# Ralph Vacchiano: Vacchiano expects veteran Mason Rudolph to serve as Aaron Rodgers' backup in Pittsburgh rather than rookie Drew Allar. On the Giants, he lays out a receiver depth chart with Malik Nabers, Darnell Mooney and rookie Malachi Fields holding the top three spots, and Darius Slayton and Calvin Austin also likely to stick. **Claimed:** Aug 17, 2026 **Pundit:** Ralph Vacchiano — https://missedtakes.co/pundits/ralph-vacchiano **Outlet:** Fox Sports — https://missedtakes.co/outlets/fox-sports **How it reached us:** published in writing **Original:** https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/which-rookies-standing-out-7-takeaways-from-week-1-preseason 6 checkable claims — 4 depth chart calls and 2 roster spot calls — each graded on its own rather than as one all-or-nothing bet. It names 8 players and teams, each linked to their own record. None of them have settled yet — they grade once their results are in. Of the 4 unsettled calls enough other pundits have weighed in on, this one lands above the room on 1 and below it on 3. > He's not even likely to be Rodgers' backup, an honor that probably will go to veteran Mason Rudolph. *(their words, quoted for attribution)* ## The claims - **Darnell Mooney to be 2nd on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Darnell Mooney, New York Giants - Verdict: not settled yet - **Calvin Austin III to make the roster** - Kind: Roster Spot Calls · About: Calvin Austin III, New York Giants - Verdict: not settled yet - **Mason Rudolph to be 2nd on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Mason Rudolph, Pittsburgh Steelers - Verdict: not settled yet - **Darius Slayton to make the roster** - Kind: Roster Spot Calls · About: Darius Slayton, New York Giants - Verdict: not settled yet - **Malik Nabers to be 1st on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Malik Nabers, New York Giants - Verdict: not settled yet - **Malachi Fields to be 3rd on the depth chart** - Kind: Depth Chart Calls · About: Malachi Fields, New York Giants - Verdict: not settled yet ## Who this take is about - Darnell Mooney — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/darnell-mooney - New York Giants — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/giants - Calvin Austin III — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/calvin-austin-iii - Mason Rudolph — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/mason-rudolph - Pittsburgh Steelers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/teams/steelers - Darius Slayton — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/darius-slayton - Malik Nabers — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/malik-nabers - Malachi Fields — https://missedtakes.co/nfl/players/malachi-fields ## What others said about the same people - Chris Simms on New York Giants: Simms went through the entire Week 3 slate with straight-up winners and predicted final scores, taking Jacksonville, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle, the Giants, Baltimore, New Orleans, Minnesota, San Francisco, Denver and Philadelphia. He also expected Zay Flowers and Puka Nacua to sit, Kyler Murray to play, and said Marvin Harrison Jr. projects as no better than a good No. 2 or high-end No. 3 receiver. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/662b7ba3-1bf6-4ad0-9f93-9f2ab83143fd (scored 97.62) - Connor Rogers on New York Giants: Rogers picked Detroit, Houston, Carolina, Kansas City, Seattle and the Giants to win their Week 3 games, saying the Chiefs win by two touchdowns and the Giants by a field goal. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/83d1e88b-95a0-45ba-83d3-f86297170c6c (scored 100) - Richard Sherman on New York Giants: Sherman picked winners and several exact scores across the Week 3 slate, favoring Seattle, San Francisco, Cincinnati, Detroit, Green Bay, Carolina, New Orleans, Baltimore, the Rams, Philadelphia, Buffalo, Kansas City, Minnesota, the Giants, Jacksonville and Houston, and named Kenneth Walker his MVP. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c2102f61-711d-4041-af08-065e95ccaf03 (scored 100) - Tom Pelissero on New York Giants: Pelissero said the Giants' upcoming schedule (home vs. Tennessee, Washington, home vs. Arizona) offers three winnable games even with a backup quarterback, and that Washington's Jayden Daniels likely won't be back for that stretch. He also expects the winless Commanders to fall to 0-3 against Seattle. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/e93f2f8d-ec24-4e3f-b158-dd1a518f9445 (scored 100) - Pete Prisco on New York Giants: Prisco picks every Week 3 game with exact scores, highlighting upsets by Tampa Bay over Minnesota and Cleveland over Carolina, and expects the Giants to rally behind Jameis Winston. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/3eb02dfa-79dd-43a1-87d8-db7e5140af6c (scored 90.48) - John Breech on New York Giants: Breech predicts the Dolphins will miss the playoffs and may go winless, and picks every Week 3 game with scores, including Texans over Colts, a Buccaneers upset of Minnesota, Ravens over Cowboys in Brazil, Saints over Raiders and Broncos over Rams. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/c21157cd-927c-43dc-98a2-60f4224ba22e (scored 97.62) ## More depth chart calls The same kind of call, about other players and teams. - Pat Fitzmaurice on Jonah Coleman: In his Week 3 waiver column, Fitzmaurice makes several depth-chart calls around injuries: Jonah Coleman leading Denver's backfield, Marcus Mariota taking over in Washington, Michael Penix Jr. starting once healthy, and Malik Washington serving as Miami's top receiver, plus availability expectations for Detroit's injured safeties. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/2cbd48f6-15ea-4aa5-84bc-bcc50d94d09a (scored 0) - Fox Sports on Michael Penix Jr.: Fox Sports states that a healthy Tua Tagovailoa will serve as Atlanta's backup quarterback in Week 3, with Michael Penix Jr. handling the starting duties against Green Bay. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/a90e69a8-707f-43e9-a63e-cdb3e7bd0829 (scored 100) - Pat Fitzmaurice on Aaron Jones: In previewing the 10 most intriguing fantasy performers of Week 2, Fitzmaurice expects Atlanta's quarterback problems to persist with Tua Tagovailoa unlikely to play and Michael Penix Jr. not ready to return, flags Falcons slot corner Billy Bowman Jr. as a possible Week 2 returnee, and describes Aaron Jones as Minnesota's lead back and Kaelon Black as the clear backup to Christian McCaffrey in San Francisco. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/31adc8bb-8f15-453f-bbcf-cab44e29b8b3 (scored 100) - Matt Severance on Deshaun Watson: The CBS Sports preview backs Tampa Bay to beat Cleveland in the Bucs' Week 2 home opener, and states that Deshaun Watson — not Shedeur Sanders — will be Cleveland's starting quarterback in Week 2. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/944568ce-7205-409f-8354-a392016fd8bf (scored 100) - Rafael Zamorano on Deshaun Watson: Zamorano reports Watson will start Week 2 at Tampa Bay and suggests there's little reason to expect improvement, raising the possibility Watson's five-year contract never yields more than single-digit wins. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/d7d7e0a2-61e0-4525-970b-b01a2356f11b (scored 100) - Rich Hribar on Tua Tagovailoa: Hribar expects Tua Tagovailoa to be Atlanta's starting quarterback for Week 2 while Michael Penix stays out, with Penix's return closer to Week 4. He is unenthusiastic about the Falcons' offense either way and treats Bryce Young as a fringe fantasy starter. — https://missedtakes.co/opinions/124ac755-a942-4382-8bad-177da7f8170d (scored 0) --- Accuracy is 0-100 against what actually happened. The naive guess is what a strategy requiring no knowledge would have scored on the same call — the difference is the skill, and it is what the MissedTakes Score averages. Full method: https://missedtakes.co/methodology We summarize what a pundit said and quote a short span for attribution; we never republish their article. If this is wrong, tell us: https://missedtakes.co/corrections?pundit=ralph-vacchiano