NFL Player News

Dwelley caught his only target for 25 yards in Saturday's 34-31 win over the Rams.

Jimmy Garoppolo connected with Dwelley for a big gain in the fourth quarter to extend a drive that ultimately led to a touchdown pass to starting tight end George Kittle. It was the only offensive action Dwelley would receive, and he was only on the field for two offensive snaps. Both he and fellow backup tight end, Levine Toilolo, combined for just 10 snaps on offense, and neither carries fantasy value while Kittle is healthy and terrorizing opposing defenses.

Smith caught six of eight targets for 35 yards and two touchdowns during Sunday's 41-35 win over the Redskins.

Smith averaged just 5.8 yards per catch, but he did significant damage with his touches. The rookie scored a nine-yard touchdown in the third quarter before winning the game with a three-yard score in overtime. Smith has come on in the latter stages of the season and is now averaging 38 receiving yards per game with two touchdowns over the last four contests. He'll look to finish strong next Sunday against the Eagles.

Gesicki secured six of 12 targets for 82 yards and two touchdowns in the Dolphins' 38-35 overtime win against the Bengals on Sunday.

The second-year tight end was clicking with quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick on Sunday, recording scoring grabs of 31 and 13 yards in the second and third quarters, respectively. Gesicki has come to life after a mostly moribund first half of the season, as he's brought in 32 of 57 targets for 383 yards and four touchdowns over his last eight games. Gesicki will look to put a fitting stamp on his strong second half in a tough matchup against the Patriots in Week 17.

Vannett caught his lone target for 18 yards in Pittsburgh's 16-10 loss to the Jets on Sunday.

The return of Vance McDonald resulted in Vannett regressing to his typical one target game -- he now has one target in seven of 10 games played with the Steelers. Pittsburgh finishes the regular season with a Week 17 contest against a Baltimore defense that ranks first in fantasy in limiting points to tight ends.

Ertz (ribs) returned to Sunday's game against the Cowboys, Dave Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports.

Ertz visited the locker room after taking a hit from Cowboys safety Xavier Woods in the first quarter, and while he was termed questionable to reenter the contest, he brushed off the rib injury in time for the Eagles' two-minute drill.

Ertz left Sunday's game against the Cowboys with a rib injury and is questionable to return, Fox's Erin Andrews reports.

Ertz took a hit in the first quarter on a target and left on a subsequent play, remaining in the locker room for the majority of the first half.

Smith hauled in three of his four targets for 63 yards and a touchdown in the team's Week 16 loss to the Saints.

Smith accounted for nearly two-thirds of his production when he recorded a 41-yard touchdown on the team's opening possession. On the scoring play, he caught a pass from Ryan Tannehill while flashing across the middle of the field about 12 yards from the line of scrimmage before turning upfield to find the end zone. Smith opened the Titans' following drive with a 15-yard reception, seemingly putting him in line for a massive performance. Though that didn't come to fruition, Smith has surpassed 60 yards in consecutive games and appears to be developing rapport with Tannehill. Smith will look to connect for another touchdown in the team's regular-season finale against the Texans in Week 17, a game the Titans have to win for a playoff spot.

Hooper snagged seven of nine targets for 82 receiving yards during Sunday's 24-12 win against the Jaguars.

Prior to an encouraging Week 16 showing against Jacksonville, Hooper had managed just five catches for 52 yards in his first two games back from a sprained MCL suffered Nov. 10 at New Orleans. Hooper broke out of his brief slump Sunday, garnering his highest number of targets since Week 5 and translating those opportunities into his third-greatest yardage output of 2019. Taking on a Buccaneers defense Week 17 that ranks bottom 10 in receptions (75), receiving yards (899) and touchdowns (seven) allowed to opposing tight ends, Hooper is a high-upside fantasy play for the Falcons' regular-season finale.

Andrews caught six of nine targets for 93 yards and two touchdowns in Sunday's 31-15 win over the Browns.

Andrews did most of his damage in the final 1:18 of the first half, catching touchdowns of 39 and 14 yards after his team previously had gone scoreless. The 23-year-old tight end has emerged as quarterback Lamar Jackson's favorite target, having found the end zone 10 times in his sophomore season while topping 90 receiving yards on four different occasions. With the top seed in the AFC locked up for Baltimore, Andrews' fantasy owners may need to look for alternatives Week 17, as there's a good chance coach John Harbaugh will opt to sit his more prominent starters against the Steelers in the season finale.

Fant (shoulder) is active for Sunday's Week 16 tilt against the Lions.

The rookie tight end managed to log limited practices throughout the week and now will enjoy active status for a favorable matchup. Fant has worked well with rookie quarterback Drew Lock during the latter's last two starts, bringing in six of seven targets for 169 yards and a touchdown over that span.