NFL Player News

Alie-Cox (knee) isn't practicing Wednesday, Kevin Bowen of 107.5 The Fan Indianapolis reports.

This isn't a good start to the week for Alie-Cox, who picked up a knee injury in Sunday's loss to the Browns while also failing to record a catch. With Trey Burton and Jack Coyle back in action after previously missing time with injuries earlier this season, Alie-Cox likely won't be in store for a significant amount of snaps and targets if he shakes off the injury in time for this weekend's game versus the Bengals.

Fant (ankle) will participate in Wednesday's practice, Mike Klis of 9News Denver reports.

The extent of Fant's practice activity remains to be seen, but it's encouraging to see him get on the field in some capacity after having been absent all last week. The tight end is working to overcome the ankle sprain in time for Sunday's game in New England.

Smith caught his lone target for a seven-yard gain during Sunday's 37-34 loss to the Cowboys.

With Evan Engram back in the fold after missing eight games last season because of knee and foot injuries, the 23-year-old tight end from Stanford has posted seven total receptions over the first five appearances of his sophomore campaign. Smith has four starts to his name and has also played at least 30 percent of the offensive snaps in every game this season, but he hasn't been heavily involved pass-catching-wise for the Giants' 31st-ranked scoring offense.

Firkser recorded three receptions on five targets for 19 yards in the Titans' Week 5 win over the Bills.

Firkser drew the third-most targets on the team, benefitting from the absences of Corey Davis (COVID-19) and Adam Humphries (COVID-19). He didn't do much with the opportunity, however, as he recorded under four yards per target with his longest reception of the contest going for 12 yards. Firkser could maintain increased volume if Davis and Humphries remain out in a Week 6 matchup against Houston, though his work in the shorter areas of the passing game limit his potential.

Smith caught five of his seven targets for 40 receiving yards and two touchdowns during Tuesday's 42-16 win against Buffalo.

Smith and the recently returned from injury A.J. Brown were the clear top options for quarterback Ryan Tannehill, attracting five of the team's six red-zone targets on the night. Smith has been one of the year's fantasy revelations at tight end thus far, as his five TD receptions in four games are more than he managed in his preceding 20 games combined. The Florida International standout faces a Houston defense in Week 6 that is conceding a 72.7 percent completion rate to opposing tight ends on the season.

Knox was forced out of Tuesday's game versus the Titans with a calf injury.

Knox left the game in the second half after catching one of three targets for 15 yards. Tyler Kroft should handle a hefty workload the rest of the game since he's the Bills' only remaining tight end.

The Packers placed Deguara (torn ACL) on injured reserve Tuesday.

Deguara tore his ACL in Week 4 against the Falcons, and he'll predictably be shut down for the season. The rookie third-rounder caught one pass for 12 yards this year. The Packers have Robert Tonyan, Jace Sternberger and Marcedes Lewis (knee) available to handle reps at tight end moving forward, and Deguara should have enough time to make a full recovery for the 2021 season.

Arnold played 27 of 75 snaps on offense during Sunday's 30-10 road win against the Jets.

Prior to Sunday, Arnold earned at least 50 percent of the offensive plays in each of the Cardinals' first four games of the season. That said, he was second fiddle to TE Darrell Daniels (50) in the category Week 5 and wasn't even targeted. It bears watching whether Arnold will be able to parlay his preseason hype into in-season output, but his lack of TDs this year after scoring twice in the final three contests of 2019 indicates he isn't a major piece of Arizona's offense.

Kmet didn't draw any targets while playing 21 of the Bears' 63 offensive snaps (33 percent) in Thursday's 20-19 win over the Buccaneers.

Kmet has settled into the in-line blocking role at tight end that previously belonged to Adam Shaheen, who was traded to the Dolphins in July. With veteran Jimmy Graham proving to be a reliable safety valve in the passing game for Chicago thus far, the rookie second-round pick likely won't be in store for an uptick in targets so long as the former stays healthy.

Daniels posted two catches (on two targets) for 37 yards during Sunday's 30-10 road victory versus the Jets.

Starting his fourth consecutive game, Daniels led Cardinals tight ends in offensive snap share, playing 67 percent to Dan Arnold's 36 percent and Evan Baylis' five percent. Sunday marked the second time Daniels made an impact in the box score, though, as tight ends aren't heavily featured in an offense paced of DeAndre Hopkins and Kenyan Drake. As a result, Daniels doesn't hold much sway in the fantasy realm.