NFL Player News

Gray played 30 of the Chiefs' 60 snaps on offense and finished with three catches for 30 yards on three targets in Sunday's 31-17 win over the Raiders.

Gray failed to record a reception for the first time all season in the Chiefs' Week 11 loss to the Eagles, but he was able to bounce back nicely in Kansas City's come-from-behind win over the Raiders. As long as top tight end Travis Kelce is available, Gray is unlikely to rank as anything more than a tertiary option in the Kansas City passing game, though the Duke product does at least see fairly consistent involvement. Gray has drawn between one and five targets in each of his 11 appearances to date.

Allen played nine of the Rams' 67 snaps on offense in Sunday's 37-14 win over the Cardinals, hauling in his lone target for a six-yard gain.

With the Rams making Brycen Hopkins a healthy inactive for the contest, Allen and Hunter Long shared the No. 2 tight end role behind starter Tyler Higbee. Though Higbee played three-quarters of the snaps on offense on his way to a 5-29-2 receiving line on five targets, Allen still saw enough field time to come away with his first NFL reception. The fifth-round rookie out of Clemson will look to wrest the top backup gig away from Long and Hopkins over the rest of the season, but he's unlikely to make a meaningful imprint on the box score so long as Higbee is available.

Hudson played 13 of the Bengals' 43 snaps on offense and finished with four catches for 18 yards on five targets in Sunday's 16-10 loss to the Steelers.

The Bengals opened with Drew Sample (one catch for an 11-yard touchdown) and Mitchell Wilcox (one catch for one yard) as their starting tight ends, but Hudson ended up outproducing both players as well as Irv Smith (two catches for eight yards) in terms of pure volume in the passing game. Hudson looks to be Cincinnati's top pass-catching tight end, but his ceiling is limited by him having to share snaps with three other options at the position as well as having the relatively unproven Jake Browning as his quarterback rather than Joe Burrow (wrist). Additionally, Hudson's involvement in the passing game could take a further hit whenever wideout Tee Higgins (hamstring) -- who has missed the last three games -- is back in action.

Tremble didn't practice Wednesday due to a hip injury.

Hayden Hurst (concussion) was also missing from practice, and his absence for the Panthers' past two games has allowed Tremble to play more than 70 percent of Carolina's snaps on offense on both occasions. Tremble left Sunday's loss to Tennessee in the fourth quarter and now isn't practicing, while Hurst remains in concussion protocol. Ian Thomas and Stephen Sullivan are Carolina's healthy tight ends on the 53-man roster at the moment.

Hurst (concussion) isn't practicing Wednesday, Joe Person of The Athletic reports.

Hurst missed the past two games and apparently is in danger of missing a third when the Panthers face the Buccaneers on Sunday. Tommy Tremble has taken on more snaps and routes at tight end in Hurst's absence, but Tremble came out of Sunday's loss to Tennessee with a groin injury of his own.

Smith secured both of his targets for eight yards in Sunday's 16-10 loss to the Steelers.

Smith played just 16 offensive snaps Sunday, his lowest total of the season. The veteran tight end finds himself splitting snaps with Tanner Hudson, Drew Sample and Mitchell Wilcox, so his opportunities to produce on offense are limited. Hudson appears to have emerged as the preferred pass catcher of the bunch, as he earned 21 targets over the past four games. Smith can safely be left out of fantasy lineups when the Bengals visit the Jaguars in Week 13.

Sample caught his lone target for an 11 yard touchdown in Sunday's 16-10 loss to the Steelers.

Sample played the most snaps (19) at tight end for the Bengals, ahead of Irv Smith (16), Tanner Hudson (13) and Mitchell Wilcox (12). The veteran's touchdown was just his second of the season, while his usage in the passing attack has been minimal throughout 2023. As part of a crowded tight end room splitting playing time, Sample is not a trustworthy fantasy option for consistent production. The Bengals are set to face off against the Jaguars in Week 13.

Dissly (hip) was a limited participant at the Seahawks' practice Tuesday, Gregg Bell of The Tacoma News Tribune reports.

Dissly was unable to practice Monday after suffering a hip injury in the team's loss to the 49ers on Thanksgiving, but his ability to return to field Tuesday is a step in the right direction for his availability to play Thursday versus the Cowboys. The tight end will look to ramp up his workload at Wednesday's final practice session ahead of the team's Week 13 matchup.

The Packers signed Wilson to their practice squad Tuesday.

The 23-year-old has yet to appear in a regular-season NFL game. Wilson gives Green Bay depth following the placement of Luke Musgrave (abdomen) on injured reserve.

Hendershot (ankle) was a full participant in Tuesday's practice, Jon Machota of The Athletic reports.

Hendershot was designated to return from injured reserve almost two weeks ago, and he's now logged his second consecutive full practice. The second-year tight end has only appeared in three games for Dallas this season, and he must be activated to the team's active roster in order to suit up for Week 13's contest.