NFL Player News

Hint, hint: The Pats wouldn’t be cutting Salas if Wes Welker and Brandon Lloyd were in any danger of missing Thursday night’s game. Despite questionable tags, they will both play. Zusevics is an undrafted rookie out of Iowa. He tore his pectoral muscle during the pre-draft process but has swing-lineman potential.

Someone had to go to make room for Jonathan Mingo. Booth has mostly been a healthy scratch this year and hadn’t played since Dallas’ Week 6 depantsing against the Lions. He had five solo tackles in 38 defensive snaps over three Cowboys games this year.

Robinson was an interesting UDFA in the 2022 class and has bounced between the Commanders, Eagles, and Vikings offseason rosters and practice squads since coming out of Oklahoma. The Patriots, as is now their normal, are shuffling bodies along the offensive line after another injury and hoping to find some players who will stick. It’s a great chance for Robinson to establish himself as an NFL-capable lineman.

Khalil Herbert will now slot in as Chase Brown’s backup. Moss finishes the year with a 74/242/2 rushing line and caught 23 of 27 targets for 187 yards and a touchdown in his most extensive receiving work yet. It’s possible he’s back next year on a $4.9 million cap figure if the neck isn’t a longer-term concern than the next few months. If not, Moss will be a credible backup/committee option in free agency next offseason.

One of the more oft-rumored trades of the past few weeks, as the Steelers seemed interested in moving on Williams the second the Jets acquired Davante Adams, finally gets done. Williams hasn’t done well enough as a Jet to walk into fantasy value in Pittsburgh, but he might be worth a stash in deeper fantasy leagues. Xavier Gipson and Malachi Corley will step into slightly bigger roles in the Jets offense with Williams gone and Allen Lazard on IR, but neither of them are worth counting on in fantasy football. The Jets recoup a fifth-round pick for a player who they had clearly lost confidence in, which is a slight win.

A healthy scratch the last few games, Jefferson will be free to join a new squad. Jefferson had one sack and one solo tackle for the Browns in five games as a rotational lineman, playing 141 snaps.

The Commanders had an extra third-round pick from the Eagles via the Jahan Dotson trade. Corner was a very obvious weak spot for Washington as Benjamin St. Juste has been picked on for years and first-rounder Emmanuel Forbes Jr. is trending towards being a bust. Lattimore won’t cost the Commanders much on the cap due to an earlier restructure with New Orleans, but his health remains a genuine concern due to a lingering hamstring issue. The Saints did well to get a Day 2 pick and a high Day 3 pick as they look likely to start rebuilding next offseason while fighting the salary cap.

This is the first we’re hearing of a potential Metcalf trade before the league’s trade deadline. Metcalf, who has missed two games with a knee injury, has been excellent in 2024, posting 538 yards and three touchdowns in six full games. He should be in line to return to Seattle’s lineup when the team returns from its bye in Week 11.

With the NFL’s trade deadline just hours away, both Washington and Kansas City are looking to upgrade their secondary for the stretch run. Lattimore has missed much of the 2024 season with a lingering hamstring issue; it’s unclear how close he is to a return to action. The Chiefs coverage unit has struggled of late, including a near collapse on Monday night against Baker Mayfield and the Bucs. Only six teams have allowed a higher drop back success rate than the Chiefs in 2024. Washington, meanwhile, has a haul of 2025 draft picks to trade away if the team is ready to go all in for a postseason run.

Turner, 72, last worked as an offensive coordinator for the Panthers in 2019, when Carolina ranked 29th in points per game and 24th in yards per game. Turner will reportedly help guide the lifeless Raiders offense alongside his son, Scott Turner, who will serve as the team’s new offensive coordinator after the Raiders fired OC Luke Getsy this week. This is Turner’s second stint with the Raiders; he was the team’s head coach from 2004-2005. He’ll try to turn around a Vegas offense that ranks dead last in EPA per play and 25th in offensive success rate. It’s unclear who will be the team’s starting QB under Turner.

Dallas gets Mingo, a major 2023 second round bust for Carolina, as a potential ancillary option behind CeeDee Lamb and Jalen Tolbert. Mingo had 55 receptions for 539 yards and zero touchdowns over 24 games with the Panthers. Carolina will roll with wideouts Xavier Legette and Jalen Coker along with veteran Adam Thielen for the rest of the season. Coker, a rookie, has six catches on nine targets over the past two games in the run-heavy Carolina offense.