NFL Player News

Mundt felt great after the Vikings' preseason opener and did not suffer any setbacks, Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Mundt is in line to compete with the likes of Ben Ellefson, Zach Davidson, Nick Muse and Shaun Beyer for the team's No. 2 tight end role behind Irv Smith. As of now, he appears to have completely moved on from the torn ACL he suffered last October.

Thomas (ribs) isn't in line to play in Friday's preseason contest at New England, Darin Gantt of the Panthers' official site reports.

Thomas got banged up in practice on Wednesday, Aug. 10 and has been sidelined with a rib injury in the meantime. He's among three tight ends that won't suit up Friday -- also, Colin Thompson (calf) and Josh Babicz (undisclosed) -- making Tommy Tremble, Stephen Sullivan and Jared Scott the Panthers available at the position.

Henry, who missed practice earlier this week with an undisclosed injury, wasn't present for warmups in advance of Friday's preseason contest against the Panthers, Zack Cox of NESN.com reports.

It appears as though Henry is in line to sit out the contest, with the Patriots having signed Jalen Wydermyer to provide the team with added tight end depth ahead of Friday's contest.

Calcaterra (hamstring) returned to practice Friday, Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Calcaterra practiced for the first time since July 30 on Friday after being sidelined with a hamstring issue. The tight end was drafted in the sixth round of this year's draft and will compete with Jack Stoll and Tyree Jackson (knee) for the backup role behind Dallas Goedert in 2022.

Wright appears to have secured a roster spot, Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports.

Head coach Dan Campbell is on record this summer that the Lions are aiming to keep three tight ends on the active roster this season, including a blocker to complement the receiving-proficient T.J. Hockenson. It appears Wright will be that guy in the blocking role. While this may earn him a decent amount of offensive snaps in 2022, Wright will remain a long shot for fantasy utility given the minimal receiving role he is expected to have while competing for targets underneath with the likes of Hockenson, D'Andre Swift and Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Seals-Jones (undisclosed) won't play Sunday against Cincinnati, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports.

Seals-Jones didn't play in last week's preseason opener against the Patriots and will miss a second consecutive matchup to begin the preseason. His final chance to see some game action prior to the regular season will be Aug. 28 against the Jets.

Dissly wasn't targeted in Thursday's 27-11 preseason loss to the Bears.

Dissly didn't play in the preseason opener and handled just eight total snaps in Thursday's loss. Meanwhile, fellow tight end Noah Fant has combined for 36 offensive snaps over the last two weeks. It's difficult to get a read on this situation, but it's likely Fant is simply getting more reps because he's unfamiliar with the new offense. Both Dissly and Fant should have consistent roles when Week 1 arrives, though the former is still expected to focus on blocking more than receiving.

Kmet (undisclosed) caught two of three targets for 31 yards in Thursday's 27-11 preseason win over Seattle.

Kmet suited up for the game's opening series after sitting out Chicago's preseason opener. The 23-year-old tight end picked up 12 yards on the game's first play from scrimmage and added a 19-yard reception later on the drive. Both of Kmet's catches came from starting quarterback Justin Fields, as all three of Fields, Kmet and Darnell Mooney were on the field together for the opening drive before taking the remainder of the night off. Kmet and the Bears have one more preseason game left on the schedule, Aug. 27 in Cleveland.

Fant caught his only target for minus-3 yards in Thursday's 27-11 preseason loss to the Bears.

Fant's only touch came in the second quarter, as he wasn't heavily involved despite seeing substantially more playing time than starting wide receivers DK Metcalf and Tyler Lockett (one series each). Seattle was shut out in the first half with Geno Smith (knee) under center the entire time, which could open the door for Fant's former Broncos teammate Drew Lock to push for the starting quarterback job if he can recover from COVID-19 in time to face the Cowboys in the Aug. 26 preseason finale.

Wydermyer signed a contract with the Patriots on Thursday, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com reports.

The rookie tight end previously signed with the Bills in May but was just released by the team this past Sunday. Wydermyer gives the Patriots added preseason tight-end depth, with Hunter Henry having missed Wednesday's practice with an undisclosed injury, However, Wydermyer will have his work cut out for him in order to land a roster spot, with Devin Asiasi, Dalton Keene and Matt Sokol also in the depth mix behind Henry and Jonnu Smith.