NFL Player News

Okwuegbunam (illness) was a limited paticipant in practice Thursday, Ellie Kinney of the Broncos' official site reports.

Okwuegbunam's limited participation is an encouraging sign that he'll be able to overcome this ailment before Denver's final injury report Friday. The third-year tight end caught seven of 11 targets for 50 yards over the first five weeks of the season, but he's been a healthy scratch since the emergence of rookie Greg Dulcich in Week 6. However, coach Nathaniel Hackett said Thursday that Okwuegbunam could be active again for Sunday's game against the Chiefs, as he could help supplement the team's depleted receiving corps with wideout Courtland Sutton considered doubtful to play with a hamstring injury.

Njoku (knee) was a limited practice participant Thursday, Scott Petrak of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram reports.

After sitting out last Sunday's 27-14 win over the Texans with the knee issue, Njoku has opened Week 14 prep with a pair of limited sessions. The Browns won't decide on whether Njoku carries a designation into this weekend's game against the Bengals until after Friday's practice, but the tight end is expected to return to the lineup Sunday, per Brad Stainbrook of 247Sports.com. If Njoku puts an end to his one-game absence this weekend, he'll be playing in his first game with new starting quarterback Deshaun Watson, who returned from his 11-game suspension last week and made his season debut against Houston.

Brown did not participate during the Browns' practice Thursday due to an illness, Scott Petrak of the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram reports.

Brown appears to have come down with an illness since practicing in full Wednesday, as he appeared on Cleveland's Week 14 injury report for the first time Thursday. While the nature of this ailment is still unknown, the 28-year-old will still have one more practice to improve his activity before the team must assign him a game status on Friday's final injury report. Brown played a season-high 40 offensive snaps with top tight end David Njoku (knee) sidelined against the Texans in Week 13, and it's likely he could see similarly increased usage if Njoku remains out Sunday against Cincinnati.

Smith (ankle) was present for the Vikings' practice session Thursday and was spotted jogging off to the side under the supervision of the team's training staff, Alec Lewis of The Athletic reports.

The Vikings haven't designated Smith for return from injured reserve and are unlikely to do so before the end of the week, but the fact that the tight end was at the team facility taking part of cardio work suggests that a return to practice could soon be in the offing. Smith was able to avoid surgery after suffering a significant high-ankle sprain in the Vikings' Oct. 30 win over the Cardinals, though head coach Kevin O'Connell said that he anticipated the 24-year-old would miss 4-to-8 weeks in total while recovering from the injury. Smith is just over five weeks removed from sustaining the high-ankle sprain and looks to be tracking toward the midpoint or longer end of that timeframe. Whenever he's cleared to play, Smith will likely have to settle for a bit role on offense, as trade-deadline pickup T.J. Hockenson is poised to dominate the snaps at tight end so long as he's available.

Hurst (calf) remained sidelined at practice Thursday, Andrew Gillis of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.

According to Gillis, head coach Zac Taylor has called the tight end doubtful for Sunday's game against the Browns after Hurst recently had a platelet-rich plasma injection for his right calf. For his part, Hurst noted Thursday that his injury is "nothing serious" and added that he expects to return in a couple of weeks. With that in mind, Hurst could be officially ruled out once the Bengals' final Week 14 injury report is posted Friday, and his availability for a Week 15 game at Tampa Bay also may be in some jeopardy. Mitchell Wilcox is expected to serve as the Bengals' top tight end for however long Hurst is out.

Goedert (shoulder) was spotted working out off to the side at Thursday's practice, Josh Tolentino of The Philadelphia Inquirer reports.

Since he's only missed three games thus far since being placed on injured reserve Nov. 16, Goedert won't be eligible to begin taking part in practice with the Eagles' healthy players until after Sunday's matchup with the Giants. Based on what he was able to do off to the side Thursday -- Tolentino notes that Goedert looked "very smooth" while running sprints and cutting around cones -- the tight end looks like he'll be ready to mix back into drills next week and potentially return from IR in advance of the Eagles' Dec. 18 game in Chicago. None of the Eagles' three tight ends (Jack Stoll, Grant Calcaterra and Tyree Jackson) have been overly involved in the passing attack in Goedert's absence the past three games; instead, No. 3 wideout Quez Watkins (shoulder) has been the main beneficiary of Goedert's vacated target volume.

Ertz disclosed Thursday that the season-ending surgery he underwent in late November addressed ACL and MCL damage in his left knee, Darren Urban of the Cardinals' official site reports.

Based on the recovery timeline typically associated with ACL surgeries, Ertz won't be available for the Cardinals' offseason program this spring, and the fact that his procedure also required an MCL repair adds another complication as he embarks on what will likely be an arduous rehab process. For his part, Ertz said that he's hopeful that he'll be ready to go for Week 1 of the 2023 season, but even if he endures no setbacks in the rehab process, he seems unlikely to be fully cleared for the start of training camp in late July. The Cardinals will turn to rookie second-round pick Trey McBride to serve as their top tight end for the rest of the current season, and perhaps in the early stages of the 2023 campaign, too.

Ricci (neck) was a full participant in practice Thursday, Darin Gantt of the Panthers' official site reports.

Ricci has been out of action since Week 10, but after he was able to complete a limited practice Wednesday, the 26-year-old upgraded to a full participant Thursday. He should return to his starting fullback role Sunday against the Seahawks.

Offensive coordinator Todd Downing said Thursday that Okonkwo has earned more opportunities, and the Titans have looked at drawing up more ways to get him the football, Turron Davenport of ESPN.com reports.

Austin Hooper remains the Titans' starting tight end and continues to hold an important role as a blocker and short-yardage target, but Okonkwo, a fourth-round rookie out of Maryland, appears poised to poach more work from both Hooper and Geoff Swaim. For the first time all season in the Week 13 loss to the Eagles, Okonkwo played more snaps (31) than both Hooper (26) and Swaim (20), finishing the day with four receptions for 68 yards on five targets. Okonkwo has now drawn five targets in consecutive games, and the big-play ability he's demonstrated -- he leads all NFL tight ends with three 40-yard receptions this season -- has him in position to see even more involvement in the passing game. The Titans could look to Okonkwo for snaps as a wide receiver, given that the position group is already short on impact contributors and could be further depleted this Sunday against the Jaguars with Treylon Burks in the concussion protocol and uncertain to be available.

Gilliam (ankle) was a non-participant in practice Thursday, Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.com reports.

This is the second consecutive DNP for Gilliam as the team preps for a divisional showdown with the Jets on Sunday. The 25-year-old has yet to miss a game this season, so although his offensive snaps are limited, it's unclear what the team would do without the only fullback on its roster. Gilliam will work to return to the practice field Friday, where his status will likely provide a better outlook for his potential availability Week 14.