NFL Player News

Johnson brought in two of four targets for 27 yards in the Giants' 34-17 win over the Eagles on Thursday night.

Johnson had flashed with a season-high six receptions and a pair of touchdowns in the Week 5 loss to the Saints on Sunday, but he was a lot quieter four days later despite the Giants' successful night on offense. Nevertheless, he finished with at least four targets for the third straight game, and he appears to have a solid rapport with rookie signal-caller Jaxson Dart heading into a challenging Week 7 road matchup against the Broncos on Sunday, Oct. 19.

Goedert brought in nine of 11 targets for 110 yards and a touchdown in the Eagles' 34-17 loss to the Giants on Thursday night.

Goedert led the Eagles across the board in receptions, receiving yards and targets with those marks, and his game-best 36-yard catch also qualified as a season-high figure. The veteran tight end has scored all five of his touchdowns this season over the last four games, and that tally ties a career best for Goedert, who also recorded the same number of trips to the end zone in 2019. With 20 targets in his last two games alone, Goedert will remain a highly viable option in all formats during a Week 7 road matchup against the Vikings on Sunday, Oct. 19.

Parkinson (concussion) remained limited in Thursday's practice, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio reports.

Parkinson picked up the concussion in last Thursday night's overtime loss to the 49ers. If neither Parkinson nor Tyler Higbee (hip) can play Sunday against the Ravens, Davis Allen and Terrance Ferguson would handle tight-end duties for Los Angeles.

Franks (arm) did not appear on the Falcons' injury report Thursday, Tori McElhaney of the Falcons' official site reports.

Franks appears to be a full go ahead of Week 6 after suffering an arm injury in the team's Week 4 win over the Commanders. The 27-year-old has operated almost exclusively as a special-teams option this season, and he'll likely do so again in the team's matchup with the Bills on Monday Night Football.

Bates (shoulder) was limited in Thursday's practice.

It's a new injury for the Commanders' tight end after he recently dealt with a groin issue that caused him to miss Weeks 3 and 4 before returning to the lineup last Sunday against the Chargers. When healthy, Bates has been playing roughly 50 percent of the offensive snaps, but he has just one catch for nine yards on the season.

Higbee (hip) was a limited practice participant Thursday, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio reports.

This marks Higbee's first on-field work since Week 4 prep, a span in which he sat out last Thursday's loss to the 49ers due to a hip injury. He'll have one more opportunity to get back to all activity Friday, or else risk entering the weekend with a designation ahead of Sunday's game at Baltimore. Colby Parkinson (concussion) also was limited Thursday, leaving the Rams with Davis Allen and Terrance Ferguson as their healthy tight ends at the moment.

Waller (hip/rest) was limited at practice Thursday, David Furones of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reports.

Waller was deemed a DNP on Wednesday, but his return to a limited session Thursday has him trending toward being available Sunday against the Chargers, and quite possibly without a Week 6 injury designation, as was the case last week after the tight end logged three straight limited listings. With that in mind, it's worth noting that Furones previously relayed via Dolphins TEs coach Jon Embree that Waller is a candidate to continue to see an uptick in playing time after increasing from 16 to 32 snaps between his first and second game back from being sidelined Weeks 1-3.

Loveland (hip) practiced on a limited basis Thursday.

After suffering a hip injury Week 3 against the Cowboys, Loveland managed just one limited practice before the Bears made him inactive Week 4 versus the Raiders. Even with the benefit of a Week 5 bye, the rookie first-round pick still is operating with a cap on his reps, but he'll have two more opportunities to log a full practice ahead of Monday's game at Washington.

Bowers (knee) remained sidelined at practice Thursday, Ryan McFadden of ESPN.com reports.

Bowers, who was sidelined for the first time in his career in last Sunday's 40-6 loss to the Colts, has now missed four straight practices dating back to last week, so what he's able to do during Friday's session will loom large in terms of his chances of playing this weekend against the Titans. If Bowers ends up sitting out a second straight game, Michael Mayer -- who has cleared concussion protocol and practiced fully Wednesday -- would step in as the Raiders' top tight end.

Johnson (ankle) was limited in practice Thursday.

With back-to-back capped sessions under his belt to begin Week 6 prep, Johnson has one more chance to prove the health of his ankle Friday before the Saints potentially tag him with a designation ahead of Sunday's contest against the Patriots. He played through the issue during a Week 5 win versus the Giants and handled a typical 85 percent snap share, but he managed just two catches (on four targets) for 17 yards.