NFL Player News

Hooper is currently listed as No. 2 tight end on the Falcons' official team depth chart.

Hooper finished his first preseason on a strong note and appears to be ready to carve out a role as a pass catcher in 2016. Although Jacob Tamme is currently slotted ahead of him, there is a chance that Hooper can overtake the starting spot at some point this season. Given Tamme's ceiling and Hooper's floor, Atlanta may want to see what their rookie has in store as the year progresses.

Head coach Pete Carroll said Monday that Graham (knee) will be pushed in practice as if he's preparing to play in Sunday's game against the Dolphins, even though the team has no expectation the tight end will actually be available, the Seattle Times reports.

The Seahawks aren't counting on Graham's availability, but they also aren't quite ready to rule him out. Even if he does ultimately suit up, Graham wouldn't necessarily start and would presumably just have a part-time role. With Nick Vannett (ankle) already ruled out, Luke Willson may need to play the vast majority of Week 1 snaps.

Head coach Pete Carroll said Monday that Vannett (ankle) will not play in Sunday's game against Miami, Liz Mathews of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

With Jimmy Graham (knee) potentially unavailable, Vannett had a shot to start his career as Seattle's No. 2 tight end. It now seems Graham will likely be back before Vannett, though the former Saint is also looking awfully shaky for Week 1. Luke Willson is the probable Week 1 starter.

Head coach Pete Carroll said Monday he has no expectation Graham (knee) will play in Sunday's game against Miami, Liz Mathews of 710 ESPN Seattle reports.

That being said, Carroll and the Seahawks have yet to rule Graham out, and few teams (if any) are more misleading when it comes to injury information. Though it's probably still best to consider him questionable, Graham may need some time to re-establish himself as a useful asset, given the likelihood he starts his season in a part-time role. It remains to be seen if that will happen in Week 1, Week 2 or later on. Even if Graham is available, Luke Willson will probably get the Week 1 start.

Allen (hip) returned to practice Monday, ESPN's Mike Wells reports.

Held out of practice the past week, Allen never seemed to be in much danger of missing Week 1 against Detroit, as his injury isn't believed to be anything more than soreness. So long as he stays healthy, Allen should play the vast majority of offensive snaps, getting ample work on both early downs and obvious passing downs. Allen could emerge as Andrew Luck's favorite target on short routes, complementing the speedy wideout trio of T.Y. Hilton, Donte Moncrief and Phillip Dorsett.

Kroft (knee) participated in team drills at the open portion of Monday's practice, Jim Owczarski of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Kroft previously hadn't taken part in team drills since Aug. 2, when he suffered a knee sprain that was expected to keep him out for 4-to-6 weeks. Given that he missed all of the preseason and most of training camp, Kroft should still be considered questionable for Week 1 against the Jets. Kroft will likely have a key role if he's able to play, as Tyler Eifert (ankle) still figures to miss at least the first week or two of the regular season. If neither Kroft nor Eifert is available Sunday, the Bengals will likely start C.J. Uzomah, with Jake Fisher (ankle) and H-back Ryan Hewitt potentially also stepping into significant roles. Above all else, Cincinnati will likely rely on its running game and wide receivers until Eifert returns, with A.J. Green (knee) in prime position to gobble up red-zone targets.

O'Malley was cut by the Raiders on Saturday, but was given a spot on the 10-man practice squad, ESPN's Adam Caplan reports.

The Raiders elected to proceed with three options at tight end in Lee Smith, Clive Walford, and Mychal Rivera when it came time to cut the roster down to 53. O'Malley will have a chance to be called up at some point throughout the regular season if he impresses on the practice team.

Paulsen signed a contract with the Bears on Sunday, Adam Jahns of the Chicago Sun-Times reports

Paulsen missed the entire 2015 season while recovering from toe surgery, but re-signed with the Redskins earlier this offseason before being released on Saturday. However, he's now slated to join the Bears, where he should be able to carve out a role as a blocking tight end, as well as a candidate to play special teams.

Graham (knee) is an uncertain candidate to play in Week 1, The Seattle Times reports.

In the Seahawks' final round of cuts, four tight ends were kept, likely with an eye toward the regular season opener. Graham has been practicing in full of late, but in the event that the team exercises caution, Luke Willson is waiting in the wings for spot starts. The rest of the unit is rounded out by Nick Vannett (ankle) and Brandon Williams.

Coffman was released by the Colts on Sunday, Kevin Bowen of Colts.com reports.

Coffman spent the preseason with the Colts, but wasn't more than a depth option at tight end. The Colts needed to make room on their 53-man roster for some waiver claims and with Coffman unlikely to play a significant role, they opted to let him go. He participated in just two games last season, catching eight passes for 71 yards and a touchdown.