NFL Player News

The Falcons elevated Pruitt on Saturday from their practice squad to their active roster for Sunday's matchup against the Buccaneers.

With Kyle Pitts (hamstring) ruled out for Week 5, Pruitt will get his first elevation of the campaign and has a chance to make his season debut against Tampa Bay. It's unclear how big of a role he'll play, but Atlanta figures to fill Pitts' absence via committee with Parker Hesse, Anthony Firkser, Feleipe Franks and Pruitt all garnering snaps.

The Vikings elevated Muse on Saturday from their practice squad to their active roster for Sunday's matchup against the Bears, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.

Muse, a rookie seventh-round pick, caught four passes for 40 yards during the preseason and landed a spot on the Vikings' practice squad after going unclaimed through waivers at the end of August. Minnesota recently placed Ben Ellefson (groin) on injured reserve, so Muse will compete with Johnny Mundt for backup snaps behind Irv Smith.

The Texans elevated Akins on Saturday from their practice squad to the active roster for Sunday's matchup against the Jaguars, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com reports.

With Brevin Jordan (ankle) still out, Akins will join the active roster for a third consecutive contest. Over his previous two appearances, the fifth-year tight end has caught five of six targets for 64 yards and a touchdown while playing 35 total offensive snaps. He figures to garner a similar role against Jacksonville in Week 5, but he'll be out of elevations following the contest, which means he'll have to be signed to the active roster if he's going to make any more appearances for Houston this season.

Moreau (knee) is questionable for Monday's game against the Chiefs, Josh Dubow of The Associated Press reports.

Moreau did manage to practice in limited fashion Saturday, his first practice in two consecutive weeks, but it's entirely possible the tight end could still be unavailable for the AFC West divisional matchup. Starting tight end Darren Waller is a full go for the prime-time matchup, which will likely limit whoever ends up as the No. 2 option come Monday.

Okwuegbunam caught his only target for five yards in Thursday's 12-9 overtime loss to the Colts.

Okwuegbunam's precipitous fall from fantasy relevance continued Thursday, as the veteran tight end was on the field for just 21 percent of the Broncos' offensive snaps, the lowest snap share of all Denver tight ends. Teammate Eric Saubert once again led the Broncos' tight end room in both snaps (41) and targets (7). However, Okwuegbunam's 15 offensive snaps were also behind Eric Tomlinson (35) and Andrew Beck (19) in the tight end pecking order. The 24-year-old Okwuegbunam's lack of playing time is a major concern, and it's unlikely things will get much better with rookie Greg Dulcich (hamstring) nearing a return from injured reserve. Okwuegbunam should remain off the fantasy radar as the Broncos visit the Chargers in Week 6.

Saubert caught five of seven targets for 36 yards in Thursday's 12-9 overtime loss to the Colts.

Saubert once again led all Broncos tight ends in snap percentage, playing 56 percent of the team's offensive snaps. For the time being, it appears that the veteran has earned the trust of the Denver coaching staff and quarterback Russell Wilson, as his seven targets were the third highest in the Denver passing attack. Unfortunately, this bump in usage did not result in much for fantasy purposes with the offense continuing to struggle. Despite Saubert's climb to the top of the depth chart, the 28-year-old will be difficult to trust for fantasy purposes when the Broncos visit the Chargers in Week 6.

Morris' teammate Dawson Knox will miss Sunday's game against the Steelers due to a foot injury.

With the starter out of action, this leaves Morris and Tommy Sweeney to handle the majority of the tight-end duties for the Bills in Week 5. Morris saw 24 percent of the offensive snaps in Week 4, while Sweeney hasn't played since Week 1, so it'll be interesting to see if the former gets a few extra looks in the passing game against the Steelers. Morris has been active for three games this season with a collective 3-28-0 line on four targets.

Coach Arthur Smith doesn't expect Pitts' hamstring injury to be a long-term problem, though the tight end won't play this Sunday in Tampa Bay, ESPN.com's Michael Rothstein reports.

The Falcons seem to be optimistic Pitts will miss only a game or two, but it's hard to know for sure after he was held out of practice all week and then ruled out for Sunday's contest. Parker Hesse and Anthony Firkser figure to get most of the TE snaps for an Atlanta offense that already was running low on skill-position talent after RB Cordarrelle Patterson (knee) landed on injured reserve. Pitts' next chance to play is Sunday, Oct. 16 against the 49ers, the second of three straight matchups in which Atlanta faces a 2021 playoff team with a strong defense.

Dwelley (ribs) practiced in full Friday, Lindsey Pallares of the team's official site reports.

Dwelley sat out practice last week with a ribs injury, but he ultimately played through the issue in Monday's 24-9 win over the Rams. Although the 235-pounder failed to practice again Thursday, his ability to participate in full Friday indicates he's no longer in danger of missing Sunday's contest against the Panthers. With George Kittle reclaiming the No. 1 tight end spot for San Francisco, Dwelley has seen a combined nine offensive snaps over the 49ers' last two games.

Waller (shoulder) was listed as a full participant in Friday's walkthrough practice, Rachel Gossen of the Raiders' official site reports.

After logging a limited session Thursday, Waller's full listing Friday puts him on track to head the Raiders' tight end corps Monday night against Kansas City. Four games into the 2022 season, Waller has maintained only modest fantasy utility by averaging four catches, six targets and 43.8 receiving yards per contest to go along with one TD.