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Football

On the Gridiron

Henry Anderson • DE • New York Jets • Fourth season • @HenryAnderson91

Anderson gets a fresh start after three injury-plagued seasons in Indianapolis. The Colts shipped their former third-round pick to the New York Jets after a change in scheme. Last season, after finally recovering from a torn ACL suffered in his 2015 rookie season, Anderson missed the final eight weeks of 2017 with a fractured larynx. He can earn a pay raise with a solid 2018 season as he enters the final season of his rookie contract.

Johnson Bademosi • CB/ST • Houston Texans • Seventh season • @J_Bademosi24

Bademosi played an important role for AFC Champions New England in 2017, serving as both a backup defensive back and a core special teamer. He joined Houston on a two-year, $6.25 million contract for his seventh season in the league, having played 94 of 96 possible games since his rookie season in 2012.

Doug Baldwin • WR • Seattle Seahawks • Eighth season • @DougBaldwinJr

Baldwin made his second straight Pro Bowl in 2017 after leading the Seahawks in receptions (75) and yards (991) with eight touchdowns. A bright spot in a largely disappointing season in Seattle, Baldwin's 84.4 overall grade from Pro Football Focus ranked sixth among receivers. Baldwin will play his first professional season without former Cardinal teammate Richard Sherman on the roster.

David DeCastro • G • Pittsburgh Steelers • Seventh season

DeCastro cemented his status as one of the league's elite guards by earning first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors in 2017. He has gone to three straight Pro Bowls, having been named All-Pro in each of the past three seasons, including first-team honors in 2015 and 2017 – his 89.0 overall grade from Pro Football Focus was the highest of any guard in 2017. DeCastro also helped Pittsburgh clear $5.1 million in cap room by restructuring his contract in February.

Zach Ertz • TE • Philadelphia Eagles • Sixth season • @ZErtz_86

Ertz's coming out party came in 2017, earning his first Pro Bowl berth while catching the game-winning touchdown in Super Bowl LII. He finished the regular season with a team-high 74 catches for 824 yards and eight touchdowns across 14 appearances, living up to the five-year, $42 million extension he signed with Philadelphia in 2016. Ertz has led Philadelphia pass catchers in receptions and receiving yards each of the past two seasons – look for his rapport with Carson Wentz and Nick Foles to continue in 2018.

Cameron Fleming • T • Dallas Cowboys • Fifth season • @CammyJFresh

Dallas brought in Fleming for some much-needed offensive line depth after Fleming won two Super Bowls in four seasons with New England. There is cause for concern in Dallas with injuries across the offensive front – Fleming, who was brought in as a versatile backup, may have a bigger role to start the season.

Josh Garnett • G • San Francisco 49ers • Third season • @IAmJoshG

Garnett enters the season as a reserve offensive lineman for San Francisco after missing all of 2017 with a knee injury. A former first-round pick in 2016, Garnett is down 20 pounds since last season. Mike Person sits atop the depth chart at right guard but head coach Kyle Shanahan acknowledged Wednesday the role is still up for grabs.

Ryan Hewitt • TE/FB • Indianapolis Colts • Fifth season @Huey_85

Hewitt was quickly signed by Indianapolis after Cincinnati released him, reuniting the versatile tight end with former Stanford teammate Andrew Luck. Look for Hewitt's usage to increase after appearing on 13.4 percent of offensive snaps in 2017.

Kevin Hogan • QB • Washington Redskins • Third season • @KHoagie8

Hogan was claimed off waivers by Denver after being released by Washington, replacing former first-rounder Paxton Lynch on the Broncos' 53-man roster. Hogan appeared in four games in 2017, including his first career start, finishing the season 46-of-75 passing for 517 yards and four touchdowns.

Austin Hooper • TE • Atlanta Falcons • Third season • @AustinHooper18

Hooper put up nearly double the receiving yards (526) from his rookie year, catching 30 more passes (49) in his sophomore season. He sits atop the depth chart at tight end in Atlanta, where the Falcons look to build on back-to-back 10-win seasons with 2016 MVP Matt Ryan at quarterback.   

Peter Kalambayi • OLB • Houston Texans • First season • @Kalambayi34

Kalambayi was picked in the sixth round of the 2018 NFL Draft by Houston. He showed his versatility in training camp and preseason, playing both outside and inside linebacker. Kalambayi enters the regular season at No. 3 in the Texans' depth chart at outside linebacker behind former Stanford teammate Brennan Scarlett.

