NFL Player News

Thomas (ribs/illness) is active Week 12 against the Falcons.

Despite catching five of six targets for 65 yards in Week 11, Thomas remained bothered by a ribs injury into the practice week, in addition to dealing with an illness. He'll overcome both of those obstacles to suit up Sunday against Atlanta -- a team that has allowed 62 receptions to opposing tight ends this season, which is tied with Miami for the second most in the league.

Oliver is expected to serve as the Ravens' No. 2 tight end behind starter Mark Andrews in Sunday's game against the Jaguars with Isaiah Likely (ankle) ruled out for the contest, Ryan Mink of Baltimore's official site reports.

Baltimore also has Nick Boyle and Charlie Kolar available as options at tight end, but the former serves mainly as a special-teams contributor and blocker on offense, while the latter has yet to make his NFL debut. Oliver, meanwhile, has already held a steady role on offense all season, even on the occasions both Andrews and Likely have been available. He's played no fewer than 30 percent of the offensive snaps in any of Baltimore's 10 games to date and has drawn at least one target in each of the past six contests.

Thomas (ribs/illness) remains listed as questionable but is in line to play Sunday against the Falcons, Adam Schefter of ESPN reports.

A lingering rib injury followed Thomas into Week 12 prep, limiting him at practice Wednesday and Thursday. An illness then prevented him from doing any on-field work Friday, resulting in him taking a designation into the weekend. Head coach Ron Rivera told John Keim of ESPN.com on Friday that he expected Thomas to be available this weekend, and Schefter's report backs up that assessment. Still, Thomas' status won't be clarified until about 90 minutes before Sunday's 1 p.m. ET kickoff.

Heyward (illness) returned to practice Saturday and does not have an injury designation for Monday's contest against the Colts, Mike DeFabo of The Athletic reports.

Heyward didn't practice Friday due to an unspecified illness, but he felt well enough to log a full session Saturday. As a result, he should be able to suit up against Indianapolis on Monday Night Football. That said, Heyward isn't likely to play a major role on offense, as he's logged only 32 offensive snaps and totaled just three catches for 15 yards for the Steelers over the past four weeks.

The Cardinals placed Ertz (knee) on injured reserve Saturday, Darren Urban of the team's official site reports.

This move was inevitable after coach Kliff Kingsbury announced Nov. 16 that Ertz was slated for season-ending surgery for the knee injury he suffered Week 10. But the Cardinals waited until Marquise Brown (foot) was healthy enough to be activated from IR, which came to pass Saturday. With Ertz sidelined, Arizona will turn to Trey McBride as the team's top tight end, with Stephen Anderson and practice-squad member Maxx Williams the other options at the position.

Granson (illness) is questionable for Monday's game against the Steelers, Ben Arthur of FoxSports.com reports.

Granson was absent from all three practices of Week 12 prep due to an illness, but the Colts will give him a bit more time before making a decision on his availability. If he's able to suit up Monday, he'll join Mo Alie-Cox and Jelani Woods in a timeshare at tight end for Indianapolis, which so far has resulted in a 25-249-0 line on 32 targets for Granson this season.

Likely (ankle) has been downgraded to out and won't play Sunday against the Jaguars.

The return of Mark Andrews from a one-game absence last week has lessened the importance of Likely's status, though the rookie still drew three targets in the Ravens' Week 11 win over the Panthers. Expect Josh Oliver to see more playing time as the Ravens' No. 2 tight end this weekend.

Long (concussion) does not have an injury designation ahead of Sunday's matchup against the Texans.

Long missed Miami's Week 10 contest against Cleveland while in concussion protocol, but he was able to recover during the team's bye in Week 11. He officially cleared the protocol Friday and will return to his rotational role in the offense while also having a significant workload on special teams.

Heyward (illness) was listed as a DNP on the Steelers' injury report Friday, Chris Halicke of DKPittsburghSports.com reports.

Heyward missed his first practice of Week 12 after popping up with an illness Friday. While the severity of this ailment is still unknown, the rookie tight end will have two full days to overcome this issue before Monday's game against the Colts. Heyward's status on Saturday's final injury report should shed more light on his availability against Indianapolis.

Yeboah (calf) has been deemed doubtful to play Sunday against the Bears, Rich Cimini of ESPN.com reports.

Yeboah popped up with a calf issue on the Jets' injury report last Friday, leaving him sidelined for the first time this season against the Patriots in Week 7. The tight end then failed to practice at all Week 12, and he appears set to remain out Sunday versus Chicago. As a result, expect Jeremy Ruckert to step up as the Jets' third-string tight end behind Tyler Conklin and C.J. Uzomah.