NFL Player News

Kmet (undisclosed) returned to practice Thursday, Patrick Finley of the Chicago Sun-Times reports.

Kmet left practice early Tuesday, so whatever was bothering him clearly wasn't a serious issue. Kmet has been active with the first-team offense during camp despite the Bears using the No. 10 overall pick in the 2025 Draft on Colston Loveland. New coach Ben Johnson is expected to involve both tight ends this season.

Woods had two receptions for 23 yards on three targets in Thursday's preseason loss at Baltimore.

Woods was once viewed as a possible impact player in the passing game, but he has missed back-to-back full seasons due to injuries (hamstring issues in 2023 and turf toe in 2024). The 2022 third-round pick isn't likely to have much of a role this season even if he makes the final roster due to the team's selection of rookie first-rounder Tyler Warren. However, Woods could find his way to relevance on another roster with a good preseason showing.

Warren caught each of his three targets for 40 yards in Thursday's preseason game at Baltimore.

Warren also had a seven-yard gain wiped out by a penalty on Indy's second snap of the game. The Colts rested most of their projected starters, but Warren and Anthony Richardson were out there, until Richardson left with a finger injury on the second drive. Warren then caught a couple passes from Daniel Jones, including a 23-yard gain, while handling a three-down role for the first three or four drives of the game. It was an impressive showing for the 14th overall pick, albeit with a reminder of the likelihood he deals with poor QB during his rookie season.

Johnson (groin) took part in Thursday's practice, Katherine Terrell of ESPN.com reports.

After being sidelined for about one week due to a minor groin injury, Johnson has been able to log some activity in back-to-back sessions, but it's unclear if he's back to 100 percent just yet. With fellow TEs Taysom Hill (knee) and Foster Moreau (knee) still on the active/PUP list, Johnson would be the Saints' top option at the position for Sunday's preseason contest against the Chargers, assuming he's cleared to suit up.

Strange has had strong chemistry with quarterback Trevor Lawrence and been a consistent performer early in training camp, Michael DiRocco of ESPN.com reports.

The 2023 second-round pick wasn't significantly involved in Jacksonville's passing game as a rookie, but he had a bit of a breakout in 2024 with 40 receptions for 411 yards and two touchdowns in 17 games. Strange is now positioned as the Jaguars' starting tight end after the offseason departure of Evan Engram, and building that chemistry with Lawrence is pivotal after the signal-caller was limited to just 10 games last year. According to John Shipley of SI.com, the Jaguars plan to give their starters some playing time in Saturday's preseason opener against Pittsburgh, though it remains to be seen how long the units actually remain in the game.

Long has made some standout plays early in training camp and appears to have the inside track to the No. 2 tight end job, John Shipley of SI.com reports.

The 26-year-old inked a two-year, $5 million contract with Jacksonville in March and has had a strong start to camp, giving him an early edge over Johnny Mundt (upper body) for the backup job to starting tight end Brenton Strange. Long failed to have much of an impact across his first three NFL seasons, but he played in all 17 regular-season games for the Rams last year and caught seven passes for 60 yards.

Petaia (undisclosed) was waived with an injury designation Thursday.

Petaia had been in the Chargers organization since signing with the team in April as part of the International Player Pathway training program. The former rugby player from Australia may opt to pursue that sport again once healthy. Even if he sticks with football, Petaia won't be eligible to play in 2025.

Ferguson (lower back) departed the practice field early Thursday after a collision in 11-on-11 drills, Joe Hoyt of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Ferguson appeared to grab his lower back when leaving the field, per Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, and he skipped a visit to the injury tent entirely before entering the locker room. The No. 1 tight end is less than two weeks removed from signing a four-year, $52 million extension with the Cowboys, and while the severity of his injury remains unknown, he now looks like a candidate to be unavailable for Saturday's preseason opener against the Rams. Luke Schoonmaker, who filled in admirably for Ferguson over a three-game stretch last season, figures to handle the bulk of first-team TE reps if Dallas' starter misses any time.

Stilianos signed with the Lions on Thursday.

Stilianos will provide organizational depth at tight end heading into the preseason. He's unlikely to make the team and has yet to appear in a regular-season NFL game.

Yassmin signed a contract with the Chargers on Thursday, the team announced.

The tight end from Australia joins the team as part of the league's International Player Pathway training program to further develop his skills. The 25-year-old spent last season on the Broncos' practice squad and signed a reserve/future contract with the team in January. Yassmin will compete for a spot on the 53-man roster as preseason gets started.