NFL Player News

Penix also “added” four carries for three yards. It’s a quiet statline that doesn’t tell the story of a solid, composed outing in Penix’s starting debut. His “interception” was in reality a Kyle Pitts goal-line drop, while he helped engineer two scoring drives that were finished off by Bijan Robinson touchdown plunges. The biggest “problem” was Drew Lock tossing a pair of hideous pick-sixes that limited the Falcons’ overall play volume and compiling opportunities. The Falcons, of course, won’t be complaining like fantasy managers there. Penix throws a spinner with heat. There are going to be big plays in Weeks 17 and 18, though Drake London’s (hamstring) status is questionable for next Sunday against the Commanders.

The interior of the offensive line became an issue against the Chiefs in Week 16 as the Texans struggled to sustain drives. Running back Joe Mixon averaged 4.1 yards per carry as well, which is right at the seasonal average allowed by the Chiefs. That’s bad news for a team fighting for playoff seeding with a matchup against the Ravens in Week 17, who are one of the only teams in the league to allow fewer yards per carry than the Chiefs in 2024.

It’ll mark the fifth straight absence for the elite cornerback as he tends to a knee injury suffered in Week 11. Holding him out until fully healthy is likely the right long-term call for a team all but assuredly to find themselves playing in Wildcard weekend in the postseason. Alexander managed to return to a full practice this week but the additional time off should ensure he is back to 100% for the playoffs.

Walked suffered an ankle injury in the second half of Sunday’s loss to the Vikings and didn’t return to the field. He dealt with an ankle injury earlier in the season but hasn’t been listed with an ankle injury since Week 14’s game against the Cardinals. Monday’s report was only an estimation, but if Walker can’t go on Thursday against the Bears, Zach Charbonnet would again be jammed into a bell cow role. We’ll see if things improve for Walker on Tuesday when the Seahawks take the field for the first practice of the week.

Great news for fantasy football, this is. It’s also a good sign that Murray is coming out of the competitive portion of this year mostly healthy. Thus far, Murray has completed 68.6 percent of his passes for 3288 yards, 16 touchdowns, and nine picks. Those aren’t exactly franchise quarterback numbers, but Murray has probably done enough to remain Arizona’s franchise quarterback going forward while they focus their 2025 resources on the defense and offensive line.

Two can play the “claim a wideout off waivers from the team they’re playing this week” game, Texans. Sims is more of a punt returner than anything, but the Ravens have struggled in that area as Desmond King put a ball on the ground on Saturday. The rare Festivus waiver claim trade is to be celebrated.

Johnson will be able to share some intel on his old team ahead of Christmas’ game against the Ravens. The target vacuum that has emerged in Houston with injuries to Tank Dell and Stefon Diggs is an inviting fantasy football volume spot. It is unlikely the Texans would ask Johnson to be that right away, but the #RevengeGame narratives do write themselves nicely. We’d expect them to try and get his feet wet in Week 17, and maybe give him an expanded role in Week 18 and see what happens against the Titans.

Fashanu could be placed on injured reserve to open up a roster spot. He started the final five games of his season at left tackle and looks likely to be the starter at the position in 2025. That will probably have the Jets parting ways with similarly IR’ed Tyron Smith this offseason. Max Mitchell replaced Fashanu at left tackle and should get a two-game audition in the season’s closing weeks.

Porter was also listed as a DNP on Sunday’s estimated practice report. The Steelers’ CB1 is at risk of missing Week 17’s game against the Chiefs if he’s not able to get on the field even in a limited capacity on Tuesday. If Porter is unable to play, James Pierre would likely draw the start in his absence.

Sounds like a good sign for Nick Folk’s return this week. Narveson missed his only field-goal attempt for the Titans in Week 16.