NFL Player News

Per McDaniel, Tagovailoa is still seeking information regarding his brain injury, and “the process continues.” Tagovailoa is first eligible to return in Week 8. Tagovailoa’s head injuries have become a serious talking point over the last few years, with experts saying he will need to miss extended periods of time should he suffer any other concussions in the future. It was rumored earlier that a Week 8 return against the Cardinals could be in store, but we’ll see what the team has to say about that at a later date. For now, it’s at least one more week of Tyler Huntley, which will ding the fantasy values of Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, and all other offensive weapons in Sunday’s game against the Colts.

Spears was pulled from the third quarter with his hamstring issue, and head coach Brian Callahan said after the game that it was something the team would “monitor.” Now out for at least a week, Spears won’t be suiting up for Week 7 against the Bills, paving the way for Tony Pollard to have a busy week. Backup Julius Chestnut rushed once for two yards in Sunday’s loss to the Colts, a sign that we shouldn’t count on him to see the split Pollard and Spears have had for much of the season.

Callahan also noted during his media sessions that “there are calls that call for the ball to go down the field and the ball doesn’t go down the field.” Not ideal! Perhaps there is a squeaky wheel narrative building for Ridley have his 145-prayer yard bagel in Week 6, particularly after he said the Titans needed to get him involved earlier in the game. He’ll remain hard to trust against a good Bills defense in Week 7.

Wicks exited in the first half of Sunday’s win over the Cardinals and did not return to the field. He reportedly had an MRI on his shoulder, but that didn’t reveal any significant damage. The second-year receiver ran just seven routes before exiting and caught one of three targets for nine yards. It’s been a disappointing two-week stretch for Wicks, who was a popular waiver wire add following his 5-78-2 line in Week 4 on 13 targets. He’s worth stashing on IR spots in leagues that allow it, but Wicks doesn’t carry much fantasy value at this time given his injury and Christian Watson’s return.

The Patriots signed Leverett to a deal earlier this offseason after he spent the first three seasons of his career with the Buccaneers. He started in just one of the five games he appeared in for the Patriots this year, earning a PFF blocking grade of 38.1 while allowing 10 pressures and one sack. Leverett started in Week 5 at center for the Patriots, but saw that job go to Ben Brown in Week 6. A veteran with nearly 1,000 offensive snaps under his belt, Leverett could find himself on another team as added depth in the future.

The Lions aren’t putting a timeline on Hutchinson’s return, but Hutchinson is likely to miss the rest of the season and perhaps all of the postseason with the injury. It was a brutal injury for one of the league’s premiere pass rushers, who currently leads the league with 7.5 sacks while also racking up seven TFLs and one forced fumble.

Thomas said his foot was “not great” after the game, so we’ll see what the MRI reveals later in the coming days. Thomas has been a solid presence along an offensive line that is currently graded as PFF’s 14th-best pass-blocking unit. He’s allowed four sacks on 16 pressures while earning a pass-blocking grade of 71.8. If he’s unable to go in Week 7 against the Eagles, Jermaine Eluemunor would likely slide over to the left side while Evan Neal mans the right side of the line.

Etienne exited in Sunday’s game against the Bears with the injury and did not return to the field. His absence resulted in Tank Bigsby and D’Ernest Johnson splitting the backfield, with Johnson actually out-snapping Bigsby 35-17. Johnson was utilized as the primary pass-catching back with Etienne out, and ran a route on 25 of his snaps while also seeing six carries. Bigsby will profile as a game-script dependent back while Etienne is out, but should see plenty of opportunities in Week 7 against the Patriots.

Just days after CAA, Reddick’s previous agents, parted ways with him, Reddick has now hired Rosenhaus in hopes of securing the deal he’s been seeking since last offseason while he was still with the Eagles. Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, Reddick also hired agent Ryan Matha, who will be present with Reddick and Rosenhaus at tonight’s Monday night contest against the Bills. Reddick hasn’t done anything with the Jets since his introductory press conference, and would likely need a few weeks to get ramped up if he does join the team in the coming days.

In typical Wan’Dale fashion, 11 targets led to just 50 receiving yards in a low-aDOT role over the middle of the field. The Giants struggled mightily to move the football again in this one and have now failed to score more than 15 points in any of their three home games this season. That is not a trend to instill confidence with the Eagles on deck in Week 7.

Slayton operated as the clear top dog in the Giants’ pass attack for the second consecutive week without Malik Nabers, this time failing to return the same counting stats as he did in Week 5 when he went over 100 yards and found the end zone. Slayton is not typically counted on to be the top wide receiver for the Giants, meaning his fantasy value is likely to fall back to earth once Nabers returns from a concussion suffered in Week 5. That could come as early as Week 7 when the Giants play host to the division rival Eagles.