NFL Player News

James (shoulder) was a limited participant at Wednesday's practice, Joe Rutter of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports.

James suffered the injury during the first half of Sunday's 23-17 loss to the Bears, but returned to the contest and ended up playing 72 percent of the Steelers' offensive snaps. That was still a significant drop off from his snap shares in Week 1 (90 percent) and Week 2 (96 percent), and his production took a corresponding dive to just two catches for 29 yards on four targets. James does seem to be on track for the Steelers' Week 4 game in Baltimore, where he'll likely continue to work ahead of Vance McDonald and Xavier Grimble. The Steelers still haven't integrated McDonald into the passing game in a meaningful way.

Derby caught one of two targets for five yards in Sunday's 26-16 loss in Buffalo.

Two targets are an improvement over Week 2's shutout, but it can't be what Derby expected after building a rapport with quarterback Trevor Siemian since he was acquired via trade late last year. Derby looked like he'd be the Broncos' pass-catching tight end after a full offseason of work, but it's been Virgil Green, traditionally known as a blocker, who has been targeted the most of Denver's tight ends. Things can only get better for Derby, but given the presence of Demaryius Thomas and Emmanuel Sanders and a renewed emphasis on the run, hold off on him until further notice.

Kroft had three catches for 28 yards on four targets in Sunday's loss to the Packers.

Kroft is in line for more starts with Tyler Eifert likely out the next couple of weeks, but chances are he'll be just a small part of the Bengals' offense.

Njoku hauled in two of his four targets for 12 yards and a score in Sunday's 31-28 loss to the Colts.

The rookie tight end was only on the field for 39 percent of Cleveland's offensive plays but still managed to find paydirt for the second consecutive week when DeShone Kizer found him for a one-yard score just before halftime. Seth DeValve has now played more snaps than Njoku in two of the first three weeks, but Njoku's knack for the end zone is starting to become a trend, making him the Browns' tight end to own in deep/dynasty leagues.

Hooper caught one ball for nine yards in Sunday's 30-26 win over the Lions.

Hooper was targeted only twice on the day, despite 35 pass attempts from Matt Ryan. After bursting onto the scene in Week 1, Hooper has been held in check of late. He's seen exactly two targets in each of his three games this season, so he shouldn't be expected to put up big numbers unless things change.

Seals-Jones was promoted to the team's active roster Monday, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.

With Jermaine Gresham (ribs) still questionable for Monday's game against the Cowboys, Seals-Jones will add some depth to the temporary depth to the tight end position. Regardless of whether Gresham is active or not, Seals-Jones is not expected to play much of a role in the team's offense Monday night or any time this season.

Allen was on the field for 17 of the Patriots' 65 snaps on offense in Sunday's 36-33 win over the Texans.

Allen was targeted twice Sunday, but he remains without a catch through the Patriots' first three games. While it's conceivable that he may have occasional fantasy-worthy outbursts in the coming weeks, he's not a high-percentage play as long as fellow tight end Rob Gronkowski remains healthy enough to log a heavy workload.

Graham (ankle) caught seven of 11 passes for 72 yards during Sunday's 33-27 loss to Tennessee.

The veteran tight end nursed an ankle injury last week, but fully practiced Friday and turned in a respectable fantasy showing Sunday. After two poor performances to start the season (four receptions for just nine yards), it was reassuring for owners that he was heavily involved in the passing attack. While the Seattle offense still has some concerns, a soft home matchup against the Colts is up next in Week 4, so Graham is positioned to have another strong outing.

Supernaw caught his lone target for three yards in Sunday's 33-27 win over Seattle.

The blocking tight end will remain a fantasy non-factor even if Tennessee gets hit by the injury bug at the position. Supernaw's totals of eight catches for 97 yards in 35 games with the Titans equate to one strong performance from starting tight end Delanie Walker.

Smith hauled in a 24-yard touchdown on one of his two targets in Sunday's 33-27 win over the Seahawks.

Tennessee's tight end of the future has shown plenty of ability in the present with touchdown catches in consecutive weeks. The rookie's still operating primarily in two-tight-end sets with Delanie Walker clearly topping the depth chart, but Smith's starting to work his way into the standard league discussion nonetheless thanks to his nose for the end zone.