NFL Player News

Zaccheaus (hamstring) was a limited practice participant Wednesday due to a hamstring injury.

Zaccheaus is making his first appearance of the season on the injury report after having played between 25 and 51 percent of the offensive snaps in all but one of the Commanders' first eight games. He ran 18 routes in this past Sunday's 18-15 win over the Bears without drawing single target, following consecutive games with exactly six targets and four catches. An absence for Sunday's game at the Giants would leave more snaps and routes available for some combination of Noah Brown, Luke McCaffrey and Dyami Brown.

Downs (toe) didn't practice Wednesday.

Along with Downs, fellow wideout Michael Pittman (back) was a spectator for practice, but given that neither player was reported to have experienced any setbacks with their respective injuries in Sunday's 23-20 loss to the Texans, both receivers' listed absences are presumably a case of workload management. In the Week 8 loss, Downs logged a 70 percent snap share while putting up a 4-109-1 receiving line on nine targets. As long as the wideout is able to fully practice by Friday, he should approach this weekend's game against the Vikings minus an injury designation, just as he did prior to facing Houston. Downs' rest-of-season fantasy outlook should be trending upward, as the Colts named Joe Flacco their starting quarterback going forward while demoting the struggling Anthony Richardson to the No. 2 role.

Pittman (back) didn't practice Wednesday.

Pittman's practice reps have been managed of late while he's nursed a back injury, as he's now been listed as a non-participant on four consecutive Wednesday injury reports. The Colts haven't suggested that Pittman suffered any setbacks coming out of Sunday's 23-20 loss to the Texans, when he logged a 95 percent snap share and finished with one catch for 16 yards on six targets. The expectation is that Pittman will upgrade to full participation Thursday and/or Friday to clear up any concern about his status for this weekend's game against the Vikings. Assuming he's available for the contest, Pittman's fantasy prospects should be bolstered by the installation of Joe Flacco over the struggling Anthony Richardson as the Colts' starting quarterback moving forward.

Cooper (wrist) was listed as a limited practice participant Wednesday.

According to Maddy Glab of the Bills' official site, head coach Sean McDermott suggested that Cooper would be a non-participant in the team's first Week 9 session, but the wideout ended up getting some work in after all. Alaina Getzenberg of ESPN.com noted that Cooper participated in the Bills' wideout drills, and then a bit more in the drills that followed during the portion of Wednesday's practice that was open to the media. Cooper now has two more chances to increase his practice participation ahead of Sunday's game against the Dolphins.

Metcalf (knee) won't practice Wednesday, but head coach Mike Macdonald said he's optimistic the wideout will return to practice Thursday and then play in Sunday's game against the Rams, Curtis Crabtree of Fox 13 Seattle reports.

Metcalf didn't practice last week and ended up missing a 31-10 loss to the Bills after suffering an MCL sprain the week before. His sprain isn't thought to be especially, but Macdonald's optimism should probably be taken with a grain of salt, especially with a bye week coming up after Sunday's game and then two more divisional games scheduled on the other side of the bye (Week 11 at San Francisco, Week 12 vs. Arizona).

Thielen (hamstring) was a limited participant in Wednesday's practice.

Thielen remains on injured reserve, but if he can maintain limited practice activity or upgrade to full activity at some point this week, he could be activated ahead of Sunday's game against the Saints. Whenever Thielen makes his return to the 53-man roster, he could be in line to handle an increased role on offense, after the Panthers traded top wideout Diontae Johnson (rib) to the Ravens on Tuesday. Of course, the Panthers are playing for the future, so the team could opt to maximize opportunities for rookies Xavier Legette and Jalen Coker and second-year wideout Jonathan Mingo once Thielen has been cleared to play.

Higgins (quadricep) didn't practice Wednesday, instead working on a side field with trainers, Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic reports.

The injury doesn't seem too serious, considering Higgins is working on a side field five days after injuring his quad during practice. He has a lengthy history of hamstring injuries, however, which may prompt the Bengals to proceed cautiously with him. Higgins missed Sunday's 37-17 loss to the Eagles and now appears uncertain to play this coming Sunday against the Raiders.

Cracraft (upper body) was designated to return from injured reserve Wednesday, Marcel Louis-Jacques of ESPN.com reports.

Cracraft has been on IR since Week 1 prep began, due to the injury he suffered during training camp. He'll now have a 21-day window to practice with the team before he needs to be placed on the 53-man roster. Once healthy and active, he should compete with Odell Beckham for snaps at wide receiver, behind Tyreek Hill (foot) and Jaylen Waddle.

Hill (foot) isn't practicing Wednesday, Joe Schad of The Palm Beach Post reports.

The Dolphins added Hill to their injury report last Thursday and listed him as questionable for Sunday's eventual loss to the Cardinals. He ended up suiting up and played 88 percent of snaps in the contest while leading the team in targets (nine) and receiving yards (72). A return to practice Thursday and/or Friday would put Hill on track to play again this Sunday at Buffalo.

Polk (concussion) was present for practice Wednesday, Evan Lazar of the Patriots' official site reports.

Polk didn't practice at all during Week 8, so his presence at Wednesday's session bodes well for his chances of being cleared to play Sunday against the Titans. If Polk is available this weekend, however, his role would be somewhat muddled. The 2024 second-round pick has struggled with drops this season and has been limited to 10 catches for 78 yards and a touchdown on 26 targets through seven appearances.