NFL Player News

Antonio Gibson will operate as the Patriots’ lead, dual-threat running back, with backup JaMycal Hasty handling change-of-pace duties. The Texans rank 21st in average depth of tackle (4.34), helping Gibson to RB3-viability. Hasty should not be started in 12-team leagues.

Grier was with the fringes of the Cowboys roster in 2022, but waived him at last cuts in 2023. The Eagles released him from the practice squad to give him a chance to play in Dallas, and there’s not a better depth chart for an aspiring third quarterback to look up to than Cooper Rush and Trey Lance. Grier has two career starts, both made in 2019, and is 29 years old.

Hill detailed to Salter that the wrist had been bothering him since preseason, but it became aggravated when he was detained by police before Week 1 and an MRI revealed that he’d torn a ligament in it. When asked about the wrist injury by a Miami-area sportscaster, Hill’s agent Drew Rosenhaus said that surgery to repair the wrist was “not something I am prepared to discuss publicly” and added “that’s something that, really, will be internal between myself, Tyreek, his family, and the team.” What to take away from that for fantasy football? Hill rosterers need to hope the Dolphins keep winning, because there’s absolutely a chance that the Dolphins shut him down for the season if they are out of the playoff picture. For now, it appears likely he’ll keep playing through it.

Highsmith had just returned to the lineup after missing Weeks 4-6 with a groin injury. The Steelers look likely to continue to not place him on IR based on this quote, so this’ll probably play out much like the groin injury did. It’s a big loss — Highsmith has an 84.6 PFF pass rush grade this year — as they head into Week 11’s game against the Ravens.

Carolina’s offensive coordinator under Bryce Young’s “development” in 2023 now falls into the Caleb Williams gig. Brown was a Sean McVay disciple and holds more background as a running backs coach than as a playcaller. On the optimistic side, it’s hard to argue that Young was failed as yet another coaching staff fails to make much of him, while he and Frank Reich took turns calling plays. Brown was a fairly hot ticket last offseason as he interviewed for the Titans head coaching job, the Steelers offensive coordinator gig, and the Bears offensive coordinator opening before accepting a lower position on the staff in favor of Waldron. Elevated into yet another bad situation, Brown certainly is fighting the toughest battles an offensive coordinator can at the NFL level so far.

That doesn’t mean Pacheco will suit up for Week 11 against the Bills. He’ll be eligible to practice for up to three weeks, and could return to the playing field any time between Week 11 and Week 13. Kareem Hunt should get at least one more week as the Chiefs’ lead back. When Pacheco returns, look for Hunt to function, at best, as the 1B option behind Pacheco. Hunt’s reliability on short yardage carries could threaten Pacheco’s high value opportunities near the goal line.

Thielen is finally coming off IR after missing seven games with a hamstring injury. If he gets a full complement of routes in Week 11, Thielen could function as Carolina’s No. 1 receiver. He had 12 targets through three games before going down with the hamstring injury, and not much target competition in the Panthers offense. Thielen should be added in 14-team leagues.

Prescott’s recovery time is expected to be about three months after his procedure to repair a partial avulsion of the hamstring tendon. Prescott and the team sought several medical opinions over the past week but were left with no choice but to go the surgical route. The Cowboys’ season is over, and with it, the Mike McCarthy era has likely reached its end. Some combination of Trey Lance and Cooper Rush will fill in for Prescott as Dallas plays out the stretch. Lance could have some deep league appeal due to his rushing. CeeDee Lamb, who caught six of 10 targets for 21 yards in Week 10 against the Eagles, becomes a borderline WR2 option with Prescott out.

Thomas Brown, the Panthers’ former offensive coordinator, will take over play calling duties in Chicago. A year after flaming out as Seattle’s OC, Waldron couldn’t make it through one season with the Bears. Stacked with as much wide receivers talent as any team in the league along with No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams, Waldron’s offense ranked 31st in yards, with a meager nine touchdowns through Week 10. Chicago has the league’s fifth lowest offensive success rate heading into Week 11, and Williams has been the most inaccurate QB in football since the middle of October. The Bears are set to clean house following the season in an effort to save Williams from being one of the biggest draft busts in NFL history. It would be shocking to see Waldron get another OC job in the NFL.

Agnew suffered a gruesome leg break last January in his final season with the Jaguars, where he was an all-pro kicker returner and an explosive gadget player over three seasons. Agnew, who had 61 receptions over three years in Jacksonville, could become the Steelers’ primary returner in the coming weeks. He likely won’t get much run as a wideout in the Pittsburgh offense.

Williams and the Chicago offense has collapsed in recent weeks, including in Week 10 against a bottom-dwelling Patriots defense that sacked Williams nine times. The rookie has taken a league-high 38 sacks on the season and has been sacked on 29 percent of his pressures — the third highest rate in the NFL. Williams has been the most inaccurate quarterback in the NFL over the past month. NFL executives told The Athletic that Williams had fallen back into many of the bag habits that plagued him at USC. “He is doing the same things he did in college in terms of holding the ball and being inconsistent with his reads,” a league executive said. “He could get away with running around, throwing the ball up for grabs, throwing across his body, and he had some success doing that. You don’t get away with that at the NFL level too often. I’m a little surprised they haven’t been able to clean some of this up.” Addressing Williams’ multitude of shortcomings will be the Bears’ primary goal in the final eight weeks of the season. He’ll almost assuredly have a new head coach and offensive coordinator in 2025.