NFL Player News

Wright was elevated from the Lions' practice squad Saturday.

T.J. Hockenson (knee) is questionable for Sunday's game against the Rams, so Wright will join the active roster to provide additional depth. The Notre Dame graduate has yet to debut in the NFL.

Waller was downgraded to questionable for Sunday's game due to an ankle injury, Tashan Reed of The Athletic reports.

It's obviously not a good sign Waller was downgraded, but the questionable designation does leave some room for optimism for fantasy managers. At this juncture it's too early to say what this means for the star tight end's availability entering Sunday's contest against the Eagles, but more information regarding the injury should be available well before the 4:05 p.m. ET kickoff.

Blanton was elevated to the Rams' active roster off the practice squad Saturday, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports.

Blanton will be active for the first time this season and for the first time since 2019. He will likely operate primarily on special teams with Johnny Mundt (knee) on injured reserve.

Bowers (neck) has been ruled out for Sunday's matchup with the Eagles, Paul Gutierrez of ESPN.com reports.

Bowers didn't practice at all this week, so his status for Sunday shouldn't come as a surprise. The 25-year-old tight end has played mainly special teams during the two contests he has been active, so his absence shouldn't affect the Raiders' offensive rotations.

Saubert caught his lone target for three yards in Thursday's 17-14 loss to the Browns.

Saubert played on 42 percent of the Broncos' offensive snaps as he continued to operate at the team's No. 2 tight end with Albert Okwuegbunam placed on IR. The 27-year-old tight end was unable to capitalize on his increased playing time, playing well behind starter Noah Fant. Saubert is in no way an option for fantasy purposes. The 6-foot-5, 253-pounder would need both Fant and Okwuegbunam to be sidelined with injuries to see any sort of path to fantasy relevance. The Broncos will host Washington in Week 8.

Okwuegbunam (hamstring) is expected to return to practice following the Broncos' Week 7 matchup with Washington, Ben Swanson of the team's official website reports.

Okwuegbunam has been on IR since Oct. 9. While he is expected to return to practice in the upcoming week, head coach Vic Fangio is uncertain whether he will be able to return in Week 9. Okwuegbunam projects primarily as a special-teams contributor when healthy.

Graham's placement on the reserve/COVID-19 list earlier Friday was the result of a positive test, Aaron Wilson of Sportstalk 790 Houston reports.

According to Jason Lieser of the Chicago Sun-Times, Graham is vaccinated, so he'll be eligible to rejoin the Bears as soon as he's asymptomatic and has tested negative on two occasions at least 24 hours apart. Graham won't have sufficient time to gain clearance ahead of Sunday's game against the Buccaneers, which kicks off at 4:25 p.m ET. The Bears are likely to turn to Jesse James as the primary backup at tight end behind starter Cole Kmet.

Arizona ruled Daniels (hamstring) out for Sunday's contest against the Texans, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.

Daniels didn't practice at all this week, so his absence Sunday comes as little surprise. With the recently acquired Zach Ertz set to make his team debut Sunday while taking over as the Cardinals' No. 1 tight end moving forward, Demetrius Harris will operate as the clear top backup with Daniels out of the mix this week.

Kelce (neck) doesn't carry an injury designation for Sunday's game against the Titans after returning to a full practice Friday.

After logging back-to-back limited sessions Wednesday and Thursday, Kelce practiced in full Friday, paving the way for him to be cleared to face Tennessee. Six weeks into the 2021 season, Kelce continues to produce at a high level, having racked up 38 catches (on 53 targets) for 468 yards and four TDs in that span. Over his last two outings, the tight end has combined for 14 catches on 21 targets and has logged double-digit targets in three of his last four contests.

Korft (back) won't play in Sunday's game against the Patriots, Rich Cimini of ESPN reports.

Kroft was unable to practice at all this week, suggesting he's not particularly close to returning. He hasn't seen the field since Week 4, leaving the Jets bereft of talent at tight end. Ryan Griffin is expected to serve as the Jets' primary option at the position Week 7 but won't make for an especially appealing fantasy option.