NFL Player News

Smythe (quad/knee) was limited in Wednesday's practice, Daniel Oyefusi of the Miami Herald reports.

Smythe appears to have picked up both quad and knee injuries during the Dolphins' Week 13 loss to the 49ers, explaining why he opened the week in limited fashion. The 27-year-old tight end has two more chances to practice in full before the team is forced to tag him with an injury designation heading into Sunday night's matchup against the Chargers.

The Chargers designated Parham (hamstring) to return from injured reserve Wednesday, Aaron Wilson of ProFootballNetwork.com reports.

Wednesday's transaction opens a 21-day window for the Chargers to add Parham back to the active roster, after he missed each of the team's last six games with a hamstring issue. Once it's been medically determined that the 25-year-old is ready for game action, he'll likely compete for rotational snaps with Tre' McKitty and Stone Smartt behind starter Gerald Everett.

Horsted (concussion) has been ruled out for Thursday's game against the Rams, Vincent Bonsignore of the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports.

Horsted sustained a concussion during the Raiders' Week 12 matchup in Seattle, and the 25-year-old will ultimately miss his second consecutive contest because of it. Horsted has mainly operated as a special-teams contributor thus far in 2022, so his absence shouldn't greatly alter Las Vegas' game plan Thursday against the Rams.

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

Njoku missed three of the past six games with two separate knee injuries but reportedly is expected to return from a one-week absence for Sunday's matchup with Cincinnati. Petrak notes that the tight end looked good at Wednesday's practice, though the Browns kept him limited rather than unleashing Njoku as a full participant. That could be coming Thursday or Friday.

Morris (illness) isn't listed on Wednesday's injury report.

Morris was inactive for last Thursday's win over the Patriots due to the illness, but he's had plenty of time to recover and should be good to go for Sunday's matchup against the Jets. Across 10 appearances this season, Morris has caught seven of 10 targets for 70 yards.

Ricci (neck) was a limited participant during Wednesday's practice, David Newton of ESPN.com reports.

Ricci hasn't played since Week 10 due to a neck issue. This isn't the first time he's logged limited participation since picking up the injury, so he'll likely have to submit at least one full practice before returning to game action.

Kieft brought in one of two targets for 12 yards in the Buccaneers' 17-16 win over the Saints on Monday night.

Kieft was able to once again make an appearance on the stat sheet with Cameron Brate (illness) sidelined, recording a catch for the fifth time in the last six games. Despite the frequent cameo appearances in the air attack, the rookie sixth-round pick is the Buccaneers' clear block-first tight end even when a pass-catching option at the position like Brate is sidelined.

Swaim recorded one reception on one target for four yards in Sunday's 35-10 loss to the Eagles.

Swaim played a season-low 20 snaps while continuing to give way to both Austin Hooper and Chigoziem Okonkwo. His lone catch of the game came midway through the third quarter and was not impactful. Even if Swaim sees his playing time tick back up, his primary role will almost certainly be as a blocker.

Bates was not targeted in Sunday's 20-20 tie against the Giants.

Bates played 45 of the team's offensive snaps, but he failed to tally any stats. It was just the third time in 12 contests the second-year pro failed to see a target, and the sixth time he's gone without a reception. After a Week 14 bye, Bates will work to get on the stat sheet Week 15 in a rematch with the Giants.

Mundt caught his only target for a 12-yard gain in Sunday's 27-22 win over the Jets.

Mundt operated as the team's No. 2 tight end behind T.J. Hockenson, seeing the field for 24 snaps on offense. It was the 28-year-old's third consecutive game with a reception. He'll likely play a similar role Week 14 against the Lions.