NFL Player News

Rookie WR Xavier Legette, struggling with a foot injury that could keep him out a while, is listed as a second-team option for Carolina. Mingo has drawn a surprising amount of praise and hype after a spectacularly awful rookie season in the Panthers offense. He had 43 catches for 418 scoreless yards as a full-time Carolina starter in 2023. It appears Mingo has a chance to start alongside Adam Thielen and Diontae Johnson.

The brilliant Matt Eberflus sent Williams onto the field for one final drive, down 20 points, with 2 minutes, 15 seconds left in the fourth quarter. Williams behaved as he had for much of the game, quickly departing the pocket and engaging in a wild scramble before evidently straining his left hamstring. Eberflus then allowed Williams to remain on the field for one last snap. Williams was plainly unable to move with urgency on the ensuing play and was promptly sacked. Fantasy managers should brace for a potential Week 10 absence.

Smith has been at something of a production standstill with Jaylen Waddle since Tua Tagovailoa’s Week 8 return, which really isn’t good news for anybody. It means Smith still isn’t really cracking the top 18 at tight end while Waddle is grossly underperforming what was believed to be a WR2 baseline. Smith is a TE2 with a reasonable enough floor, but he has continued to display zero ceiling.

A truly horrendous box score with Amari Cooper (wrist) on the shelf. Sitting on four catches in four games since the calendar flipped to October, we’ll let you know if Samuel ever returns to fantasy relevance.

Jones was seen being escorted to the locker room by Bears trainers. Jones is a capable backup and the Bears cannot afford to lose another defensive back at this point. The unit is very nearly one to target entering Week 10. Hopefully, Jones is able to return next week.

Hollins also drew a pair of penalties that don’t show up in the box score. Each of Hollins’ receptions and yards were easily new season highs. Cool stuff for Hollins, but not great for the Bills in Amari Cooper’s absence. They need more out of players like Keon Coleman and Dalton Kincaid. Even if Cooper remains sidelined for Week 10 against the Colts. Hollins, will be a zero-upside WR5.

Rypien will serve as the team’s emergency quarterback as the Vikings look to keep pace with the Lions in the competitive NFC North. They head into Week 9 as one of the healthier teams in the league as they get back tight end T.J. Hockenson for the first time this season.

Shakir has now drawn at least seven targets each of the past three weeks after previously reaching that number zero times in 2024. The Bills have adopted a more pass-heavy approach, and Shakir has been one of the primary beneficiaries. Of course, you could argue today was actually something of a disappointing statline with Amari Cooper (wrist) on the shelf. It was still a solid floor-based effort in PPR. This has been legitimate WR3 usage for Shakir, and WR2/3 returns will be easily achievable in Week 10 vs. the Colts.

No real surprised here regarding the team’s inactives list, although we do get a change under center for the Colts as Anthony Richardson retreats to backup veteran Joe Flacco. The Colts seam intent on making a playoff push in the second half of the season and head coach Shane Steichen indicated this week that Flacco gives the team the best chance to win games.

Johnson overcame some early drops to make one of the game’s biggest plays in Sunday’s loss. With the Giants attempting a comeback late in the fourth quarter, Johnson broke free up the middle of the field and was targeted deep by Daniel Jones for a long reception. The rookie tight end picked up a handful of yards after the catch and dove in for a 35-yard score to cut the Commanders’ lead to 27-22 with just under three minutes to go. It was the first touchdown of Johnson’s career, and his best performance of the season, as he set new highs in targets and receiving yards. Johnson is averaging 4.5 targets per game in his last four games. He’ll be hard to trust as anything more than a desperation TE2 in Week 10 against the Panthers.

The 10-target effort was just the second of Kincaid’s career, though it resulted in yet another underwhelming box score. It was a failed test with Amari Cooper out of the lineup and Jalen Ramsey harassing the Bills’ wideouts. Kincaid has drawn at least six targets in six straight contests but hasn’t exceeded 52 yards in the process. He has settled in as a floor-based low-end TE1 who hasn’t flashed a ceiling this season. He gets the Colts in Week 10.