NFL Player News

Quarless has been suspended two games for violating the league's personal conduct policy, Ian Rapoport reports.

Quarless was not re-signed by the Packers after last season, when he missed virtually all of the campaign due to a knee injury. Now with a two-game suspension stemming from a July 2015 incident in which he discharged a firearm in public, Quarless has been dealt a tough blow as he remains unsigned ahead of this season.

Ertz caught three passes for 26 yards on five targets in Thursday's preseason opener against Tampa Bay.

Ertz was one of the Eagles' few productive players in the passing game as the team threw for just 114 yards on 36 attempts. Locked in as the top tight end and one of the team's leading targets, Ertz will look to pick up where he left off last season, when he remarkably posted a 35-450-1 receiving line over the final four weeks.

Niklas has drawn praise from head coach Bruce Arians this training camp, the Cardinals' official site reports. "He's made a really nice move," Arians said Wednesday. "He's looking like the player we drafted and wanted. He had all those injuries and had bad luck, and knock on wood I don't want to jinx him, but he's where I want him to be right now."

If Niklas has been lingering on dynasty benches since the Cardinals selected him in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft, owners may be able to deploy the hulking tight this season. His first two campaigns weren't friendly from an injury standpoint, but avoiding the bug so far, he's showed off his blocking capability, which is a staple for tight ends within Arians' offense. Niklas has four preseason tilts to move past Darren Fells and Jermaine Gresham (hamstring) in the TE pecking order. However, when Niklas received 16 percent of the offensive snaps last year, he had a measly four catches for 33 yards and two touchdowns.

James is in line to start in Friday's preseason debut against the Lions with Ladarius Green still on the physically unable to perform list, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reports. "He needs these opportunities to grow and develop himself," head coach Mike Tomlin said. "He's a young guy working to improve, so he needs the reps."

As the Steelers' TE1 in training camp, James is getting an opportunity to work with Ben Roethlisberger much more than he would if Green (ankle), who underwent surgery in January, was available. With no timetable for Green's return, James could be a sneaky play in deep fantasy leagues.

Graham returned to practice Wednesday, ending his stint on the PUP list, Stephen Cohen of Seattle Pi reports.

Graham is back out on the field for the first time since suffering a season-ending knee injury last November. Although he's back, it doesn't appear likely that the tight end will be ready in time for Saturday's preseason opener against the Chiefs.

Coach Pete Carroll noted Tuesday that Graham (knee) is "right at the edge of getting back. He's close."

It doesn't seem likely that Graham is a candidate to play in Saturday's preseason opener against the Chiefs, but a return to the field, in any capacity, could trigger the once-elite tight end's potential ascent up fantasy cheat sheets. For now though, questions will persist about Graham's 2016 prospects until he is able to demonstrate his level of recovery from last year's season-ending torn right patellar tendon.

Sudfeld (knee) returned to practice Monday, the New York Post reports.

Sudfeld has missed some practice time lately due to a knee injury, but rejoined his teammates to start this week. At the moment, it's unclear whether Sudfeld will be prepared enough to play in Thursday's preseason opener, although it wouldn't be surprising if the Jets opted to rest him given his recent time out.

Escobar (Achilles) did not practice on Sunday, Todd Archer of ESPN.com reports.

Escobar will get the day off as he continues to nurse a torn Achilles he suffered last season. If he continues to miss practice time he may be in danger of missing the Cowboys' first preseason matchup against the Rams next Saturday.

Uzomah has been getting a lot of reps with the first-team offense with both Tyler Eifert and Tyler Kroft out, Bengals.com reports.

Uzomah was used sparingly in his rookie year, but his receiving skills were coveted by the team when they drafted him out of Auburn last year. The question for him is whether he'll ever be an adequate blocker in the NFL to earn regular playing time.

The Seahawks waived/injured Helfet (foot) on Saturday, Adam Caplan of ESPN reports.

Helfet has been tending to a fractured foot in the early days of training camp, which has seemingly spurred the Seahawks to turn elsewhere for tight end depth. If he clears waivers, he'll revert to injured reserve.