Andrew Luck • QB • Indianapolis Colts • Seventh season • @ALBookClub

Luck's long-awaited return to the gridiron arrives in Week 1 when Indianapolis hosts Cincinnati on Sunday. It will be Luck's first regular-season appearance since the end of the 2016 season, having spent all of 2017 rehabilitating his throwing shoulder. A three-time Pro Bowler and two-time All-American, Luck is a candidate to be the NFL's Comeback Player of the Year with a healthy 2018 season.

Blake Martinez • ILB • Green Bay Packers • Third season • @Big__Blake50

2017 was a breakout season for Martinez, who co-led the league in tackles with 144. Playing 93.1 percent of Green Bay's defensive snaps, Martinez's 89.6 Pro Football Focus grade against the run ranked sixth among NFL linebackers. After Jake Ryan's season-ending injury, Martinez, now in his third season, becomes the elder statesman among a young group of inside linebackers. 

Josh Mauro • DE/DL • New York Giants • Fifth season • @JustJoshin90

Mauro joined the New York Giants on a one-year, $880,000 contract in the offseason after spending his first four seasons in Arizona. Mauro finished 2017 with 22 tackles and one sack in 13 games, and will serve a four-game suspension to start the 2018 regular season.

Christian McCaffrey • RB • Carolina Panthers • Second season • @CMcCaffrey5

All of a bulked-up Christian McCaffrey's talents were on display in preseason as he burst between the tackles and found the sideline for a 71-yard touchdown run, a sight Stanford fans will remember from his record-breaking 2015 season on The Farm. A finalist for Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2017, McCaffrey averaged the most yards per carry of any Carolina running back, cracked 1,000 all-purpose yards and finished with seven touchdowns, including five through the air. Look for McCaffrey to be the centerpiece of Norv Turner's offense.

Quenton Meeks • CB • Jacksonville Jaguars • First season • @ShowTimeQM

Meeks was released by Jacksonville after signing as an undrafted free agent. The Jaguars managed to keep him for their practice squad after Meeks lost out to Tre Herndon for the final cornerback spot on the 53-man roster.

Ty Montgomery • RB • Green Bay Packers • Fourth season • @TyMontgomery2

Montgomery returns for the final year of his rookie contract after solidifying his role as a running back in 2017. He finished the season on injured reserve after racking up 273 rushing yards and three scores on 71 carries with 173 receiving yards on 23 catches with one touchdown. He enters the season as part of position group that also includes contributors Jamaal Williams and Aaron Jones. With Jones suspended for Week 1-2, Montgomery will be key to the Packers' early success.

Kyle Murphy • T • Green Bay Packers • Third season • @KyleMurphy78

Murphy starts the season on Green Bay's injured reserve after suffering an ankle injury in preseason. He will miss at least the first half of the regular season, having spent most of 2017 on injured reserve with a foot injury sustained in Week 3.

Trent Murphy • DE/OLB • Buffalo Bills • Fifth season • @TMurphy_93

Murphy signed a three-year, $22.5 million contract with Buffalo, joining 2018 draftee Harrison Phillips on the Bills' defensive front. He enters the 2018 season having not played a snap since 2016 due to a knee injury in the 2017 preseason with Washington. Until then, he had played in 47 of 48 possible games while racking up 15.0 sacks, including 9.0 in 2016. Buffalo's defensive front looks much improved with the additions of Murphy, Phillips and Pro Bowler Star Lotulelei.

David Parry • DT • Minnesota Vikings • Fourth season • @DavidParry58

Parry made Minnesota's roster as the No. 3 nose tackle behind Linval Joseph and Jaleel Johnson after signing a one-year, $630,000 contract in the offseason. Parry's 2017 was cut short by an ankle injury in his first appearance with New Orleans after starting all 32 games for Indianapolis during the 2016-17 seasons.

Andrus Peat • T/G • New Orleans Saints • Fourth season • @AndrusPeat

Peat is part of a New Orleans offense that returns all five starters at offensive line. A year ago, Peat and company helped the Saints finish fifth in rushing yards per game (129.4) and second in yards per carry (4.7) with running back Alvin Kamara taking home Rookie of the Year honors. Peat, a first-round pick in the 2015 draft, has one year remaining on his rookie contract with an option to extend through 2019. His status for Week 1 is questionable as he deals with a quadriceps injury.

