big play instead of getting rid of the ball before disaster strikes.

In fairness, Williams wasn’t completely awful. He did manage 20 touchdown passes and over 3,500 yards passing, so there’s definitely much to build on here. In fact, Williams should be considered a high-end QB2/low-end QB1 that is poised for a breakout season.

Chicago has never had a quarterback throw for 4,000 or more yards with 30 or more TD passes, but under new OC Ben Johnson, Williams could change that, even if he’s only +2700 to lead the NFL in passing yards this season as per FanDuel.

In some ways, this feels like a make or break year for Williams, fairly or not. Now let’s see how much better he can do with an improved offensive line and more advanced offensive schemes.

RotoRob Tune of the Day

Founded in the late-’60s by Edgar Froese, Tangerine Dream has undergone many band member changes over the years. Here’s “Scrap Yard,” another track from its 1981 soundtrack to Thief. The tune was used by Toronto TV station CITY-DT in the ’80s as the background music when they had technical difficulties.