NFL Player News

Evans (hamstring) doesn't have an injury designation for Sunday's game against the Lions.

Evans tweaked his hamstring in the Buccaneers' Week 4 win over the Saints, but a well-timed Week 5 bye appears to have allowed the veteran wideout to make enough progress in his recovery to return to action without missing any games. The 30-year-old steadily increased his practice activity throughout the week, advancing from no participation Wednesday to limited work Thursday before taking every rep in Friday's session. He should be able to take on a normal snap count Sunday while Tampa Bay takes aim at a Detroit secondary that will be without one of its top three cornerbacks in Emmanuel Moseley (knee), who suffered a season-ending ACL tear last week.

Douglas (concussion) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Raiders, Evan Lazar of the Patriots' official site reports.

With JuJu Smith-Schuster (concussion) also ruled out for the contest, the Patriots' top available wideouts Sunday will be DeVante Parker and Kendrick Bourne, with Kayshon Boutte and the versatile Ty Montgomery also on hand. Additionally, Tyquan Thornton (shoulder) could be activated from injured reserve this week, while Malik Cunningham and/or Jalen Reagor are potential Week 6 practice-squad elevations. Douglas will thus target a potential return to action Oct. 22 against the Bills.

Tillman (hip) is listed as out for Sunday's game versus San Francisco, Kelsey Russo of the Browns' official site reports.

Tillman will sit out in Week 6 after first being added to the injury report Thursday. Marquise Goodwin could see an uptick in snaps on the boundary Sunday in Tillman's absence.

Watkins has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Jets with a hamstring injury.

Watkins returned from a two-game absence last week but now is having trouble with his hamstring again. Olamide Zaccheaus is expected to get another look as the No. 3 receiver, which should translate to a good number of snaps but not many targets. Watkins and Zaccheaus have combined for 10 targets through five games.

Thornton (shoulder) is listed as questionable for Sunday's game in Vegas, Evan Lazar of the Patriots' official site reports.

There's optimism around the team that Thornton will be able to make his season debut and bolster New England's banged-up receiving corps, which will be without JuJu Smith-Schuster (concussion) and Demario Douglas (concussion). In order to play, Thornton will first need to be officially activated from injured reserve. His 21-day window to return from IR was opened Tuesday.

Smith-Schuster (concussion) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Raiders, Evan Lazar of the Patriots' official site reports.

Demario Douglas (concussion) is also sidelined for the Week 6, leaving DeVante Parker, Kendrick Bourne, Kayshon Boutte and the versatile Ty Montgomery as the team's available options at receiver currently on the 53-man roster. Additionally, Tyquan Thornton (shoulder) is a candidate to be activated from injured reserve ahead of Sunday's game, while Malik Cunningham and/or Jalen Reagor are potential practice-squad elevations. Smith-Schuster will now target a potential return to action Oct. 22 against the Bills.

St. Brown (hamstring) has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Vikings.

St. Brown was unable to practice at all during the week after hurting his hamstring in last Thursday's win over Washington. Tyler Scott, Velus Jones or Trent Taylor could see more opportunities behind DJ Moore and Darnell Mooney in Chicago's receiving corps Sunday, while St. Brown will set his sights on returning in Week 7 against the Raiders.

Head coach Arthur Smith said Atlanta will make a decision Saturday on Jefferson's status for Sunday's game against Washington, D. Orlando Ledbetter of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

Jefferson was acquired Tuesday in a trade from the Rams. The wide receiver is healthy, but it remains to be seen if he has mastered enough of the playbook to make his Atlanta debut Sunday against the Commanders. If he plays, Jefferson's likely to have a limited role to begin his tenure with the Falcons.

Head coach Frank Reich said Friday that Shenault will have a role in Carolina's rushing attack with Miles Sanders (shoulder) out Sunday in Miami, though Chuba Hubbard is expected to lead the team's backfield, David Newton of ESPN.com reports.

While Shenault is listed as a wide receiver, most of his usage has come on the ground, as he has 11 carries for 53 yards compared to four catches for 28 yards through five games. Sanders' absence could lead to more opportunities for Shenault, though the biggest beneficiary of the lead back's absence Sunday is likely to be Hubbard, who actually out-snapped and out-touched Sanders over the past two weeks.

The Bengals list Higgins (ribs) as questionable for Sunday's game against the Seahawks after he practiced fully Friday.

Higgins' full practice session was his first since he fractured a rib in the Bengals' Oct. 1 loss to the Titans. He sat out last week's win over Arizona but looks to be trending in the right direction for Sunday after turning in a pair of limited practices this week in addition to the full session Friday. Per Geoff Hobson of the Bengals' official site, head coach Zac Taylor described Higgins as a game-time call for Sunday's contest, so fantasy managers will still want to verify the wideout's availability when Cincinnati releases its inactive list approximately 90 minutes before the 1 p.m. ET kickoff.