NFL Player News

Following their embarrassing loss at the hands of the Raiders on Thursday Night Football, the Chargers parted ways with head coach Brandon Staley and general manager Tom Telesco. Director of Player Personnel JoJo Wooden was named the interim general manager. Smith has been with the team as a position coach on the defensive side of the ball since 2016. He will be tasked with landing the plane on a lost season. A good finish to the year could earn him a more prestigious job elsewhere in the league.

Thomas was limited in all three practices last week and played through his questionable tag on Sunday. The same was true of Gabe Davis, who remained limited in today’s practice because of a lingering shoulder issue. Both players are expected to suit up again this week. Trevor Lawrence has already been ruled out, meaning Mac Jones will make his second start. Without Lawrence to pepper him with deep shots, Thomas is at risk of falling out of the WR3 ranks this week.

The Eagles estimated Smith as a DNP for the first practice of the week but upgraded him to a limited session on Tuesday and Wednesday. His practice reps will likely remain limited going forward, but he doesn’t appear to be at any risk of missing time because of the minor hamstring issue. Smith sits in the WR2 ranks for a potential shootout with the Commanders.

Higgins has been unable to practice since injuring his quad on October 25th so his Wednesday return bodes positively for his Sunday Night Football availability. It remains to be seen whether Ja’Marr Chase’s explosive Week 10 showing will relegate Higgins to the No. 2 role once and for all but Higgins’ has reliably commanded targets playing alongside Chase for some time. He can be started as a WR2/3, if active.

Goedert finally returned from the ankle injury last week. He wasn’t heavily involved in the offense, seeing just three targets. He managed to reel in two of them for 25 yards and a touchdown. Philly limited his reps in practice this week but he never appeared at risk of missing Thursday’s game. He will sit just outside of the TE1 ranks for Week 11.

Mailata went on injured reserve a month ago after suffering a severe hamstring injury. He was a full participant in practice today and did not get a questionable tag after being removed from injured reserve. The Eagles are getting healthy at the right time as they gear up for a crucial matchup with the Commanders that could decide the fate of the NFC East.

Bosa played through the hip issue last week after suffering a hip point in Wednesday’s practice. He saw roughly a typical workload of snaps and notched one sack. Bosa will likely be extremely limited in practice this week before suiting up on Sunday.

Sweat dealt with an ankle injury in October before suffering a shin injury a few weeks later. Although the shin injury is now behind him, the team now lists him with an ankle issue. It is unclear as to whether this is a new injury or a continuation of the old one though.

Kittle has played through a variety of injuries this year and doesn’t need to practice on Wednesday before suiting up on Sunday. However, his only absence came in Week 3 when he was forced to sit because of a hamstring issue. We will get a better idea of his status later this week but Kyle Shanahan did tell reporters he expected Kittle to resume practicing on Thursday. The 49ers don’t have a backup tight end who would step into Kittle’s role, meaning his targets would be dispersed among the established pass-catchers.

The Colts’ star defensive lineman cannot catch a break. Hopefully, Bucker is able to suit up for the 4-6 Colts’ must-win AFC game against the Jets this week. Though the team has a losing record, they remain in contention for a playoff spot.

Robinson missed the past two weeks while nursing the hamstring issue. He was upgraded to a full practice on Wednesday before being cleared for action. Robinson had parlayed his two-down role on one of the league’s best offenses into a weekly RB2 ranking before suffering the hamstring issue. Now he gets a potential shootout with the Eagles. His fantasy output may be a bit more dependent on touchdowns than usual this week, but fantasy managers can fire him up as an RB2 once again.