NFL Player News

Hooper hauled in three of his four targets, while accounting for 48 receiving yards during Monday's 23-20 win against the Giants.

Hooper put forth a performance Monday that more so resembled the player he had been through his first 34 career games, compared to the prolific production he had enjoyed over his previous two outings. The third-year tight end posted per-game averages of 2.2 catches and 27.1 receiving yards for his career prior to Week 5 of this season, when he suddenly exploded for 18 combined catches for 148 yards and a touchdown in matchups against Pittsburgh and Tampa Bay. Make no mistake about it. Hooper has become a more integral part of this Falcons passing attack in 2018, with 5.9 targets per game compared to 3.1 per game during his first two professional seasons. Still, expectations should be tempered somewhat, as he may not yet provide consistent TE1 upside with the plethora of weapons that Atlanta sports on the perimeter. Following a Week 8 bye, the Falcons return to action Nov. 4 against a Redskins defense that has allowed the seventh-fewest yards to tight ends this season (267).

Akins played 30 of 64 offensive snaps and was not targeted in Sunday's win over the Jaguars.

If there was ever a week that Akins might break out, it was Week 7 with Ryan Griffin (illness) inactive. Unfortunately for Akins, the Texans relied on the running game, so the coaches opted to use Jordan Thomas, the superior blocker, more than Akins. We suspect the Texans will execute a similar run-first formula Week 8 on Thursday night against the Dolphins, who rank 29th against the run.

Thomas did not play a snap on offense in Sunday's 21-17 win over the Eagles.

Thomas has been relegated to special teams duty in light of Greg Olsen returning from injury to claim his every-down role at tight end.

Goedert hauled in four of five targets for 45 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 21-17 loss to Carolina.

Goedert got four of his looks on a single drive in the third quarter that ended with his touchdown catch. He wasn't very involved otherwise, but his reception, target and yardage totals were all still good for his second-best numbers of the season. The rookie has seen between 31 and 37 snaps in each of his last four games and is likely to see a similar workload Week 8 against Jacksonville at Wembley Stadium.

Everett played just 22 of 61 offensive snaps and lost five yards with his only reception during Sunday's 39-10 win over San Francisco.

At this stage of the season, it looks like another lost fantasy year for Everett. The tight end owns all the athletic gifts to make an impact, but he's not receiving enough looks in the passing attack with just 13 targets through seven games. Everett still owns some dynasty appeal, but all seasonal expectations for him should be tempered at this point.

Higbee played 42 of 61 offensive snaps but failed to catch his only target during Sunday's 39-10 win over San Francisco.

Higbee's now gone consecutive games without a reception and has just five catches for 64 yards and a touchdown for the season. Unless he suddenly becomes more involved in the offense, the third-year tight end out of Western Kentucky should be ignored in all fantasy settings.

Smith brought in two of three targets for 11 yards during Sunday's 20-19 loss to the Chargers.

Smith logged 79 percent of Tennessee's offensive snaps and remains the team's No. 1 tight end, but has yet to step into the role left by Delanie Walker (ankle). The second-year pro has yet to eclipse three targets in a game and has only logged a total of 44 receiving yards in the last six games. Smith does not warrant weekly fantasy consideration in the Titans' low volume passing attack.

Gesicki was limited in Monday's practice due to a shoulder injury, Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald reports.

Gesicki seems to have sustained a shoulder injury during Miami's 32-21 loss to the Lions on Sunday, in which he brought in three of three targets for 44 yards. The rookie tight end was also subjected to double coverage in the red zone, so it would appear that Gesicki has earned an increased role in the Dolphins' offense in the absence of A.J. Derby (foot). The severity of Gesicki's shoulder injury remains undisclosed, but Joe Schad of The Palm Beach Post reports that the rookie tight end is doing better than coach Adam Gase expected. Gesicki's status is up in the air for Thursday's game against the Texans.

Derby (foot) did not practice Monday, Adam H. Beasley of the Miami Herald reports.

Derby continues to nurse a foot injury, one that's caused him to miss four consecutive regular-season contests. Rookie tight end Mike Gesicki hauled in all three targets for 44 yards in Derby's absence Week 7, so there's no guarantee that the 27-year-old returns to an uncontested starting role when healthy.

Uzomah hauled in both of his targets for 13 yards and a touchdown Sunday in the Bengals' 45-10 loss to the Chiefs.

Uzomah continues to dominate the tight-end snaps for Cincinnati -- he played 57 of a possible 59 in Week 7 -- but he has yet to emerge as much more than a peripheral option in the Cincinnati passing attack. He's been targeted two or fewer times in three of the past four weeks, hindering his upside in games when he's not able to reach the end zone like he did on his four-yard grab in the second quarter. The 25-year-old will at least draw another favorable matchup against a struggling Tampa Bay defense Week 8, but Uzomah could drop further in the pecking order among the Bengals' pass-catching options if Giovani Bernard (knee) is cleared to return to action.