NFL Player News

McBride reeled in his only target for two yards during Sunday's 28-16 victory against the Cowboys.

McBride so far has played second fiddle to Cardinals No. 1 tight end Zach Ertz through three games, garnering six targets and 77 offensive snaps to the latter's 20 and 118, respectively. In fact, fellow TE Geoff Swaim has seen 71 plays on offense, including 32 to McBride's 30 in Week 3, though the former hasn't been targeted. As such, McBride doesn't hold much sway in fantasy at the moment and may not unless an injury strikes Arizona's receiving corps at some point.

Baltimore cut Mason from its practice squad Tuesday, Clifton Brown of the Ravens' official site reports.

Mason spent all of last year and the first three weeks of this year on Baltimore's practice squad, but at least for now, the Ravens have decided to part ways with him. He's now set to become a free agent.

Higbee secured all five of his targets for 71 yards during Monday's 19-16 loss to the Bengals.

Higbee acted as Matthew Stafford's safety valve with a pair of the Rams' offensive linemen going down with injury during the contest, and the veteran tight end responded with his best performance of the season. Four of Higbee's five receptions led to Rams' first downs, and he was just one yard behind rookie sensation Puka Nacua for the team lead in receiving yards. The Colts lie in wait Week 4, but in their last meeting in 2021, Indianapolis managed to hold Higbee to just a single reception for eight yards, which may temper expectations a bit.

Ertz gathered in both of his targets for six yards during Sunday's 28-16 win against the Cowboys.

Through two contests, Ertz was pacing the Cardinals in targets with 18 on his way to 12 catches for 77 yards and no touchdowns. In Week 3 though, quarterback Joshua Dobbs' focus was on his top two wide receivers, with Marquise Brown and Rondale Moore combining for 13 targets. There figures to be some ebb and flow among the team's skill-position players in terms of usage, and Ertz still led Arizona tight ends in snap share (59 percent), ahead of Geoff Swaim (52 percent) and Trey McBride (49 percent). Ertz may have a tough time getting back on track this coming Sunday on the road against the 49ers.

Otton brought in one of two targets for 16 yards in the Buccaneers' 25-11 loss to the Eagles on Monday night.

Otton was coming off a solid six-catch, 41-yard effort versus the vulnerable Bears defense, but he garnered much less of Baker Mayfield's attention in an appreciably tougher matchup. The second-year tight end does have at least one catch in each of the first three games, but he remains a clear complementary option in a passing attack that still figures to revolve around Mike Evans and Chris Godwin -- and feature plenty of short passes to running back Rachaad White -- on the overwhelming majority of weeks this season.

Okonkwo recorded three catches on four targets for seven yards in Sunday's 27-3 loss to Cleveland.

Okonkwo finished tied for the third on the team in targets, though he ultimately failed to reach double-digit receiving yards for the second time in three games to begin the season. His place in priority for targets combined with the state of the Titans' passing attack suggest that Okonkwo will struggle to produce consistently.

Goedert caught five of seven targets for 41 yards in Monday's 25-11 win over the Buccaneers.

Goedert has notched seven targets in consecutive games after being targeted only once in the opener, but the tight end is being used as a security valve rather than a downfield threat. He has just 63 yards through three games after averaging 56.7 yards per game played over the previous two seasons, and Goedert has yet to find the end zone in 2023. Goedert will look to pick up the pace Week 4 against the Commanders. Washington held him to just 49 yards in two meetings last season, but Goedert found the end zone in both games.

Hurst caught one of three targets for 11 yards in Sunday's 37-27 loss to the Seahawks.

Hurst played over 60 percent of Carolina's offensive snaps but again saw his production decrease. Although backup Andy Dalton was under center, he still passed 58 times for 361 yards, with Hurst only making a small contribution. The tight end's stock has taken a dip since recording five catches for 41 yards and a touchdown Week 1.

Taylor (undisclosed) was reinstated from the reserve/suspended list and subsequently reverted to IR on Monday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

Taylor was handed a two-game suspension by the league for undisclosed reasons Sept. 13, and he's now served out that time. However, the tight end immediately moved back to injured reserve, where he was placed in mid-July. Consequently, Taylor won't play in 2023.

Smith (hamstring) is inactive for Monday night's contest against the Rams.

Smith was listed as doubtful for the game after logging limited practices Friday and Saturday, and he'll sit this one out, which should result in Drew Sample leading the Bengals' Week 3 TE corps, with Mitchell Wilcox and Tanner Hudson also on hand. Smith will target a potential return to action Sunday against the Titans.