NFL Player News

Head coach Kyle Shanahan said Monday that the 49ers are hopeful Kittle (hamstring) returns to practice this week, Eric Branch of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Kittle was a mid-week addition to the 49ers' injury report last week due to hamstring tightness, which kept him out of drills Thursday and Friday and during Sunday's loss to the Rams. San Francisco will issue its first Week 4 practice report Wednesday, at which point it'll become known if he'll be able to join his teammates on the practice field. In Kittle's place this past weekend, Eric Saubert (two catches for 41 yards on two targets) started and handled 61 of 71 offensive snaps, while Jake Tonges earned 16 snaps and Brayden Willis played four snaps.

Stephens (hamstring) was left off Monday's injury report, Nick Harris of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports.

Stephens missed the Cowboys' first three contests due to a hamstring issue, but it now appears he's moved past the injury. The 25-year-old projects to serve as Dallas' fourth-string tight end, so he will likely contribute most of his value on special teams as the season progresses.

Cardinals head coach Jonathan Gannon said Monday that McBride is in the concussion protocol in the aftermath of Sunday's 20-13 loss to the Lions, Tyler Drake of ArizonaSports.com reports.

McBride endured a helmet-to-helmet hit from Detroit defensive back Brian Branch in the fourth quarter of Sunday's game and had a concussion check afterward. Now that McBride is confirmed to be in the protocol for head injuries, he'll need to complete its five phases, including gaining clearance from an independent neurologist, in order to play again. As a result, his status is up in the air for this coming Sunday's matchup with the Commanders. Tip Reiman, Elijah Higgins and Travis Vokolek are the healthy tight ends on the Cardinals' active roster.

The Eagles waived Castles (undisclosed) from injured reserve Monday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

Castles reverted to the Eagles' IR in early August after going unclaimed on waivers, but the team has since decided to move on from the 24-year-old. It appears Castles is still dealing with an undisclosed injury, as Philadelphia waived him from IR without an injury settlement.

Whyle recorded four receptions (on five targets) for 43 yards in Sunday's 30-14 loss to Green Bay.

Whyle was on the field for 47 percent of offensive snaps, a similar role to what he earned Week 2. However, he was more frequently involved as a pass catcher, finishing second on the team in targets and tied for second in receptions. He's likely to continue to split snaps with Chigoziem Okonkwo, but Whyle could be the more productive fantasy option moving forward.

Granson had one reception for 40 yards on his lone target in Sunday's win over Chicago.

The Colts again split playing time fairly evenly between three tight ends, and none got significant targets, though Granson had a big play. Granson played 27 of the offense's 56 snaps compared to 20 for Drew Ogletree and 31 for Mo Alie-Cox. Only Granson had a target among the trio.

Okonkwo recorded two catches (on two targets) for 15 yards in Sunday's 30-14 loss to the Packers.

Okonkwo narrowly remained Tennessee's primary tight end by snap count. However, he was out-targeted, 5-2, by Josh Whyle and now has failed to top 16 receiving yards in any of his three games this season. Okonkwo isn't likely to entirely lose his role, but it wouldn't be surprising to see Whyle continue to be the more productive pass catcher moving forward.

Saubert had two receptions on as many targets for 41 yards in Sunday's 27-24 loss to the Rams.

Saubert received a bump up the depth chart prior to Sunday's defeat after starter George Kittle (hamstring) was ruled out late in the practice week. The veteran backup performed well in the star's absence, but he didn't see his usage increase over last week's two-catch performance. There's a chance Kittle returns for the 49ers' upcoming tilt against the Patriots, so Saubert's time as the club's starting tight end may be short-lived.

Bellinger caught his only target for 17 yards against Cleveland in Sunday's 21-15 win.

Bellinger's lone target and reception went for 17 yards early in the third quarter. While he did log a season-high 26 offensive snaps, that number was well behind the 58 offensive snaps accumulated by No. 1 tight end Theo Johnson. Overall, Bellinger has just two catches (both of which he has caught for 20 total yards) through three weeks, making him a non-factor in fantasy.

Johnson caught one of three targets for 13 yards in Sunday's 21-15 victory versus the Browns.

Johnson had an opportunity for a bigger stat line, but QB Daniel Jones overthrew him after the tight end got open in the end zone late in the first half. Though Johnson's production in the win was minimal, he did continue to dominate TE reps for New York, logging 81 percent of the team's offensive snaps to Chris Manhertz's 38 percent and Daniel Bellinger's 36 percent. None among the tight-end group is particularly appealing in fantasy with Jones distributing the heavy majority of his passes this season to receivers Malik Nabers (37 targets) and Wan'Dale Robinson (24 targets). Johnson leads the tight-end corps with a meager seven targets through three games.