NFL Player News

Kittle caught six of eight passes for 125 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 29-27 loss to the Chargers.

Kittle was wide open in the middle of the field and had to make just one defender miss on his 82-yard catch-and-run touchdown to bring the 49ers within two points of the lead in the third quarter. The 24-year-old paced the team in receptions, targets and yards on the day and now has at least 79 yards in three of four games this season. The Iowa product ought to continue drawing a large share of the targets with his former college teammate C.J. Beathard now under center, getting his next opportunity in a home game Week 5 against Arizona.

Akins caught two of three targets for 24 yards in Houston's Week 4 overtime win over Indianapolis on Sunday.

Texans' tight ends accounted for four of quarterback Deshaun Watson's 42 dropbacks -- Ryan Griffin had the other. From week to week, the leader among Houston's three tight ends has changed, making it difficult for fantasy owners to pinpoint one. Additionally, Watson has primarily focused on the wide receivers, so even with a high-volume passing team, the tight ends are given little chance to produce.

Hooper hauled in one of two targets for 19 yards in a 37-36 loss to Cincinnati on Sunday.

The third-year tight end has now been held to 24 or fewer receiving yards in three of four outings to start the season, and has only eclipsed 50 yards three times in 33 career games. Week 5 does provide some reason for optimism, as the Steelers have allowed opposing tight ends to catch 30 passes for 339 yards and three touchdowns on 42 targets through four weeks.

Vannett caught one of two targets for six yards in Sunday's 20-17 win over the Cardinals.

A week after pacing the team with four catches, Vannett was an afterthought despite starting tight end Will Dissly leaving early with a knee injury. It's highly unlikely Dissly can suit up in the near future, so Vannett should see an uptick in usage as the only tight end on the 53-man roster. However, fantasy owners should be skeptical of starting him Week 5 against a Rams defense that has allowed the second-most yards (328) to tight ends but hasn't allowed one to score yet this season.

Dissly (knee) has been diagnosed with a patella tendon injury, Bob Condotta of The Seattle Times reports.

A torn patella is one of the more serious injuries a football player can suffer, sometimes requiring a full year for rehab and recovery. Dissly was carted off the field after injuring his knee during the first quarter of Sunday's 20-17 win over the Cardinals, finishing the afternoon with one catch for five yards. The rookie fourth-round pick had become a surprisingly important piece of Seattle's passing attack, catching seven of 13 targets for 151 yards and two TDs through the first three weeks of the season. His upcoming absence leaves Nick Vannett as the unquestioned No. 1 tight end until at least Week 7, at which point Ed Dickson (quad, groin) will be eligible to return from the non-football injury list.

Hurst (foot) is inactive for Sunday's game against Pittsburgh, Jamison Hensley of ESPN.com reports.

Hurst is nearing a return, but he'll now aim for a season debut in Week 5. Mark Andrews, Nick Boyle and Maxx Williams will thus handle the Ravens' tight end duties Sunday.

Uzomah caught his lone target for six yards in Sunday's 37-36 win over the Falcons.

Uzomah wasn't a big part of this win, but he and fellow tight end Tyler Kroft should both play greater roles moving forward after starter Tyler Eifert suffered what could be a season-ending ankle injury. Through four weeks, Uzomah has seven catches (one touchdown). He'll face the Dolphins in Week 5.

Ertz caught 10 of his 14 targets for 112 yards during Sunday's 26-23 loss to the Titans.

All eyes were on the return of Alshon Jeffery, but Ertz still ended up leading the Eagles with 14 targets. Just two of those targets were inside the red zone, however, and none came inside the 10-yard line. Ertz, who has seen at least 10 targets in every game this season, is about as reliable as tight ends come, but he has yet to find the end zone this season. His next shot will be Sunday against a struggling Vikings defense.

Dissly won't return to Sunday's game in Arizona due to a knee injury, Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic reports.

Midway through the first quarter, Dissly required a cart to get to the locker room after injuring his right knee. He'll undergo the requisite tests to hone in on a diagnosis, at which point an absence, if any, will be known. Nick Vannett is left as the sole healthy tight end on the Seahawks' 53-man roster.

Graham caught three of six targets for 21 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 22-0 win over the Bills.

Graham opened the scoring with a three-yard touchdown catch in the first quarter. The veteran tight end was expected to make plenty of trips to the end zone with Aaron Rodgers and the high-octane Packers offense after finding paydirt 10 times with the Seahawks last year, but this was only his first score of the season. He'll try to build off this performance against the Lions in Week 5.