NFL Player News

Hurst, who had been on the mend from offseason sports hernia surgery, participated in Wednesday's minicamp practice, Joe Person of The Athletic reports.

Now that he's back on the field, Hurst -- who signed a three-year deal with the Panthers in March -- is slated to lead Carolina's tight end corps following a 2022 campaign in which he caught 52 passes for 414 yards and two touchdowns in 13 games with the Bengals. As long as he can stay healthy, Hurst should serve as a key short and intermediate target for rookie quarterback Bryce Young, a context that could result in enough volume for Hurst's fantasy stock to see an uptick in 2023.

Pitts (knee) isn't participating in the Falcons' current minicamp, Josh Kendall of The Athletic reports.

That said, coach Arthur Smith noted that Pitts is "trending in (a) positive direction" with regard to training camp. Assuming no setbacks in his recovery from an MCL injury, the 2021 first-rounder is poised to approach the coming season as one of the Falcons' top weapons in an offense that will also feature wideout Drake London and a running attack headed by the combo of Bijan Robinson, Tyler Allgeier and Cordarrelle Patterson. During the 2022 campaign, Pitts logged just 28 catches for 356 yards and two TDs on 59 targets through 10 games, but if he's able to develop good on-field chemistry with presumed starting QB Desmond Ridder, a bounce-back effort could be in store for Pitts in his third season as a pro.

Knox injured his lower left leg during Tuesday's practice, Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.com reports.

As the Bills kicked off mandatory minicamp Tuesday, safety Taylor Rapp broke up a Josh Allen pass directed at Knox, who then took a hit from a late-breaking Kaiir Elam. Knox was tended to by the team's training staff, took some time to get to his feet and didn't rejoin his teammates for on-field work. With two more minicamp sessions to go this week, it wouldn't surprise if Buffalo takes a cautious approach with Knox to ensure he's as healthy as possible for the start of training camp in late July.

Dulcich is healthy for offseason practices and has been making a good impression on new coach Sean Payton, Nick Kosmider of The Athletic reports. "[Dulcich]'s got traits that are exciting," Payton said earlier this month, "and today was one of those days where you begin to have a vision."

Hamstring injuries cost Dulcich the first five games of his rookie season as well as the final two. In between, the 2022 third-round pick emerged as Denver's top pass catcher at tight end, averaging 4.9 targets in QB Russell Wilson's nine starts. Dulcich caught only 60 percent of his targets -- a rather low rate for a TE -- but his 33 receptions included six gains of 20-plus yards and three of 30-plus. While a favorite to lead the team's tight ends in targets again, Dulcich isn't known for blocking and may thus cede a lot of the early down snaps to Adam Trautman, Albert Okwuegbunam and/or Chris Manhertz.

Coach Jonathan Gannon recently declined to elaborate on when Ertz (knee) might return, only saying that the tight end is "chomping at the bit" and will play once he's "physically and mentally" ready, Yahoo's Jess Root reports.

Gannon essentially said the same thing about QB Kyler Murray, who is also rehabbing from a season-ending ACL tear. Murray, of course, will take all the snaps once he's healthy, while Ertz faces competition at tight end from 2022 second-round pick Trey McBride. The Cardinals have incentive to keep both tight ends involved in the offense, given McBride's draft capital and the $8.5 million in guaranteed compensation they're paying Ertz this year. Ertz had surgery in late November to repair ACL and MCL damage in his left knee.

Dissly (knee) has been participating in the Seahawks' mandatory minicamp this week, Michael-Shawn Dugar of The Athletic reports.

Dissly ended the 2022 campaign on injured reserve with a knee injury, but he avoided surgery and appears to have moved past the issue this offseason. Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll said at the NFL Combine that Dissly would be ready for training camp, so the tight end is a bit ahead of schedule and should be full go for Week 1. The 2018 fourth-round pick signed a three-year, $24 million extension with Seattle last offseason and caught at least one pass in each of his 15 appearances last year, totaling 34 receptions on 38 targets for 349 yards and three scores.

Hodges has been an active participant at the Commanders' OTAs this spring.

Hodges went down with a thigh injury last September and failed to appear in a game during his rookie season, but he looks ready to go for 2023. The 23-year-old is expected to compete with the likes of John Bates and Cole Turner for backup reps behind starting tight end Logan Thomas this year.

Uzomah left Friday's training session early due to a right leg injury, Connor Hughes of SNY.tv reports.

Uzomah limped off the practice field early Friday, so his status will need to be monitored. The 30-year-old tight end handled a depth role in his debut season for the Jets last year, tallying a 21-232-2 receiving line in 15 appearances. It remains to be seen whether Uzomah's injury will force him to miss any significant time.

Schoonmaker (foot) is expected to be ready for training camp, Michael Gehlken of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Schoonmaker has been sidelined while battling a plantar fascia issue, but it doesn't appear to be too serious. When healthy, the rookie second-round pick should compete with Jake Ferguson and Peyton Hendershot for snaps at tight end in 2023.

The Browns signed Thedford (undisclosed) on Monday, Scott Petrak of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram reports.

Thedford was waived by the Broncos at the end of May with an injury settlement, but he appears to be healthy after presumably passing a physical before signing a new deal with Cleveland. The 25-year-old has battled injuries since joining the league as an undrafted free agent in 2021, and he's yet to appear in an NFL regular-season game.