NFL Player News

Hopkins (ankle) wasn't spotted at Thursday's practice, Jim Wyatt of the Titans' official site reports.

Hopkins didn't practice Wednesday, so the wideout's continued absence puts the focus firmly on what he's able to do at Friday's practice. On the plus side for the Titans, Treylon Burks was back on the field Thursday after missing Wednesday's session due to a personal matter. If Hopkins is out or limited Sunday against the Chargers, Nick Westbrook-Ikhine and/or Chris Moore would be candidates to see added Week 2 opportunities.

With Diontae Johnson expected to miss time with a hamstring injury, Austin is on track to see increased opportunities in the Steelers' passing game, Teresa Varley of the team's official site reports.

It remains to be seen how long Johnson will be sidelined, but he's not expected to play Monday night against the Browns, at a minimum. In that context, Austin has a chance to yield fantasy utility in deeper formats, while seeing an increased profile in a WR corps that also includes George Pickens and Allen Robinson. In the Steelers' Week 1 loss to the 49ers, Austin logged 35 snaps (Johnson saw 27 snaps prior to being injured) en route to catching all six of his targets for 37 yards.

Head coach Mike McCarthy said that Cooks (knee) won't practice Thursday, but the wideout is showing improvement and will work out alongside the Cowboys' other rehabbing players, Calvin Watkins of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Cooks is set to go down as a non-participant on the both of the Cowboys' first two Week 2 injury reports, but as long as he's able to take part in some drills Friday, he'll still have a chance at suiting up this Sunday against the Jets. In his Dallas debut this past Sunday against the Giants, Cooks caught two passes for 22 yards on four targets while playing just 56 percent of the offensive snaps, though his limited usage may have been a byproduct of the Cowboys racing out to a 26-point halftime lead en route to a 40-0 victory. According to Clarence E. Hill Jr. of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Cooks is dealing with an MCL sprain, though the Cowboys haven't offered many details regarding the nature and severity of his injury.

Johnson (hamstring) said Thursday that he's without a concrete timeline to return from the injury that he suffered Week 1, Brooke Pryor of ESPN.com reports.

Johnson said he's doing better after being hobbled for the first couple of days in the wake of sustaining his injury, and Pryor relays that a decision has yet to be made whether the wideout will land on injured reserve or not. A stint on IR would sideline Johnson for at least four games, so if the wideout avoids IR, it would be a sign that the Steelers are optimistic he'll be in store for a shorter-term absence. While Johnson refers to his situation as "day-to-day," previous reports suggested that he could be sidelined a few weeks. Head coach Mike Tomlin has thus far only spoke about Johnson's status for Monday's game against the Browns, telling Pryor on Tuesday that the receiver is "probably unavailable" for Week 2. With that in mind, Johnson may not be officially ruled out for Monday's contest until Saturday, when the Steelers release their final injury report of the week.

McCloud (wrist) was listed as a full participant at practice Wednesday.

McCloud broke his left wrist in early August but recovered quickly and was able to log two limited practices and a full practice last week. He ended up playing three of 68 offensive snaps in a season-opening win over Pittsburgh and also worked as San Francisco's lead punt returner, gaining 41 yards on three returns. McCloud appears to be clear of the wrist issue given this week's full practice session.

Meyers (concussion) didn't participate in Wednesday's practice.

Prior to taking a hit to the head from Broncos safety Kareem Jackson this past Sunday, Meyers had notched nine catches (on 10 targets) for 81 yards and two touchdowns. The aforementioned play in the waning moments of the fourth quarter of the Raiders' season-opening win sent Meyers into the concussion protocol, and he's yet to progress enough to step on the practice field. He'll have two more chances to practice this week, which also can be said for fellow wideouts Davante Adams (foot) and DeAndre Carter (knee), both of whom were sidelined to begin Week 2 prep. Aside from that trio, Hunter Renfrow, Kristian Wilkerson and Tre Tucker are the healthy wide receivers on the Raiders' active roster.

Carter (knee) didn't participate in practice Wednesday.

Carter dealt with a knee issue throughout last week, logging a trio of limited practices. He was able to play against Denver on Sunday, however, finishing with nine offensive snaps and catching his only target for five yards. It's not a promising sign that the offseason acquisition is beginning this week with a DNP, though he'll have two days to get back on the practice field ahead of Sunday's contest in Buffalo.

Metchie (hamstring) was a limited participant in practice Wednesday.

Metchie is still working toward making his NFL debut after spending the entirety of his rookie season battling leukemia and rehabbing a torn ACL as well as missing Sunday's loss to the Ravens with a hamstring injury. If he's good to go for the Texans' Week 2 matchup with the Colts, the 23-year-old will likely find himself competing with Tank Dell and Xavier Hutchinson for playing time

New Orleans signed Bowden to its 53-man roster Wednesday, Aaron Wilson of KPRC 2 Houston reports.

A little more than two weeks after being cut from the practice squad, Bowden has now found his way onto the active roster. As long as Chris Olave, Michael Thomas and Rashid Shaheed remain healthy though, there's not going to be many targets left for the Saints' other wideouts.

Jeudy (hamstring) was a limited participant at practice Wednesday.

Per Zac Stevens of TheDNVR.com, head coach Sean Payton said Wednesday that Jeudy was "close" to playing Week 1 before ultimately being inactive for the Broncos' loss to the Raiders. With that in mind, the wideout appears to be trending in the right direction ahead of Sunday's game against the Commanders.