NFL Player News

Hines tore his ACL last summer and missed the entirety of the 2023 season. He was expected to serve as the primary kick returner in addition to sporadic usage in the offense, the bulk of which would have likely come in the red zone. Buffalo brought in three separate running backs last season but now carry only James Cook and Darrynton Evans on the active roster with all of Ty Johnson, Latavius Murray, and Damien Harris unrestricted free agents heading into the new league year. It appears as if the Bills will be buyers at the running back position for the third consecutive year.

Mixon injured his ankle Sunday night during a hip drop tackle by a Bears defender in the second half. He briefly left the game and returned for one fourth quarter rushing attempt before exiting again. If Mixon can’t practice this week and is sidelined for Week 3 against the Vikings, Cam Akers could function as Houston’s lead back. Dameon Pierce was sidelined in Week 2 with his own ankle ailment.

It means Pacheco, who suffered a gruesome-looking broken fibula in Week 2 against the Bengals, will be sidelined for at least four weeks. Pacheco is set to undergo further testing of the leg injury. Carson Steele and Samaje Perine will likely split backfield duties while Pacheco is out. Perine profiles as the pass catching back while Steele should be the early-down option and goal line runner. Clyde Edwards-Helaire is on the NFI list and can return by Week 5.

Pacheco was bent back awkwardly in the fourth quarter and left the stadium in a walking boot. Rapoport said KC’s lead back is set to miss “real time,” which could mean weeks or months, depending on the severity of the injury. Carson Steele had seven rushes on Sunday, some of which came after Pacheco exited the game. He would likely be the Chiefs’ early down back while Samaje Perine takes on the pass catching duties until Pacheco is back in action. Clyde Edwards-Helaire remains unavailable while he deals with a mental health situation.

After a somewhat even split in Week 1, Moss appears to have taken control of the Bengals backfield. Chase Brown played just 20 percent of the snaps against Kansas City and saw four touches. Moss logged 12 rushes for 34 yards and caught one pass. He had 27 routes to a mere seven routes for Brown. Moss profiles as a solid option for Week 3 against a beatable Washington defense.

Schultz has now seen three targets in consecutive games to start the 2024 season, a far cry from his pace a season ago. A lot of that is likely due to the emergence of alpha Nico Collins in conjunction with the offseason addition of Stefon Diggs. Schultz can likely be returned to the waiver wire with no clear path to consistent volume in a now-crowded Texans offense.

Diggs was targeted six times in the opener as well but managed to score twice, with this one a far different story as Nico Collins scored the only touchdown for the Texans in a narrow win. The defense truly controlled the game throughout, ceding just one touchdown on the night while sacking Caleb Williams seven times in addition to two interceptions. Diggs is unlikely to see consistently high usage playing alongside Nico Collins, but he should continue to provide sporadic spike weeks through his ability to generate space in close, something that is particularly useful in the red zone.

Collins has now gone over 100 yards in consecutive games to start the 2024 regular season, this time tacking on a touchdown to the ledger after going scoreless in Week 1. That score would prove the difference in a game where each kicker was busy. Collins burst onto the scene in 2023 in a true breakout campaign and has continued that torrid stretch into the new year. Up next for Collins and the Texans is another difficult test against the Vikings on the road in Week 3.

Dell simply took a back seat to Nico Collins in this one, with the latter demonstrating a clear alpha connection with quarterback C.J. Stroud through two weeks. In addition to the breakout of Collins, Dell now has to contend with veteran wide receiver Stefon Diggs for targets in an offense that largely prefers to remain balanced. Dell will look to be more involved in Week 3 when the Texans travel to Minnesota to face the Vikings.

Mixon departed the field of play early in the third quarter before returning prior to the end of the frame, but managed to be far less effective than he was in Week 1 against a solid Bears defensive front. Keep an eye on his practice status in the coming week as he clearly sustained an ankle injury on a hip-drop tackle.

Stroud locked onto alpha wide receiver Nico Collins in this one, feeding the youngster 10 targets on his 36 pass attempts, while no other pass-catcher saw more than six looks. The two maintain an elite connection on the field following Collins’ breakout campaign in 2023. Even so, the offense largely struggled outside of Collins, gaining just 310 total yards of offense against a stingy Chicago defense. Either way, the Texans escaped with their second consecutive win to start the season and now turn their attention to another tough defense in the Vikings in Week 3.