Bates (shoulder) was limited in practice Wednesday, Scott Petrak of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram reports.

Bates managed an ankle issue earlier in December, but the shoulder injury appears to be something new. The second-year tight end has been seeing more offensive reps of late, logging 53 offensive snaps over the past two weeks and catching one of two targets for 19 yards while David Njoku (knee/personal) has been sidelined. Rookie tight end Harold Fannin (groin) didn't practice Wednesday, and Njoku remained a DNP as well, so Bates could have a path to even more work Week 18 against the Bengals if he's able to suit up.

Stoll (knee) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Falcons.

Stoll was injured in last Sunday's win over the Titans and will miss the regular-season finale. The 27-year-old tight end appeared in 15 games for New Orleans this season, making four starts, and caught six of 11 targets for 46 yards and one touchdown on 21 percent of the offensive snaps.

Helm (toe) did not practice Wednesday, Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site reports.

Helm has played through a toe injury since mid-December and hasn't yet been forced to miss any time, though he's generally managed to practice in at least a limited capacity during that stretch. The rookie tight end secured just one of two targets for one receiving yard during Tennessee's loss to the Saints in Week 17. He'll have two more chances to get back on the practice field ahead of Sunday's regular-season finale on the road against Jacksonville.

Grandy (chest) did not participate in Wednesday's practice.

Grandy has been unable to practice or play since sustaining a chest injury during the Bengals' Week 16 win over the Dolphins. He'll likely have to return to practice in at least a limited capacity over the next two days to have a realistic chance of playing in Sunday's regular-season finale against the Browns.

Chicago activated Kalinic (undisclosed) from the practice-squad injured list Wednesday.

The tight end has appeared in just one game for the Bears this season, logging 16 snaps on special teams. Across 10 career regular-season appearances, Kalinic has never drawn a target.

Mallory (lung) was estimated as a non-participant in Wednesday's practice walkthrough.

It's not clear when Mallory was hurt, though it may have been Sunday against Jacksonville, when he logged a season-high 11 offensive snaps and made his first catch of the campaign. With the Colts officially eliminated from playoff contention, Mallory could see more work Sunday versus Houston if he's able to suit up, but the lung issue could throw a wrench in that potential opportunity. Mallory will have two more days this week to get onto the practice field before Indianapolis assigns injury designations.

The Rams announced Wednesday that Higbee (ankle) has been designated to return from IR.

Higbee will now begin a 21-day window wherein he can participate in practice without counting against the 53-man roster. The veteran tight end can be activated from IR at any point in that span, if deemed healthy, making Sunday's game against the Cardinals his earliest tentative chance to return. Higbee hasn't played since Week 11, and across 11 regular-season appearances so far he's secured 20 of 30 targets for 190 yards and two touchdowns.

Kincaid (knee) was officially listed as a limited practice participant in Wednesday's walk-through.

Kincaid missed Sunday's 13-12 loss to the Eagles after managing just one limited practice last week. It looks like he'll do more this week, but the Bills may lean toward caution now that they're locked into a wild-card spot.

Coach Dan Campbell said Wednesday that LaPorta is "improving," but "he's not completely healed" from the back injury that forced him to injured reserve Nov. 15, Nolan Bianchi of The Detroit News reports.

In the wake of LaPorta undergoing back surgery in mid-November, Campbell described the tight end's chances to return this season as "very, very slim," per Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. As of this week with the Lions out of playoff contention, though, Campbell relayed that the team is hopeful LaPorta will be back by training camp in the summer, indicating his health concern was more serious than Detroit initially indicated. LaPorta, a 2023 second-round pick, will be entering the fourth and final year of his rookie contract in 2026.

The Steelers placed Washington (forearm) on IR on Wednesday, Teresa Varley of the team's official site reports.

Washington suffered what coach Mike Tomlin revealed was a broken arm in the Steelers' Week 17 loss to the Browns, an injury that subsequently required surgery, per Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com. In Washington's absence, Pat Freiermuth and Jonnu Smith are in line to lead Pittsburgh's TE corps, with Connor Heyward also on hand.