NFL Player News

Kiffin doesn’t call the personnel shots in Oakland and may not even be in the know as far as owner Al Davis’ line of thinking, so take this with a grain of salt. Kiffin also has never exactly been straightforward with the media.

It was Palmer’s first touchdown reception of the season and the third straight game in which he had more than 60 receiving yards as a downfield option for Justin Herbert. Palmer made a fantastic back shoulder grab from Herbert for a long gain and nabbed his TD on a broken coverage by the dysfunctional Browns coverage unit. Palmer, as the team’s WR3, still isn’t reliable as a fantasy option. He might be useful in deeper formats though.

Hubbard “added” two receptions for zero yards. He made up for it with his first two-score game of the season, finding the end zone from one and 16 yards out. Aside from the touchdowns, it’s a fairly standard Hubbard statline, one that could be endangered by what seems like will finally be Jonathon Brooks’ return/debut in Week 10 vs. the Giants in Germany. Considering how slowly the Panthers have played Brooks’ recovery, fantasy managers can probably squeeze one more week out of Hubbard on the RB2/3 borderline.

Conner hit the ground hard after leaving his feet while being tackled. He was taken for a concussion screening and returned to the field shortly thereafter, showing no ill effects from the play. Conner is efficiently averaging 5.9 yards per carry against the Bears.

Billings’ injury is not immediately evident. He walked off the field accompanied by the Bears’ training staff but did so under his own power. Billings ranks fifth on the team with 14 quarterback pressures. Losing him would be a big blow to an already-thin Bears defense.

CBS Sports’ Tracy Wolfson reported before the game that John Harbaugh expected Johnson to see between 10 and 15 snaps. That was right on the money as the newly-acquired wideout logged 13 snaps. He will be more involved in Week 10 against the Bengals, but that game takes place on Thursday, giving Baltimore a shorter time to scheme up looks for Johnson. With four 100-yard games in his past five appearances, Zay Flowers has also cemented himself as the team’s clear No. 1 receiver. Johnson will be stuck in the WR4/5 ranks until we see his role grow.

Hill was targeted five times, good for second most on the team. His receiving yards were also the second most, while his touchdown was only 1-of-2 for this moribund offense. Hill’s rushing score was a quarterback keeper from the seven-yard line in the second quarter. Same as it ever was. With Chris Olave battling another concussion and Derek Carr showing no signs of rediscovering his Weeks 1-2 form, expect 8-10 more change-of-pace handles from Hill in Week 10 against the Falcons.

Vele missed a few games early in the year with a rib injury but returned for a 78-yard receiving line in Week 6. He has since been an afterthought in the offense, totaling 59 yards over his past three games combined. Vele shouldn’t be rostered in even the deepest of fantasy formats.

Nacua punched Seahawks safety Coby Bryant after a Matthew Stafford interception and was promptly tossed from the game. Bryant shoved Nacua to block him for the return of the pick. Nacua took exception to the move and threw hands right in front of a referee. His day ends with one catch for 11 yards on four targets.

Brown limped off the field in the third quarter and received attention from trainers. It’s possible the Eagles will hold Brown out of the game with a 22-0 lead over the lifeless Jaguars. Brown had two receptions for 36 yards before exiting.