NFL Player News

Hurst (groin/ankle) does not carry an injury designation into Monday's contest against the Browns, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

The veteran tight end was a limited participant in practice all week, setting the stage for Hurst to factor in a possibly prominent role with Ja'Marr Chase (hip) out for the foreseeable future. Hurst has 39 targets through seven weeks, good for eighth most among tight ends this year.

Njoku (ankle) will not play Monday against the Bengals, Zac Jackson of The Athleticreports.

Njoku never managed to practice this week, so this felt like a foregone conclusion. Harrison Bryant now enters a prominent role as the team's primary pass-catching tight end and could be an interesting streamer candidate in an AFC North divisional battle that figures to feature plenty of offense.

Otton brought in two of five targets for 15 yards in the Buccaneers' 27-22 loss to the Ravens on Thursday night.

The rookie tight end drew another start with Cameron Brate (neck) out of action, but he couldn't parlay the opportunity into the same level of production he'd enjoyed in a pair of previous contests with an expanded role. Otton logged a robust 56 snaps overall, so the inefficient night certainly wasn't attributable to a lack of playing time. Otton has showed plenty of promise as a pass catcher, however, so even if Brate is back for the Week 9 home matchup against the Rams a week from Sunday, the 2022 fourth-round pick should still see a solid amount of playing time.

Waller (hamstring) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Saints after practicing in a limited fashion this week, Rachel Gossen of the Raiders' official site reports.

Waller, who didn't practice at all last week and was inactive for the team's Week 7 win over the Texans, thus has a chance to return to action in New Orleans. On the plus side for those considering the tight end in Week 8 fantasy lineups, the Raiders kick off at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday.

Hurst (groin/ankle) was a limited participant in Friday's practice, Jay Morrison of The Athletic

Hurst has appeared on Bengals injury reports since Week 3 with the groin issue yet hadn't missed any time, but the fact that he's dealing with an ankle concern in addition to the former injury could make gaining clearance for Monday's game in Cleveland a bit tougher. Even if Hurst is limited Saturday in the Bengals' final practice of the week, there's a good chance he'll at least take a questionable tag into Monday rather than being ruled out in advance. Mitchell Wilcox would be the next man up for reps at tight end if Hurst ends up sitting out the Week 8 contest.

Trautman (ankle) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Raiders.

The same goes for Juwan Johnson, who caught two TD passes last week with Trautman sidelined but now is dealing with a hamstring injury. Trautman hasn't made a fantasy impact even when he's been healthy, mostly serving as a blocker while Johnson has handled most of the TE routes and targets.

Smythe (hamstring) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Lions, David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

Smythe logged limited practice Thursday and Friday after failing to practice Wednesday. While Smythe isn't much of a pass catcher himself, his presence on the field would likely cut into the snaps and targets for fellow Dolphins tight end Mike Gesicki.

Johnson (hamstring) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Raiders.

Johnson was added to the injury report Thursday and listed as a limited participant the final two days of the week, while fellow tight end Adam Trautman -- also listed as questionable -- managed just one limited practice Friday due to an ankle injury. Trautman was out last week for the Saints' Thursday loss to Arizona, in which Johnson caught five passes for 32 yards and two touchdowns. Johnson is the team's top receiving tight end either way, but his projection gets a slight boost if he plays and Trautman doesn't.

Schultz (knee) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Bears, Patrick Walker of the Cowboys' official site reports.

Schultz has struggled with the knee ever since suffering a PCL sprain Week 2, but he did catch all five of his targets for 49 yards in last week's win over the Lions, displaying chemistry with Dak Prescott in the QB's first game back in the lineup. Schultz appears on track to play after managing limited practices throughout the week, albeit with the continued risk of in-game setbacks/aggravations.

Hockenson (knee) doesn't have an injury designation for Sunday's game against Miami, Tim Twentyman of the Lions' official site reports.

Neither do RB D'Andre Swift (shoulder) and WR Josh Reynolds (knee), while Amon-Ra St. Brown (concussion) is listed as questionable but tentatively expected to play. Hockenson has yet to miss a game this season despite frequently showing up on the injury report, and he's seen at least four targets in each game, albeit with 57 percent of his yardage and two of his three TDs coming in a single contest (Week 4 against Seattle).