NFL Player News

Blackburn spent last season as Tennessee’s special teams assistant after coordinating the Panthers special teams from 2018-2021. The Panthers generally finished in the middle of the pack in special teams DVOA under Blackburn’s watch. The Rams had fired Joe DeCamillis earlier in the offseason.

Patterson is a distant backup to Najee Harris, though he could nip away at Jaylen Warren’s already small workload. Warren is a shaky bench stash so fantasy managers can expect even less from Patterson. He does not need to be rostered in re-draft at this time.

This is Fields’ second consecutive Full Participant designation this week so he should be good to for Week 10, serving as Russell Wilson’s direct backup. Fields is only a bench stash at this point.

Cooper has been limited in both practices to start the week and seems to be trending in the right direction for Week 10’s game against the Colts. With Keon Coleman (wrist) likely to miss this week, Cooper should be in line for an increased role alongside Khalil Shakir. We’ll have a better sense of Cooper’s availability once Friday’s injury report is released.

Legette acknowledged that he has “been having a little trouble [with gripping] the ball after [he] got hurt” and that he “might have to get it taken care of.” The latter comment presumably means Legette could undergo offseason surgery to correct his wrist’s issue. We expect Legette to suit up and play effectively in Week 10; he is not even on this week’s injury report. Fantasy managers should monitor newsfeeds for information regarding Legette’s wrist in the coming weeks though. Another in-game flare-up is certainly possible.

Thielen is trending toward missing another game after missing his second practice of the week. The veteran receiver is attempting to return from a hamstring injury he suffered in Week 3 and is nearing the end of his 21-day return window. The Panthers don’t have to activate him for Week 10, but would need to activate him next week at the latest or shut him down for the season.

Four members of the Bears’ secondary are currently dealing with injuries and Jones’ shoulder issue was bad enough to land him on injured reserve. These secondary injuries, coupled with the loss of difference-making DT Andrew Billings, make the Bears’ defense a far more fantasy-friendly unit. The team “signed S Tarvarius Moore to the active roster and added DB JT Woods to the practice squad,” per The Athletic’s Kevin Fishbain, in corresponding moves.

After previous reports of Smith not being spotted at practice, the Eagles receiver was later spotted practicing with his teammates. With Friday’s practice still to go, this is a good sign for his Week 10 availability. His name will be one to look for on Friday’s injury report, but things are looking good for Sunday’s game against the Cowboys.

Smith has now missed two straight practices to open the week and will be a long shot to play in Week 10 if he can’t get on the field on Friday. The Eagles are dealing with injuries to their top two receivers after A.J. Brown (knee) also suffered an injury in Week 9, but he’s been able to practice so far. Smith’s name will be one to watch when Friday’s injury report drops.

Things began trending in this direction on Wednesday after Slayton was a DNP, and Daboll said the veteran receiver hadn’t made much progress through the league’s concussion protocol. Slayton is expected to stay stateside when the team travels to Germany before the weekend, which means Jalin Hyatt will be seeing an uptick in snaps for Week 10.

Coleman was present at practice, but per beat writer Alaina Getzenberg, the rookie “did only work to the side” during the media portion of practice. There’s a chance Coleman will miss multiple weeks with his injury, so we wouldn’t expect him to get in much, if any, practice ahead of Week 10’s game against the Colts.