NFL Player News

Higbee (hip) secured two of five targets for 25 yards during Sunday's 27-20 win against the Colts.

The hip injury Higbee suffered Thursday didn't seem to bother the Rams' top tight end, as the veteran enjoyed a season high in targets while seeing his typical usage among the Rams triumvirate of tight ends. Colby Parkinson and Davis Allen combined for just three catches for 17 yards on their three targets, leaving Higbee as the top option at the position for the Rams. That role still doesn't translate to much from a fantasy perspective, although a 49ers defense that allowed Brenton Strange and former Ram Hunter Long to combine for a solid 9-68-1 line is next up for the Rams on a short week.

Tonges had three receptions (on five targets) for 58 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 26-21 loss to the Jaguars.

Tonges suffered an injury scare when he needed to have his shoulder examined by the medical staff early in the contest. The Los Gatos, Calif. native only missed a handful of snaps on offense before returning to the game and posting the best receiving line of his young career. Tonges continues to see the lion's share of snaps vacated by George Kittle (hamstring), who remains out of action for multiple weeks while healing on the injured reserve list. The 25-year-old is averaging just 4.0 targets per game in his elevated role this season, so he should be treated as a touchdown-dependent asset heading into Thursday's tilt against the Rams.

Bellinger caught his only target for 13 yards Sunday in a 21-18 win over the Chargers in Week 4.

There wasn't much of a change production-wise for Bellinger with Jaxson Dart making his first start at quarterback for the Giants, as the fourth-year TE saw exactly one target -- and made the catch -- for the third time through four weeks this season. Bellinger (24 offensive snaps) remained well behind Theo Johnson (53 offensive snaps) in the TE pecking order, and that doesn't figure to change after Johnson hauled in Dart's only TD pass Sunday. Bellinger is unlikely to have much fantasy value as long as he remains the second TE option in what has been a mostly tepid New York offense to this point.

Ertz caught two of four targets for 21 yards in Sunday's 34-27 loss to the Falcons.

The 34-year-old tied Luke McCaffrey for the second-most receiving yards on the Commanders in Week 4, trailing Deebo Samuel's 72-yard performance. Although he ranked second on the team in yards, Ertz's performance was a little underwhelming considering two of the team's top three wideouts, Terry McLaurin (quadriceps) and Noah Brown (groin), were sidelined Sunday. Regardless, Ertz's target volume will likely stabilize when Jayden Daniels (knee) returns from injury, which could come in the Week 5 matchup against the Chargers.

Long caught all three of his targets for 23 yards and one touchdown in Sunday's 26-21 win over the 49ers.

Long has now caught five of six targets for 35 yards and a touchdown over the past two weeks while playing just 35 offensive snaps. Although the 27-year-old played fewer snaps (21) than Johnny Mundt (22) in Week 4, he appears to be emerging as Jacksonville's top reserve vertical-threat tight end. Long will likely retain a similar role in the Jaguars' Week 5 matchup with the Chiefs, working behind Brenton Strange.

Washington secured all three of his targets for 20 yards during Sunday's 24-21 win over the Vikings.

Washington was targeted just once over the first three weeks of the regular season while playing less than half of the team's offensive snaps during that time. However, Jonnu Smith was limited in practice this week, and Washington was on the field for 91 percent of Pittsburgh's offensive snaps during the matchup in Dublin. While it was encouraging to see Washington get more involved, his role will likely decline if Smith is able to shed his limitations following the team's Week 5 bye.

Freiermuth wasn't targeted during Sunday's 24-21 win over Minnesota.

After playing at least 50 percent of the Steelers' offensive snaps in the first three games of the season, Freiermuth's playing time declined overseas Sunday, as he was on the field for just 28 percent of the team's offensive snaps. Jonnu Smith also saw a limited role after dealing with a hip injury ahead of the Week 4 tilt, while Darnell Washington was on the field for a season-high 91 percent of Pittsburgh's offensive snaps. Even if Freiermuth's playing time bounces back following the Steelers' Week 5 bye, he's had trouble carving out a fantasy-relevant role early in the season.

Smith secured two of three targets for six yards during Sunday's 24-21 win over the Vikings.

Smith was unable to practice fully ahead of Pittsburgh's Week 4 matchup due to a hip injury, but he played through the issue in Dublin. The 2017 third-rounder was held to single-digit yards for the first time this season while playing just 25 percent of the team's offensive snaps, which was his lowest mark of the season by a considerable margin. It seems possible that Smith's role was limited by his injury, but he'll be able to recover during the Steelers' Week 5 bye.

Hooper, who was on the field for 32 of a possible 49 snaps on offense in Sunday's 42-13 win over the Panthers, per Mike Reiss of ESPN.com, caught his only target in the game for 24 yards.

With a 7-100-0 line on eight targets through four games, Hooper is only a fantasy lineup option in tight end friendly formats. That's not likely to change much in the coming weeks as long as fellow TE Hunter Henry remains healthy.

Knox failed to catch his only target in Sunday's 31-19 win over the Saints.

This is the second consecutive game in which Knox has failed to record a reception, despite logging 55 offensive snaps during that span. The Ole Miss product appears firmly behind Dalton Kincaid in Buffalo's tight-end room, as Kincaid has caught six of eight targets for 96 yards and two touchdowns over the last two weeks. Knox is likely to have a similar role in the Bills' Week 5 contest against the Patriots, serving primarily as a blocker rather than a receiving option.