NFL Player News

The Bengals last week extended a right or first refusal to Johnson, a restricted free agent. Johnson in 2021 was the team’s top-graded run blocker, per Pro Football Focus. He’ll likely be a rotational guard in 2022 for what will be an improved Cincinnati offensive line.

Both players are done for 2024. They signed Jackson Barton off the practice squad in a corresponding move. Johnson had an extremely successful sophomore season, finishing with a 80.8 PFF grade and should be Arizona’s blindside tackle in 2025. Williams played just 343 snaps while dealing with injuries and will be on the final year of a two-year, $30 million deal he signed with the Cardinals last offseason. It’s possible the Cardinals could cut Williams after an injury-plagued season, but they’d only free up a little over $3 million in cap space if they did so the normal way. Kyler Murray’s line will be in rough shape for Weeks 17 and 18.

Ditto Nelson Agholor. Neither player practiced this week and both should be considered questionable for Week 18. It was always unlikely that Hill would clear protocol in just four days. We rarely if ever see players cleared for Thursday Night Football under such circumstances. Rasheen Ali saw nine snaps in relief of Hill last week and it’s possible he caddies for Derrick Henry on passing downs during Wednesday’s game. Keaton Mitchell could also see snaps there despite being a healthy scratch each of the last two weeks.

Flowers got in a limited session today after DNPs on Sunday and Monday. He played the entirety of Saturday’s game against the Steelers and we’re guessing is on the optimistic side of questionable with the team easing off his practice workload under this “three games in 11 days” nonsense. If Flowers can’t go, Rashod Bateman would get an upgrade in the Week 17 rankings.

Stover had an emergency appendectomy before Week 15’s game against the Dolphins and missed two games. He should take over as the No. 2 tight end again. With a 14/132/1 line before the appendectomy, Stover isn’t a fantasy football start at this time.

Metchie could see a role increase with Tank Dell out, but he will be hard to trust in fantasy football until we see a big game out of him. Baltimore’s defense has been stellar of late. We’d classify him as a deep-league only play for the moment.

Fuller left in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s game against the 49ers and did not return. The ninth-year pro also missed a big chunk of the middle of the season with a concussion. While not as effective as he was with the Commanders the last three years, Fuller has been a positive for the Dolphins, with a 62.4 PFF coverage grade and good run defense marks.

His three-week window expires later this week. McDaniel said that Chubb wasn’t ready to “be the player he expects” after working on his torn ACL, patellar tendon, and meniscus for three weeks. Chubb is due a $29.3 million cap number in 2025 and could be a potential target for a post-June 1 cut if the Dolphins are looking to free up cap space. Releasing him normally would save the Dolphins just $1.9 million.

Rizzi said he wasn’t sure yet if Patrick would need surgery. Patrick started 10 games in 2024 for the Saints after being a dire center for the Bears for a few years. He’ll be a free agent this offseason and, if he wishes to continue his career heading into his age-32 season, should be able to catch on as a reserve lineman somewhere.

Ekeler has been on injured reserve after his second serious brain injury of the season, one that he said caused him to not remember walking off the field. It would be a boost to Washington’s passing game if Ekeler was able to return for Week 18 and the postseason.

The good news, Rizzi offered, is that McCoy avoided major injury and won’t need surgery. McCoy started just seven games this year while dealing with a recurring groin injury, but he was wildly successful when he did play, notching a 94.2 PFF grade in 293 snaps. He left Week 16’s game after just seven plays and did not return. McCoy enters his age-28 season in 2025 as the likely starter for the Saints at center, carrying a $16.38 million cap figure that could be adjusted if the Saints want to continue to push money into future years.