NFL Player News

Rader signed a reserve/future contract with the Steelers on Monday, Teresa Varley of the team's official site reports.

Rader spent most of the season on the Steelers' practice squad, though he was let go briefly during November. The 24-year-old is still looking to make his NFL debut since going undrafted out of Youngstown State in 2018.

Njoku played four offensive snaps in Sunday's 33-23 loss to the Bengals in Week 17.

Njoku was back on the active roster after being a healthy inactive the previous two weeks, but (now former) head coach Freddie Kitchens limited his exposure. With Kitchens no longer around, perhaps there is a path for Njoku to reclaim the starting tight end job. Cleveland never had a reliable third receiving option in 2019 beyond Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham, so Njoku could fill a need in 2020. The 23-year-old tight end has one year left on the four-year deal he signed after the Browns selected him in the first round of the 2017 draft.

Alie-Cox signed a one-year extension with the Colts on Monday.

Alie-Cox caught his only target for 15 yards in the season finale and finished 2019 with eight catches for 93 yards while mostly working as a reserve tight end. The 26-year-old appeared in all 16 games this season and currently lines up as the No. 2 tight end for 2020 behind Jack Doyle, since Eric Ebron (ankle) is headed for free agency.

Waller had thumb surgery Monday, Scott Bair of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.

It's unclear when Waller sustained this injury, but it surely didn't hinder him in the season finale, as he caught six passes for 107 yards -- his fifth game of 2019 with 100-plus receiving yards. Waller was a late-round steal for fantasy purposes this year, as he finished with 90 receptions for 1,145 yards and three touchdowns. The 27-year-old is expected to make a full recovery for the 2020 season when the Raiders move to Las Vegas.

Engram (foot) said Monday that he expects to make a full recovery from the surgery he required earlier this month and return to full activity for the start of the Giants' offseason program this spring, Bob Glauber of Newsday reports.

Engram confirmed that his left foot surgery entailed repairing the Lisfranc ligament, though the tight end indicated he wasn't dealing with a "full-blown tear." While that bodes well for Engram's chances of bouncing back from the procedure, he'll likely need to showcase better health in 2020 in order to make a serious case for a lucrative contract extension. Engram has missed 13 games due to lower-body injuries the past two seasons and isn't a surefire bet to have his fifth-year option exercised this spring.

Higbee caught eight of 12 targets for 84 yards and a touchdown during Sunday's 31-24 win over Arizona.

With Sunday's big performance, Higbee recorded an impressive 43 receptions for 522 yards and two touchdowns over the final five weeks of the season. It's impossible to imagine his role diminishing significantly to start the 2020 campaign, and the breakout stretch definitely legitimizes Los Angeles signing him to a four-year, $31.03 million contract in September. However, fellow tight end Gerald Everett still looms and has flashed big-play potential himself, so it's possible that he could cut into some of Higbee's target share.

Hooper, who can become a free agent in March, said Monday that the Falcons have yet to engage him in talks about an extension, D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports. "I'm not going to speak on that too much," Hooper said, when asked about his contract situation. "It's a business. I'm open to coming back here. I don't know. ... I haven't received an offer yet. I'm going to let my representation and the representation for the Falcons handle that."

Despite missing three games due to a sprained MCL in his knee, Hooper turned in the best season of his four-year career in 2019, posting 75 receptions for 787 yards and six touchdowns. Atlanta was able to clear up some cap space over the weekend by restructuring the 2020 contracts of Matt Ryan and Grady Jarrett, so look for the team to apply some of those savings toward a new deal for Hooper.

Coach Doug Pederson confirmed that Ertz (ribs/back/kidney) has a chance to return for Sunday's playoff game against the Seahawks, Reuben Frank of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Pederson refused to elaborate, neither confirming nor denying recent reports that suggest Ertz is recovering from a lacerated kidney as well as a cracked rib. The tight end played through his injuries in a Week 16 win over Dallas, but he wasn't able to suit up Week 17 against the Giants. Dallas Goedert and Joshua Perkins took on larger roles in Ertz's absence, with the former playing 100 percent of offensive snaps while the latter handled 78 percent (career highs for both). The two tight ends combined for 16 targets, which translates to 40 percent of the team total. It isn't clear if they'll have that same opportunity in the playoffs, as Pederson expects Ertz to manage some level of practice participation later this week, per Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia.

Gesicki secured four of seven targets for 34 yards and one touchdown during Sunday's 27-24 win over the Patriots.

Gesicki was held in check for the majority of Sunday's upset win, but he showed up with just 24 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter by beating safety Patrick Chung to reel in a game-winning touchdown. After being held without a score in his rookie season, Gesicki caught 51 of 89 targets for 570 yards and five touchdowns across 16 games this year. The Dolphins will work to further develop the ultra-athletic Penn State product into a key part of their passing game in 2020.

Hollister caught four of eight targets for 25 yards in Sunday's 26-21 loss to the 49ers.

Hollister was second on the team in targets behind DK Metcalf (12), but it's the play he couldn't make that will be remembered from this contest. With the Seahawks down to their last snap and needing a touchdown to win not only the game but the NFC West title, Russell Wilson fired a pass to Hollister just short of the goal line, and he was unable to gain the missing inches as he was brought down. The tight end has now gone six straight games without a touchdown, averaging four catches for 35.3 receiving yards per game in that span. Seattle travels to Philadelphia for a wild-card clash Sunday, and Hollister will likely remain a secondary option for Wilson in the passing attack.