NFL Player News

This wasn’t hard to see after the Lions signed Jesse James and drafted T.J. Hockenson. Roberts had a random two-touchdown game last season but was otherwise quiet before landing on injured reserve with a shoulder injury in December. Working in his favor is the Lions’ run-game commitment and expected featuring of multiple-tight end sets.

Rapoport initially qualified his report on Hall’s Week 15 availability, saying “it seems like we are likely to see him” before ultimately declaring that the team does, indeed, expect Hall to play. Whether Hall can play effectively and remain setback-free is a concern but his injured knee has responded positively to his Friday practice participation thus far. He would be a volatile RB1 if active.

Brown’s SC joint has evidently responded well to his September surgery. The Chiefs reportedly expect him to play in the playoffs and intend to get him live repetitions, late in the regular season, to make sure Brown is “fully acclimated” ahead of his team’s playoff run. Rapoport indicated Brown’s return could come in either Week 17 or 18.

Shepard missed the first two practices of the week and was upgraded to a limited session on Friday. That’s not abnormal for a veteran wideout, so he appears to be on the right side of questionable heading into the weekend. Should he be forced to sit on Sunday, rookie wideout Jalen McMillan would have a better shot at keeping the ball rolling after his two-score breakout in Week 14.

Evans played through the hamstring issue once this year and immediately aggravated it, causing a multi-week absence. The Bucs are being extra cautious with Evans’ practice reps this time around to make sure the injury doesn’t flare up again. He was held out of practice on Wednesday and Thursday before being upgraded to a limited session to close the week. Evans being cleared from the report entirely is a good indicator that his light workload in practice is just a precaution. He remains near the top of the WR2 ranks for his Week 15 matchup with the Chargers.

Whether Bosa aggravated his prior hip injury in Week 14 is unclear but his full participation on Friday bodes positively for his Week 15 snap count. Both the Chargers and Buccaneers are jockeying for playoff spots, making this a must-win game for both parties.

Dissly was always a long shot to play this week and he was fully unable to participate in practice. The Chargers will turn to intriguing but unproven youngster Stone Smartt. He offers little in stability but could turn in a usable outing operating as Herbert’s starting tight end.

Herbert suffered a new ankle injury in Week 14 on top of a thigh contusion. He was held out of Wednesday’s practice but returned to the field for a limited session on Thursday. He was a full go in Friday’s practice. While Herbert is clearly playing at less than full strength, he gets a great matchup with the Bucs this week and might get his top receiver, Ladd McConkey, back in the fold. Herbert remains a low-end QB1 for the quarterfinal round of most fantasy leagues.

McConkey entered Week 14 as questionable to play following three straight Limited Participant practice designations. He will do so again this week, hopefully, with different end results. The Chargers ultimately ruled McConkey out before Week 14 kicked off. His continued limited participation this week at least indicates he has suffered no setbacks but his inability to practice in full is concerning. He is a WR2, if active though he obviously carries re-injury risk.

Meyers played through the ankle injury last week without any issues, catching seven passes for 67 yards on 10 targets. He is on track to do so again this week. With Desmond Ridder expected to be under center for Week 15, Meyers will fall to the WR2/3 border despite his ability to command targets.

Metcalf’s Thursday practice participation dipped to down to Limited Participant status but it was likely just a rest day. The Seahawks are known to occasionally give veterans lighter workloads on Thursday. He practiced in full on Friday and can be started as a WR2 in a fantasy-friendly matchup against the Packers.