NFL Player News

Smith (head) wasn't spotted at Wednesday's practice, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com reports.

Meanwhile, Hunter Henry (knee) was present for Wednesday's session. In any case, the statuses of both tight ends will be worth monitoring ahead of Sunday's game against the Dolphins. If either Smith or Henry are out this weekend, Matt Sokol and Scotty Washington would be candidates to be elevated from the Patriots' practice squad.

Rogers (knee) was designated to return from injured reserve Wednesday.

Rogers has been out since late November while dealing with knee and ankle injuries, but he will now have a shot at being activated before the end of the regular season. The tight end has appeared in 10 games this year, reeling in five catches for 64 yards while also rushing for 24 yards on his only carry. Rogers has split time evenly between the offensive unit and special teams and he will likely return to a similar role if activated.

The Patriots placed Washington (undisclosed) on their practice-squad injured Tuesday, Zack Cox of NESN.com reports.

Washington was elevated from New England's practice squad for Week 16's loss to the Bengals and ended up seeing the first NFL action of his career, logging 22 offensive snaps as a result of both Hunter Henry (knee) and Jonnu Smith (concussion) exiting the game due to injury. Week 17 could have presented Washington a prime opportunity with the aforementioned tight ends questionable to play against Miami, but he'll instead miss the remainder of the regular season. At the moment, Matt Sokol -- who is on New England's practice squad -- is the team's lone healthy tight end.

Keene signed with the Broncos' practice squad Tuesday, Aric DiLalla of the team's official site reports.

Keene previously spent time on Denver's practice squad this season, although it was only for three days. He'll now work to have a more productive second opportunity with the team.

Fisk was cut from the Falcons' practice squad Tuesday.

Fisk joined the team as a UDFA in May, and made his way to the practice squad after failing to make the 53-man roster out of training camp. The 23-year-old never made it to the active roster with Atlanta, and he'll now pursue a new opportunity elsewhere.

Seattle placed Dissly on injured reserve Tuesday with an injury head coach Pete Carroll has labeled as a knee contusion, John Boyle of the Seahawks' official site reports.

Though Dissly's injury doesn't sound especially serious, his 2022 campaign will come to an end unless the Seahawks secure a playoff spot and make an improbable run to the NFC Championship Game. The 26-year-old appeared in 15 games this season, recording 34 receptions for 349 yards and three touchdowns on 38 targets. Dissly's absence for the final two games should free up more snaps for Colby Parkinson, who steps in as Seattle's No. 2 tight end behind Noah Fant.

Bengals head coach Zac Taylor said Tuesday that he's "very optimistic" Hurst (calf) will be available for Monday's game against the Bills, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Even though Taylor said Hurst had a "good week" of practices last Tuesday through Thursday, the tight end proceeded to sit out Saturday's 22-18 win over the Patriots, marking his third consecutive absence. The Bengals may have just wanted to exercise some caution with Hurst by holding him out Week 16, but once he gets the chance to pick up some more practice reps and regain conditioning, the 29-year-old looks like he'll be on pace to play Monday night. Through his first 12 appearances of the season, Hurst cobbled together a 48-400-2 receiving line on 63 targets.

Alie-Cox caught one of two targets for two yards during Monday's 20-3 defeat versus the Chargers.

Alie-Cox saw 10 fewer snaps than Jelani Woods, and the former failed to make an impact in the passing game again. Woods, a rookie third-round pick, has caught 14 of 19 targets for 205 yards over his past four games and appears to have surpassed Alie-Cox on the depth chart. Alie-Cox's playing time figures to drop even more if Kylen Granson (ankle) returns to action before the end of the campaign.

Quitoriano underwent an MRI on Monday and was diagnosed with a hyperextended knee and bruised quadriceps following his early exit from Saturday's 19-14 win over the Titans, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

The Texans are viewing Quitoriano as day-to-day at this stage, with his status for this Sunday's game against the Jaguars likely to hinge on how he fares in practices Wednesday through Friday. If the rookie is forced to miss time, the Texans would likely turn to Jordan Akins and Brevin Jordan as their main pass-catching tight ends, while O.J. Howard could factor back into the mix as a run blocker after he was a healthy inactive for two of the team's last three contests.

Otton brought in two of seven targets for 12 yards in the Buccaneers' 19-16 overtime win over the Cardinals on Sunday night.

Otton notably checked in third in targets on the night for the Buccaneers, but his inefficiency in corralling those looks led to a lackluster fantasy performance. The rookie also logged a whopping 65 snaps overall, leaving position mate's Cameron Brate's eight plays from scrimmage in the dust. Otton should continue to enjoy a robust role in a key Week 17 divisional clash against the Panthers.