🌴 An NFL Game Where? AND WHEN?!

The tush push is going to hit different in Brazil…

In today’s Fantasy Life Newsletter, presented by CTRL:

The 2024 NFL season kicks off on Thursday, September 5. Then you’ll have a few restful days until the rest of the Week 1 games on Sund—

HOLD UP. NOT SO FAST:

The Eagles will play the Packers in São Paolo, Brazil on Friday, Sept. 6, the day after the NFL season kicks off on Thursday night.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter)
Apr 10, 2024

That’s right, pack your thongs and get ready to delete some caipirinhas on the beach because the NFL—and the tush push—is heading to Brazil in September.

Here’s everything you need to know…

📜 This is historic. This will be the first time a game has been played in South America and the first time since 1970 that the NFL has played a Friday night game in Week 1. It’ll be broadcast exclusively on Peacock.

🦅 Who is the home team? The Eagles will technically be the “home” team in São Paolo, which means the Packers get to play one of their “away” games on a neutral field, albeit one that is 5,376 miles always (trust me, I looked it up).

💸 A back-and-forth shootout in Brazil? Initial odds are already posted and the Eagles are 1.5-point favorites. The game also features a juicy over/under, with 51.5 points projected to be scored.

👕 There aren’t any weird, unwritten customs at the stadium where they are playing that could force the teams to wear different uniforms, right? I’m so glad you asked:

There is an informal ban on wearing the color green in Corinthians stadium in São Paulo. This is due to green being the color worn by their bitter rivals.

It’s Packers vs. Eagles… lol.

— Daire Carragher (@DaireCarragher)
Apr 10, 2024

🏆️ Any other fantasy considerations for this matchup? Both teams will have to deal with a lot of extra air miles—something that did seem to affect the scoring output in the Germany games last year (the Chiefs/Dolphins game flopped with only 35 total points), so it’s worth keeping expectations in check.

Other than that, don’t forget about the higher elevation. I’ve personally already adjusted my ranks.

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🤠 A new contender in the AFC, mock draft movement, and the WR Rookie Super Model. Kendall rounds up everything you need to know.

📈 An updated 2024 Mock Draft. The QBs are flying up the board.

📺 Breaking down the incoming class of QBs. We brought in the big guns for this.

⚖️ The Rashee Rice charges are in. Here’s what a lawyer thinks.

✍️ A wide range of potential outcomes. Keon Coleman scouting report.

☄️ Two interesting NFL draft streaks. Will they be broken this year?

📝 It’s crunch time for the Commanders. They are cramming for the test.

🤑 Josh Allen gets PAID. Not that one, the other one.

😥 An unfortunate update for Treylon Burks. Doesn’t sound good.

The Draft is fast approaching, so it’s time to cram on these rookies. Today, Ian breaks down an elite WR prospect…

📝 Malik Nabers Scouting Report

• Underdog ADP: 28 overall (WR19), rookie WR2

• WR Super Model: 95th percentile

LSU has become quite the WR factory in recent years. Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson are the headliners these days, and before them, it was Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry who gave the Tigers a legitimate claim to the coveted “WRU” tagline.

Next up is Malik Nabers, who's spent the better part of the last two seasons racing past SEC defensive backs of all shapes and sizes. As NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein puts it: “Nabers is the next big thing coming out of LSU’s receiver room with the pure explosiveness and talent to be mentioned in the same breath as former LSU stars starring in the league today.”

You truly don’t need more than one hand to count the number of pass-catchers more productive than the homegrown talent since 2022. Here's how Nabers has ranked among 125 qualifying Power 5 WRs from 2022 to 2023:

• Pro Football Focus (PFF) receiving grade: 91.8 (No. 2)

• Passer rating when targeted: 125.7 (No. 12)

• Receiving yards: 2,585 (No. 2)

• Receiving TDs: 17 (tied for No. 8)

• Yards per route run (YPRR): 3.06 (No. 4)

• Yards per reception (YPR): 16.1 (No. 20)

• Targets per route run (TPRR): 27% (No. 21)

The numbers and eye test both tell the same story here: Nabers is on the short list of the best non-QBs available in the 2024 NFL Draft class, and Fantasy Life’s Matthew Freedman accordingly has him projected to go sixth overall to the New York Giants in his latest mock draft.

Of course, in today’s day and age, it’s not good enough to simply appreciate Nabers as a bonafide baller; we need to tear each other apart when evaluating if the 20-year-old talent really has a case to be considered the WR1 ahead of Ohio State WR Marvin Harrison Jr.

Does Nabers really have a case, or is this simply another classic example of prospect fatigue? Let's dive in…

if you haven't already boosted jake elliot's week 1 projection due to the thinner air in sao paulo you're getting outworked

— pete overzet (@peteroverzet)
Apr 10, 2024