Harrison Phillips • DT • Buffalo Bills • First season • @HorribleHarry99

Phillips, a third-round pick by Buffalo in the 2018 NFL Draft, enters the season at No. 2 on the depth chart behind Kyle Williams and Star Lotulelei, but could see significant snaps in Week 1 with nagging injuries to Williams and fellow former Cardinal Trent Murphy.

Justin Reid • S • Houston Texans • First season • @jreid_viii

Reid, Houston's first pick of the 2018 NFL Draft, flashed his playmaking ability in preseason with a pick-six against Dallas. Reid's position battle with Kareem Jackson will continue into the regular season with both players listed atop the depth chart at strong safety – look for him to play plenty of snaps alongside both Jackson and All-Pro safety Tyrann Mathieu.

Jordan Richards • S • Atlanta Falcons • Fourth season

Richards was traded to Atlanta after spending his first three seasons in New England. Entering the final season of his four-year rookie contract, Richards sits at No. 2 on the Falcons' depth chart behind Keanu Neal.

Brennan Scarlett • OLB • Houston Texans • Third season • @BScarlett17

Scarlett saw regular defensive snaps in 2017 with injuries to J.J. Watt and Whitney Mercilus, finishing the season with two sacks, 13 pressure, 23 tackles and 15 run stops on 302 defensive snaps. He enters 2018 in the final season of a three-year, $1.625 million contract he signed as a rookie in 2016 at No. 2 on the depth chart at linebacker.

Dalton Schultz • TE • Dallas Cowboys • First season • @BinghamBaller9

Schultz, a fourth-round pick by Dallas in the 2018 NFL Draft, has a chance to play the bevy of snaps left behind after the retirement of Jason Witten. He is one of four tight ends on the roster along with Geoff Swain, Blake Jarwin and Rico Gathers.

Richard Sherman • CB • San Francisco 49ers • Eighth season • @R_Sherman25

After seven seasons in Seattle, Richard Sherman begins the next phase of his career with San Francisco after inking a three-year, $27.2 million contract in the offseason. Sherman enters 2018 with 32 career interceptions, tops in the league since his rookie season in 2011, having been named to four Pro Bowls and All-Pro four times. The former fifth-rounder missed the final seven weeks of 2017 with an Achilles injury, but is expected to be at full strength with the 49ers travel to Minnesota in Week 1.

Aziz Shittu • DL • Dallas Cowboys • Second season • @AzizShittu

Shittu was signed to Dallas' practice squad after being released by Philadelphia. The 2016 Rose Bowl Most Valuable Defensive Player made a name for himself with a big goal-line stand in a preseason game against the New York Jets after spending 2017 on injured reserve. 

Michael Thomas • S • New York Giants • Sixth season • @Michael31Thomas

Thomas inked a two-year, $4 million contract with the New York Giants in the offseason after spending five seasons in Miami. Thomas sits behind All-Pro Landon Collins at strong safety but will be a key special teamer – Thomas earned Special Teams Player of the Year honors from Pro Football Focus after a 2017 season in which he didn't miss a tackle on special teams.

Solomon Thomas • DL • San Francisco 49ers • Second season • @SollyThomas90

San Francisco's fortunes have taken quite the turn in Thomas' first year with the franchise after the acquisition and signing of Jimmy Garoppolo. Fueled by the acquisition of Richard Sherman and the emergence of Reuben Foster and DeForest Buckner, the 49ers' defense is one of the most improved in the league heading into 2018 with Thomas slated to play a major role up front. He finished 2017 with more tackles (41) and tackles for loss (10) than any other rookie defensive lineman, adding three sacks. With a full offseason of preparation, Thomas is pegged by many as a breakout star for 2018.

Levine Toilolo • TE • Detroit Lions • Fifth season • @LevineToilolo

Toilolo inked a one-year, $1.5 million contract with Detroit in the offseason after spending his first four seasons as a professional in Atlanta, compiling 726 receiving yards and eight touchdowns. A blocking specialist, Toilolo enters the season at No. 2 on the depth chart behind Luke Willson.