NFL Player News

Backup tight end Blake Whiteheart caught three passes and scored a short touchdown. Akins was an interesting streaming option when he was the only Cleveland tight end projected to see targets. With another name in the mix, Akins is off the fantasy radar for Week 5.

McCaffrey is eligible to be activated from injured reserve next week, but the 49ers get Seattle on Thursday Night Football, giving them a short turnaround to their next game. Given the extent of McCaffrey’s multiple Achilles injuries, a Week 6 return was never realistic. Schefter noted that McCaffrey could return in Week 7 versus the Chiefs, but named Week 10 versus the Bucs as a more reasonable date. The 49ers get their bye in before that game, so holding McCaffrey out for two more contests after next week would give him another seven days of rest. For now, Jordan Mason will lead the way as San Francisco’s top back. He will rank as a weekly RB1 for as long as CMC remains out.

Kupp suffered a high-ankle sprain in Week 2 and has been sidelined ever since. He has yet to return to practice, but the Rams get their bye next week, giving the veteran receiver another week of rest before the team returns to action in Week 7. Puka Nacua is currently on injured reserve with a knee injury and is also able to return in Week 7, though the most recent update on his status makes that unlikely. Without Nacua in the lineup, Kupp would immediately return to a No. 1 role in the offense and a WR1 ranking for fantasy purposes.

Kittle missed Week 3 with a hamstring injury, returned for the following game, but immediately suffered a rib injury. He played through it during the 49ers’ Week 4 game against the Patriots and is luckily good to go for Week 5. Kittle has at least four catches and 40 yards in all three games this year. Given the dreadful state of the tight end position, that’s as high as a floor gets. He remains in the TE1 ranks versus Arizona.

McBride missed Week 4 with a concussion but made it through the league’s concussion protocols by Friday morning. He was removed from the injury report, only to be immediately put back on it with a rib injury on Saturday. The team listed him as questionable. Despite the injury scare, he should be good to go. Fantasy managers can resume treating him as a TE1 for his matchup with San Francisco this week.

Warner got in one limited practice this week before being listed as questionable. Despite the light practice workload, he appears to be good to go. Warner’s presence in the lineup makes this a slightly worse matchup for Cardinals TE Trey McBride, who will likely square off with Warner throughout their Week 5 bout.

Musgrave did not practice at all this week before being listed as questionable. Per Schefter, he will need to test out his ankle in pre-game warmups before a final decision on his status has been made. Musgrave was operating as the Packers’ TE2 before this. That won’t change in Week 5.

Crosby missed Week 4 because of the ankle issue after being listed as doubtful. He returned to practice for one limited session this week. Crosby has three sacks in as many games this season and plus five TFLs and two pass breakups. His return makes this a notably more difficult matchup for first-year quarterback Bo Nix.

Joe Mixon was ruled out on Friday. Without Pierce or Mixon, Cam Akers will see the bulk of the carries for Houston once again. Akers rushed 13 times for 53 yards in Week 4. He only has one catch as the starter, albeit for a touchdown, making him nothing more than a two-down RB3 for his upcoming matchup with Buffalo.

Wills suffered a season-ending knee injury in 2023. He returned to action two weeks ago but re-aggravated the injury in that same game. Though pitch counts aren’t common for offensive linemen, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Browns limit Wills’ workload this week.

Njoku suffered a high-ankle sprain in Week 1 and has been out ever since. He returned to practice last week for one limited session but was still held out on Sunday. Njoku got in two practices this week before being listed as questionable. The combination of a pitch count and Cleveland’s struggling offense will keep Njoku from cracking the TE1 ranks in his first game back, though fantasy managers can still gamble on him as a high-ceiling TE2.