NFL Player News

Higbee (knee) missed Thursday's practice due to an illness, Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic reports.

The Rams waited until the very end of Higbee's 21-day window to activate him from the reserve/PUP list Tuesday. As of Wednesday, he was listed as a full participant on seven consecutive injury reports, but he's now dealing with an illness. With another hurdle in his path to returning to action Sunday at the Jets, it remains to be seen if Higbee will be able to make his first appearance since sustaining ACL and MCL tears in his right knee in a playoff loss Jan. 14 at Detroit.

Hudson (knee) was a limited participant in Thursday's practice, Kelsey Conway of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Hudson was absent from Wednesday's practice report, so it appears the knee injury is a recent one. His practice participation Friday will provide clarity on his status ahead of Sunday's game against the Browns. Over his last six games, Hudson has caught 16 passes (on 18 targets) for 125 yards and one touchdown.

Stover (appendix) has been ruled out for Saturday's game against the Texans.

Stover will be sidelined for a second straight game after undergoing an emergency appendectomy this past Saturday. It's unclear whether he'll be able to progress in his recovery enough to play against the Ravens on Christmas Day. With no other healthy tight end on the active roster outside of starter Dalton Schultz, the Texans will likely elevate Irv Smith from the practice squad ahead of Saturday's game due to Stover's injury.

Strange (shoulder) remained limited at practice Thursday.

Per Juston Lewis of the Florida Times-Union, Strange, who also was limited Wednesday, sustained an AC joint sprain in last week's loss to the Jets. However, head coach Doug Pederson indicated that the tight end should be good to go Sunday against the Raiders after logging 11 catches for 73 yards on 12 targets versus New York this past Sunday. Friday's final injury report will reveal whether Strange heads into the weekend with an injury designation or cleared for Week 16 action.

Johnson (foot) was limited at practice Thursday.

For a third week in a row, Johnson is tending to a foot injury, but he's been able to log a typical workload the last two games en route to six catches (on eight targets) for 62 yards and one touchdown over that span. With Taysom Hill out for the season due to a torn ACL, Johnson and Foster Moreau have been handling the TE reps the last three games, and neither player has topped 50 receiving yards in any given week. Both have recorded one TD catch apiece. In any case, Johnson's status will need to be monitored as the week goes on to ensure he isn't in danger of sitting out Monday's visit to the Packers.

Otton (knee) was a non-participant at Thursday's practice.

Otton has yet to take part in drills this week while donning a knee brace on the side at practice, per Rick Stroud of the Tampa Bay Times. In the event that Otton isn't able to play Sunday in Dallas, offensive coordinator Liam Coen expressed confidence that Payne Durham, Ko Kieft and even rookie seventh-rounder Devin Culp will be able to fill in capably for Otton, according to Greg Auman of Fox Sports. Ultimately, the Buccaneers may make a ruling on Otton's upcoming availability as soon as they post their final Week 16 injury report Friday.

Hurst (hip) has been activated from IR ahead of Thursday night's game against the Broncos.

Hurst, who last saw game action Week 10, still carries a questionable designation for the contest, but he's on track to bolster a Chargers' tight end corps that will be without Will Dissly, who's still sidelined with a shoulder injury. Hurst thus should have an opportunity to get right back into the mix Thursday while working alongside fellow TE Stone Smartt, who caught five passes for 50 yards in Week 15 in Dissly's absence.

Ertz (concussion) was a limited practice participant Thursday.

After suffering a concussion this past Sunday at New Orleans, Ertz sat out Wednesday's session, but he was spotted in a black non-contact jersey Thursday, per Zach Selby of the Commanders' official site, before the team tagged the tight end as limited. Ertz thus is making his way through the protocol for head injuries, but he'll need to gain clearance from an independent neurologist in order to suit up Sunday against the Eagles.

Musgrave (ankle) was limited at Thursday's practice, Wes Hodkiewicz of the Packers' official site reports.

Musgrave has been listed as limited on Packers' injury reports since the team designated him for return from injured reserve last Wednesday. He's in the later stages of his recovery from ankle surgery that was performed in early October, and he may need to get back to full participation by Saturday in order to have a chance to be activated ahead of Monday's game against the Saints.

Njoku (hamstring) didn't participate in the open portion of Thursday's practice, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

Njoku missed Wednesday's practice, so what the tight end is able to do, if anything, during Friday's session will be telling with regard to his chances of returning to action Sunday against the Bengals. If Njoku remains sidelined this weekend, Jordan Akins would be in line to continue to have an expanded role in the Browns passing game.